Lets consider the situation – you are a new company , relatively small but there is massive potential to become a big competitor in your industry. You are wanting to advertise your website through Search Engine Optimisation, aiming to get as high a ranking on the organic listings as possible. You have all the tools, the experience and the foundations for your business to be a big success. Here you are presented with potentially a major dilemma – do I rush into a high ranking positions or do build up my reputation progressively through SEO skills? Basically, which is most important to you – Trust or Rank? 

The argument for high ranking – when searching on Google you don’t trawl through the first five pages. People tend to look at the first page only, it is where the most business is made. The first page of any search engine is where everyone aims to be. Getting onto that first page is the most important part of any Search Engine Optimisation campaign, but cutting a few shortcuts along the way and risking your reputation can be a small price to pay when so many people are seeing your name when searching on Google, Yahoo or MSN. Getting your name out there first is most important. Building on the trust comes later. 

The downside – At some point down the line, you will fail. Whilst taking shortcuts is appealing (after all if you could get away with doing that little bit less but getting just as far, who wouldn’t want to?) it is cheating the system and your business will be affected due. The saying goes that “you are only cheating yourself”, However, this would not be the case. You will be cheating the consumer, and your competition will be more than happy to welcome the business your SEO campaign has pushed away. Bad news travels faster than any any other kind of news. You will be cheating your competition, and once that happens then you are finished – your website blacklisted, no longer appearing in search results, and all because of your unethical Search Engine Optimisation strategy. Cheating yourself comes last here as at the end of the day “the customer is always right” and you would have wronged them. 

Whilst it may take longer and may be a little more difficult, an ethical and trustworthy Search Engine Optimisation campaign will eventually be far more beneficial. An SEO campaign is not an overnight solution and such a strategy takes time and a lot of effort to achieve goals, but that is how it should be in order to maximise the potential of your business. Taking your time to create and improve your website using the methods of Search Engine Optimisation is far more beneficial to you and your business in the long run. 

Building your business on trust will be slower than taking shortcuts but you will end up getting further and the benefits will be far greater. Like I have already said, you take shortcuts and “you will only be cheating yourself”.

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