When I changed hosts recently my ranking in Google disappeared totally and I have been working really hard to get it back. Having done a pile of htaccess, with proper error code handling with a specific file designed to translate error codes, serve a decent understandable message to users and also return the correct redirect code to allow Google to remove pages I no longer want included in their search results.
Sorting all of this out is no mean feat! It’s taken experimentation and some exhaustive reading of Google’s Webmaster Guidelines. During one of my more recent multiple page, cross-referencing, romps through these I found something that shook me slightly…
We’re all familiar with the CSS trick to place text in links but hide the text off screen to enable you to put an image as the background, for things like logos. The CSS I personally use is:-
a span {
position: absolute;
left: -1000px;
top: auto;
width: 1px;
height: 1px;
overflow: hidden;
}
Now this has seemed fine to me, nothing sinister, no underhand blackhat SEO methods but then I read…
Hiding text or links in your content can cause your site to be perceived as untrustworthy since it presents information to search engines differently than to visitors.
Source: Google WebMaster Guidelines
Now further reading of this section has kind of lowered my worries, the article uses words like ‘excessive keywords’, which does make me feel a little better.
But now I turn to you out there, reassure me please! Google isn’t seeing these off screen links as bad is it?
Does my page rank get affected by these? If the site doesn’t bring it’s ranking up in the search engines soon I’m going to be contacting Google to request reconsideration and I don’t want to do it if things like that are going to screw me.
Alan Hamlyn on 21 September, 2009
You are at risk of having your site banned for hiding links, Google doesn’t find it easy to find these links, infact i doubt they will find your ones, but more likely google encourages other users to report sites doing such a thing via their webmaster tools
so in short, i recommend that you don’t hide links, but you are unlikely to be caught, and their are no negatives until you are caught
Spyda on 21 September, 2009
Yes, how they would work out it was hidden with CSS seeing as bots don’t really read it. So have I just opened myself up for being reported? LOL
Alan Hamlyn on 21 September, 2009
Dan on 21 September, 2009
My understanding is Google will only ban your site if your hiding the content to trick it or to be malicious so in this case I would guess you’d be OK.
Alan Hamlyn on 22 September, 2009
Ignorance doesn’t count in googles rule book
but they simply cannot detect it YET, so you are safe
Rich Quick on 2 October, 2009
It won’t affect your ranking, except where they ban you altogether.
This only happens after a human review, and they email you to explain why.
It’s happened on 2 sites I know of, both times it was for having content in the link / h1 which different to the text in in.
Eg. Saying “Keyword” in an h1 but image replacing it with “welcome to our store”.
Image replacement is allowed, but it has to be the same content .. not a trick.
Alan Hamlyn on 3 October, 2009
Absolutely agree with Rich, same as what I’ve said but a better explanation
Spyda on 3 October, 2009
A great answer thank you Rich!
I was looking all over from something from Google to say just that. It seemed strange that they would penalise a usual web design standard.
Thankfully, I’m not out to cheat the system. As far as I’m aware all hidden text has the same text as the image that replaces it. I figure make those bits (as well as everything else) keyword rich (without going overboard).