White hat, black hat, and gray hat are terms often used to describe the aggressiveness of internet marketers or website developers, especially regarding practices used to get search engines to give a high ranking to websites (SEO). But what do the terms mean? It depends on who you ask. There are at least three ways to understand white hat vs. black hat practices.
1 - White hat is considered entirely ethical, while black hat is considered unethical. Gray hat, then, would be something in-between: ethical to some, but perhaps not to others.
2 - A white hat marketer is not at all aggressive in promoting a product, service, or website and chooses to let traffic develop naturally. (In reality, there are probably no white hat marketers if you look at it this way.) A black hat marketer, then, is extremely aggressive in promoting a product or website. At this end of the spectrum is the danger of unethical practices. (There are a large number of these out there.)
3 - White hat practices are just shrewd methods of working within the current system, doing anything that is acceptable to search engines. Black hat marketing, then, would mean using tactics that flout the search engine rules while trying to avoid getting caught.
Since there are no written rules beyond search engine guidelines, determining where you should be on the spectrum can be a challenge. If you're working online as an internet marketer, though, you need to determine which you're going to wear: a white hat, a black hat, or a gray hat, no matter how you define them.
You probably already know this by now, but in order to make money online, there are some choices you'll need to make. Okay, let me warn you, there are a LOT of choices you'll need to make. For example:
Should I work for someone else or should I begin an at-home business and work for myself?
Should I do it all on my own or get some help?
Should I learn from this expert or that one?
Should I use this tool or that one?
In order to make your decisions you probably ask other questions:
What goals do I have?
How much time do I have to invest?
How much money can I spend right now?
But sometimes we need to ask additional questions, especially when determining what to promote and how aggressively to do so. Here are some that I often ask myself:
Is it good for others as well as for myself?
Could I defend my decision to God and to the people I love and lead (like my children)?
Can I keep the promises I'm making?
Would I pay for the product or service I'm promoting?
Would I want others to promote this product or service to someone I care about?
If others used this practice with me would I feel deceived?
Could there be unforeseen negative consequences if I do this?
If you've bought many products from internet marketers trying to "teach you how to do it," then you've probably encountered some people who didn't seem to ask themselves this last set of questions. I've certainly been exposed to a few. Yet, I've also met some I highly respect and trust. The internet would be improved, in my opinion, if all internet marketers would not just tell others what to do and what to buy, but would also ask a few more questions.
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