• On The Insider: Britney's Bikini-Clad Top 10
July 2, 2007 7:47 AM PDT

Wikipedians backlash against Search Engine Land article

by Stephan Spencer
  • Font size
  • Print
  • Post a comment

Wikipedians don't like editors who are disingenuous. Playing games within Wikipedia in the hopes of not getting caught is just asking for trouble. I was reminded of this fact while reading the Search Engine Land article What To Do When Your Company Wikipedia Page Goes Bad. On the surface, Jessica, SEO at Business.com, offers some no-nonsense advice on removing or minimizing negative material on Wikipedia. But be advised that you are entering into dangerous territory if you employ Jessica's tips. Read the comments and you'll find some very negative reactions from respected Wikipedians JEHochman and Durova about the proposed tactics. I would heed their words of caution if I were you.

The comment from Seth Finkelstein sums it up nicely: "The Ranger won't like that, Yogi."

Read my Search Engine Land article The Art of SEO for Wikipedia and you'll get some tips that aren't out-of-bounds. Remember, if you are sneaky, you will leave tracks, and when you're caught by the wikisleuths, you won't get the benefit of the Wikipedia 'assume good faith' provision.

Stephan Spencer is the founder and president of Netconcepts, a Web agency specializing in e-commerce optimized for search engines. He is a member of the CNET Blog Network, and is not an employee of CNET. Disclosure.
Recent posts from Searchlight
Be unique to avoid duplicate content
Selling duplicate content
Book review: How To Make Money With Your Blog
Yahoo Suggest: The Good, the Bad, and the Unbelievable
Understanding duplicate content: Outside view
Flickr adds video to photo sharing services
Duplicate content: Separating the penalty from the filter
Use SEO to optimize your recession
advertisement

A CNET Conversation with Eric Schmidt

CNET's Tom Krazit and Molly Wood sit down with Google CEO Eric Schmidt to discuss the future of Android, the Chrome OS, the problem of real-time search indexing, and more.

Verizon tests sending RIAA copyright notices

The No. 2 phone company, known for its reluctance to intervene in antipiracy cases, strikes an agreement to forward copyright notices on behalf of the music industry.

advertisement

About Searchlight

Search engine optimization expert Stephan Spencer and analysts from Net Concepts share late-breaking SEO tools, tips, trends, resources, news and insights. Stephan is the founder and president of Netconcepts, a web agency specializing in search engine optimized ecommerce. Clients include Discovery Channel, AOL, Home Shopping Network, Verizon SuperPages.com, and REI, to name a few. Stephan is a frequent speaker at Internet conferences around the globe. He is also a Senior Contributor to MarketingProfs.com, a monthly columnist for Practical Ecommerce, and he's been a contributor to DM News, Multichannel Merchant, Catalog Success, Catalog Age, and others. The blog is part of the CNET Blog Network and the authors are not employees of CNET. Disclosure.

Add this feed to your online news reader

Searchlight topics

advertisement
advertisement

Inside CNET News

Scroll Left Scroll Right