The economy’s looking as gloomy as ever, and as Christmas approaches, a lot of folks will be getting “Star Wars” DVD sets.  A session at a search engine conference in Chicago sort of connected to both issues by weighing the “dark side” approach to SEO.

Okay, more accurately, the term for underhanded stuff is “black hat” SEO, and the opposing school of thought (which goes by the label “white hat”) was also discussed.  But when you need an opener, you need an opener, so what the heck.  On to the meat.

Kevin Newcomb reports, “Much of the discussion centered on buying links for SEO purposes, which is frowned upon by Google.  Naylor and Friesen both said buying links should be allowed, noting that paid links are still relevant, since they bring a user to the page they promise.”

So there’s one option.  Or if you prefer headgear of a lighter color, Newcomb notes, “Naylor outlined one of his favorite white hat methods of getting links: press releases.  When you issue a press release with links in the copy, you will often get people that reprint the release on their site with the links intact.”

It’s quite possible for a single person or business to embrace both methods, too.  Just please keep the potential penalties and rewards in mind if you choose the prohibited path.

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