Spam score is a metric of how spammy a website is. The higher the spam score, the more likely a website is to do things search engines don’t like. And if you connect with that website in any way, like getting backlinks, your website will get a penalty and could lose traffic.
There’s also a worst-case scenario in which Google de-indexed your website pages. If you don’t want to deal with any of the above situations, it’s a must to learn about:
- The concept of website spam score.
- How does spam score affect SEO ranking?
- What can you do to reduce your spam score?
Fortunately, this article will help you find answers to all your questions. So, keep reading!
What is Spam Score in SEO?
Spam score is a metric to analyse whether a website follows spam practices that Google hates or not. A website that follows spam practices like creating numerous low-quality backlinks or interlinking without considering whether it will help or not will have a high spam score.
One important point you should know is this spam score metric isn’t used by Google. There’s no official tool from Google that checks the spam score. All spam score tools like Moz, which is one of the most credible spam score checkers, aren’t supported by Google.
However, that doesn’t mean these tools are wrong. They’re your best bet to figure out if a website is getting in trouble for using spammy practices.
- Scores from 1% to 30% mean a low spam score, and the site probably isn’t spammy.
- A medium spam score is between 30% and 60%.
- 60%, up to 100%, it’s a red flag – that site might be up to some serious spamming that Google doesn’t like.
3 Possible Ways Spam Score Can Affect SEO
Here’s how a high spam score can hurt a site’s SEO. Below, I’ll explain the points that are usually seen when a website’s spam score is high.
1. Domain Authority
Websites with high spam scores affect the domain authority negatively. If your website domain authority is high and the spam score is also high, you’ll lose the authority. Losing the domain authority means Google won’t consider your website trustworthy for ranking.
2. User Experience
User experience matters greatly for Google and search engine optimization.
“At Google, our #1 priority is providing users with rich and useful content in our search results.”
If you’re following practices such as adding irrelevant keywords instead of adding value to the content, Google considers it spamming. This not only affects your site’s credibility but also leads to a poor user experience, as visitors may leave without finding the information they need.
3. Google Penalties
Google penalties are a nightmare for bloggers, but they don’t happen to every website. Google only penalises websites that try spammy tricks like getting numerous backlinks to article pages to rank them.
Once a site is penalised by Google, you’ll notice a drop in search visibility and a decrease in traffic as Google will de-index your website pages. That’s why it’s essential to follow Google’s guidelines to avoid facing these penalties and maintain a healthy online presence.
How Do You Check the Spam Score of a Website for Free?
Now, we’ve got how the spam score of a website affects the website’s SEO ranking. It’s time to move on to how to check your site’s spam score for free.
Chrome Mozbar Extension
The best way to check the spam score is by using the Mozbar extension. It’s available on the Chrome extension store.
- Download the Mozbar from the Chrome extension store.
- Sign up for the Mozbar account and activate it.
- After signing up, you can see the spam score along with the D/A and P/A scores.
Remember that it’s not a completely free extension. If you want to use more features like checking subdomains, you must purchase the Pro plan.
What Are The Reasons Behind A High Spam Score? 5 Core Reasons
If you want to understand the reason behind Moz’s spam score, you should dig into the various factors that Moz considers when evaluating the score. Moz considered around 27 signals, and I’ve divided them into a few categories below:
- Domain: Mozbar checks the domain name length, the special characters you’ve used, and the TLD. If the domain name is long, has too many special characters, and the TLD isn’t top-notch like .com, .org, etc., Moz considers it spam.
- Backlinks: The backlinks you create for the website are important in deciding the spam score. Most spam sites have a high number of irrelevant outbound and inbound links because they don’t focus on quality but on quantity.
- Content Niches: Moz also consider the niche of your website. Websites discussing topics commonly associated with spam, such as adult content or gaming, may trigger concerns.
- Lack of Info: Maintaining transparent communication channels is essential. A lack of contact information, including an email address, phone number, or LinkedIn page, may be viewed with suspicion by Moz.
- Content quality: Websites with low-quality and unoptimised SEO content are also considered spamming. For example, if your web address is too long, the short descriptions and titles aren’t set up well, or you use certain words a lot without making sense in your articles, it’s seen as spam.
How to Reduce Domain Spam Score? 7 Best Strategies
If you want to lower your spam score, you first need to find out the exact reason why the spam is high. I’ve mentioned the core reasons that Moz considers spamming factors; check whether your website has any of these issues or not. After finding the core reasons, follow the strategies below to solve the high spam score issue.
1. Optimise Domain Structure
Never work on a domain name whose TLD extension is not top-notch, like .com, .net, or .info. Domains TLD like .cc, .ml, and .charity are considered spam. Besides that, your domain name should be short and easy to remember without any special characters.
2. Improve Content Quality
Focus on delivering well-optimised, high-quality content. Ensure that your website doesn’t engage in content practices commonly associated with spam, such as the excessive use of certain keywords without meaningful context. Optimise meta descriptions, titles, and URLs for clarity and relevance.
3. Enhance User Experience
Don’t forget to prioritise user experiences. The better you provide user experience with your content and website UI design, the more Google will like your website. Also, add contact information on your website, including email addresses and phone numbers. A transparent and accessible communication channel adds credibility to your site.
4. Regularly Audit Backlinks
Try to audit the backlink profile of your website on a regular basis. It will help find the backlinks that are causing harm to your website rather than providing fruitful results. You can easily do this with the help of Ahref.
5. Eliminate Broken Links
Always check and fix broken links on your website. Broken links not only disrupt user experience but can also be viewed as a sign of neglect, potentially affecting your domain’s credibility. These types of links can be identified easily with SEO tools like Ahref.
6. Enhance Website Security
HTTPS protocol in domains is considered secure compared to HTTP. It enhances your website’s security, which leads to increasing user trust in your website. So, if your website doesn’t have HTTPS protocol, buy the SSL certificate to reduce the domain spam score.
7. Right Anchor Text:
You should always use a diverse and natural anchor text distribution in your backlinks. Avoid over-optimization with the same keywords, as this can be flagged as spammy activity, and only get backlinks if they’re good in quality.
The Impact of Spam Score on Website SEO: Concluding Thoughts
Spam score is an important metric that affects website SEO. A high spam score can easily lead to your website getting penalized or banned. If you don’t want this to happen to your website, make sure to follow white-hat SEO practices.
Focus on your content quality, on-page and off-page SEO, but in terms of quality. Don’t think of creating numerous articles or backlinks that provide zero value and increase the spam score as well.
Most Frequently Asked Questions
What happens with websites with higher spam scores?
A spam website with a high spam score is likely to be de-ranked and de-indexed by Google. To avoid these repercussions, website owners should monitor various factors such as the quality of content, backlinks, user experience, and overall technical issues.
How is spam score determined according to Moz?
According to Moz, the Spam Score is determined by analysing multiple signals, including domain structure (such as the domain name TLD extension), content quality, backlink profiles, and technical aspects.
Why is spam score important in SEO strategy?
Spam Score is a critical component in SEO strategy as it directly influences a website’s search engine rankings. A high spam score indicates potential spam activity, leading to penalties that can adversely affect a site’s visibility in search engine results.
Can a high spam score lead to penalties?
Yes, a high spam score can lead to penalties imposed by search engines. If a website is identified as engaging in spammy practices, it may face consequences such as decreased visibility in search results or even being de-indexed.
What role does internal linking play in spam score?
Internal linking plays an important role in improving your spam score and increasing it. Proper internal linking improves user navigation and content relevance, positively influencing SEO. However, spammy internal linking practices can lead to an increased Spam Score and negatively impact overall SEO.
Can black hat SEO techniques influence spam scores?
Yes, black hat SEO techniques like creating numerous backlinks, posting hundreds of AI articles in a day without considering the quality, too many ads, etc., can easily increase spam scores.
