Dirty Competitor Wars And Tactics - who has been through a dirty war with a competing site?

Bulldozer · 08-18-2011, 03:00 AM

I am trying to get the #1 spot in a very good niche that has almost no competition and converts like crazy.

When I start competing against the current #1 guy, who is also running a Made For AdSense site, I will be putting his $2,000/mo earnings at risk.
I know that I will inevitably beat this guy in no time, because his site is crap, but I also suspect with almost 100% certainty that the guy, who is obviously an experienced AdSenser and a SEO expert, will attack me and will start using dirty black-hat tactics on me and try to shut me down.

Who has been in a situations like that?
Who has been in a ranking war against a competitor?

What dirty tactics are there to shut down the other guy down and MOSTLY: how can I protect my site from them?

Share your story!

mikel.perez.01 · 08-18-2011, 04:15 AM

Hi, Bulldozer

First of all, let me tell you that I have never been in that situation, at least not that I know of.

How do you know that guy is going to attack you using black-hat tactics?

I don't think it's so easy to "attack" a site and have it deindexed, snadboxed or whatever; if it were I guess lots of people would spend more time attacking competitors than SEOing their own sites.

I'd just make sure that my site abides to Google's rules and Adsense ToS, and I'd also be sure to include good content, because otherwise you are giving him the chance to report your site as webspam or a site that violates license agreements.

If you want to be even safer, don't link to questionable content from your site, or get into any of those crappy linkwheel / link exchange schemes just in case Google catches the footprint and penalizes the whole network, your site incluided.

Other than that, I don't think there's much you can do to protect yourself, but i don't think there's much he can do either to have your site penalized.

If he is really an SEO expert and is earning money with his site, you are much more likely to get into a "whitehat war" with him, so to speak, meaning he will reinvest part of his earnings in more backlinks so that you don't get his position.

That, I have experienced a few times

Bulldozer · 08-18-2011, 04:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mikel.perez.01

Hi, Bulldozer

First of all, let me tell you that I have never been in that situation, at least not that I know of.

How do you know that guy is going to attack you using black-hat tactics?

I don't think it's so easy to "attack" a site and have it deindexed, snadboxed or whatever; if it were I guess lots of people would spend more time attacking competitors than SEOing their own sites.

I'd just make sure that my site abides to Google's rules and Adsense ToS, and I'd also be sure to include good content, because otherwise you are giving him the chance to report your site as webspam or a site that violates license agreements.

If you want to be even safer, don't link to questionable content from your site, or get into any of those crappy linkwheel / link exchange schemes just in case Google catches the footprint and penalizes the whole network, your site incluided.

Other than that, I don't think there's much you can do to protect yourself, but i don't think there's much he can do either to have your site penalized.

If he is really an SEO expert and is earning money with his site, you are much more likely to get into a "whitehat war" with him, so to speak, meaning he will reinvest part of his earnings in more backlinks so that you don't get his position.

That, I have experienced a few times

Thanks, Mike, very insightful post.

How do I know he is going to attack me? Well, I don't really know that, but I am expecting somebody to attack me every time I try to deprive them form their $2000/month earnings.

Regarding the spam linkwheels: I would never touch anything like that. Also, I would never use software for my backlinking needs. I totally do believe in white-hat approach and I'm already enjoying myself writing content for my future web site. Original, 100% content, that is.
I don't spin people's articles or anything like that.

With all that being said, I still think that a guy who doesn't want to lose his monthly income (or a considerable portion of it) would not be too hesitant to start posting links to my website on porn sites and other "bad" places on the internet.

Now, how do you prevent stuff like that?
You call Google and tell them to de-index the bad links or what?

VladWorks · 08-18-2011, 09:44 AM

It is really hard to blackhat a competitor out of rankings. If you actually tried to do it you would likely end up helping them solidify the spot rather then losing it.

Most SEOs will spend energy on helping their own site instead of wreaking havoc on a competitor.

rahmanpaidar · 08-18-2011, 10:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by seoupdate

I don't think it's so easy...

You have nothing to share here and you offer SEO services? Shame.

You are just copy pasting other member's posts from this forum and
other forums.

paulgl · 08-18-2011, 10:18 AM

Like a bulldozer, just bulldoze your good stuff. This will outweigh
any bad stuff a competitor does. The more good stuff you do,
the more irrelevant other crap becomes.

People here have a huge tendency to mix up cause and effect.

In fact, many people here seem to be worried, not due to anything
tangible, but the fear mongering that goes on about nonsense.

Worry about the stuff you do, not about anyone else.

Paul

avatar9812 · 08-18-2011, 10:30 AM

Well, focus on your own site and let the part which you can not control go.

DynoMutt · 08-18-2011, 10:47 AM

I wouldn't be so quick to think he's going to attack you. Not everyone is evil.

eljeffe77 · 08-18-2011, 11:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DynoMutt

I wouldn't be so quick to think he's going to attack you. Not everyone is evil.

This is true, i've lost page 1 rankings to others before. I just focused on my own stuff instead of focusing 'hatred' or 'rage' on them....not everybodys' evil and out for blood.

trishseo · 08-18-2011, 11:53 AM

I'm a grey hat SEO myself and trust me, it's a lot of work. I really doubt your competitor is going to do what you think they're going to do. All you have to do is focus on bettering you and your own sites.

Bulldozer · 08-18-2011, 02:56 PM

Thanks, folks! I will do as you advised me - I will focus on my on stuff and mind my own business.

Still, I am almost sure that rankings wars that included the use of dirty tactics have happened before..
If my competitor starts a war, I will bump this thread and ask for advice from people who have been through stuff like that.

08-18-2011, 04:15 AM	#2
mikel.perez.01 Active Warrior War Room Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: Bilbao, Spain Posts: 76 Thanks: 18 Thanked 109 Times in 23 Posts	Re: Dirty Competitor Wars And Tactics - who has been through a dirty war with a competing site? Hi, Bulldozer First of all, let me tell you that I have never been in that situation, at least not that I know of. How do you know that guy is going to attack you using black-hat tactics? I don't think it's so easy to "attack" a site and have it deindexed, snadboxed or whatever; if it were I guess lots of people would spend more time attacking competitors than SEOing their own sites. I'd just make sure that my site abides to Google's rules and Adsense ToS, and I'd also be sure to include good content, because otherwise you are giving him the chance to report your site as webspam or a site that violates license agreements. If you want to be even safer, don't link to questionable content from your site, or get into any of those crappy linkwheel / link exchange schemes just in case Google catches the footprint and penalizes the whole network, your site incluided. Other than that, I don't think there's much you can do to protect yourself, but i don't think there's much he can do either to have your site penalized. If he is really an SEO expert and is earning money with his site, you are much more likely to get into a "whitehat war" with him, so to speak, meaning he will reinvest part of his earnings in more backlinks so that you don't get his position. That, I have experienced a few times
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08-18-2011, 09:44 AM	#4
VladWorks HyperActive Warrior War Room Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Caribbean Posts: 196 Thanks: 11 Thanked 16 Times in 16 Posts Social Networking Contact Info	Re: Dirty Competitor Wars And Tactics - who has been through a dirty war with a competing site? It is really hard to blackhat a competitor out of rankings. If you actually tried to do it you would likely end up helping them solidify the spot rather then losing it. Most SEOs will spend energy on helping their own site instead of wreaking havoc on a competitor.
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08-18-2011, 10:18 AM	#6
paulgl Plundering the Web War Room Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: , , . Posts: 4,851 Thanks: 804 Thanked 1,200 Times in 887 Posts	Re: Dirty Competitor Wars And Tactics - who has been through a dirty war with a competing site? Like a bulldozer, just bulldoze your good stuff. This will outweigh any bad stuff a competitor does. The more good stuff you do, the more irrelevant other crap becomes. People here have a huge tendency to mix up cause and effect. In fact, many people here seem to be worried, not due to anything tangible, but the fear mongering that goes on about nonsense. Worry about the stuff you do, not about anyone else. Paul
	How to Make Money off Facebook: Login to your account. Deactivate your account. Get your butt to work.

08-18-2011, 10:30 AM	#7
avatar9812 Active Warrior Join Date: Dec 2010 Posts: 60 Thanks: 17 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Dirty Competitor Wars And Tactics - who has been through a dirty war with a competing site? Well, focus on your own site and let the part which you can not control go.

08-18-2011, 10:47 AM	#8
DynoMutt HyperActive Warrior Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Silver Spring, MD Posts: 111 Thanks: 38 Thanked 32 Times in 23 Posts	Re: Dirty Competitor Wars And Tactics - who has been through a dirty war with a competing site? I wouldn't be so quick to think he's going to attack you. Not everyone is evil.

08-18-2011, 03:00 AM	#1
Bulldozer HyperActive Warrior Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 305 Thanks: 8 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Dirty Competitor Wars And Tactics - who has been through a dirty war with a competing site? I am trying to get the #1 spot in a very good niche that has almost no competition and converts like crazy. When I start competing against the current #1 guy, who is also running a Made For AdSense site, I will be putting his $2,000/mo earnings at risk. I know that I will inevitably beat this guy in no time, because his site is crap, but I also suspect with almost 100% certainty that the guy, who is obviously an experienced AdSenser and a SEO expert, will attack me and will start using dirty black-hat tactics on me and try to shut me down. Who has been in a situations like that? Who has been in a ranking war against a competitor? What dirty tactics are there to shut down the other guy down and MOSTLY: how can I protect my site from them? Share your story!

08-18-2011, 11:53 AM	#10
trishseo google slayer Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: windsor, ON Posts: 41 Thanks: 0 Thanked 2 Times in 1 Post	Re: Dirty Competitor Wars And Tactics - who has been through a dirty war with a competing site? I'm a grey hat SEO myself and trust me, it's a lot of work. I really doubt your competitor is going to do what you think they're going to do. All you have to do is focus on bettering you and your own sites.
	Force your way to 1st in Google - Buy High PR Backlinks (3-6 actual page not domain) skyrocket your SERPS - http://www.highprbacklinkspackage.info/

08-18-2011, 02:56 PM	#11
Bulldozer HyperActive Warrior Join Date: Mar 2011 Posts: 305 Thanks: 8 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Dirty Competitor Wars And Tactics - who has been through a dirty war with a competing site? Thanks, folks! I will do as you advised me - I will focus on my on stuff and mind my own business. Still, I am almost sure that rankings wars that included the use of dirty tactics have happened before.. If my competitor starts a war, I will bump this thread and ask for advice from people who have been through stuff like that.