Content Spinning: Can this SEO Trick Fool the Search Engines?

The latest weapon in the optimization wars between search engines and sites that want better search ranking is called content spinning. Search engines check to make sure the pages they index are not duplicated on another site. This is a problem for site owners that are trying to make money on ads by publishing articles written by others on a large network of sites and blogs. When hundreds of pages are all using the same article, some or all of them are penalized for having duplicate content.

In an attempt to evade the penalty, some website owners are spinning their content. Spinning is the astoundingly bad idea of taking an article and editing it to appear unique by changing some words to words with similar meaning. Real rewriting takes time and effort. These people prefer to make money without working, so the spinners use software to automagically produce unique content.

I checked out what happens when you spin content and ... WTF! OMG!!! ROFLMAO!!!! It's not content, it's barely English! Here's an original paragraph. I know it's original, because I wrote it several years ago.

Each web page on your site has a top and bottom ... and variable width and length controlled by the user's preferences and hardware. The one predictable thing about any browser is that it starts at the top of the page. This gives you a consistent place to put important information, or content overviews. It also gives the reader a quick glance at what you feel is the main point of the site or the page. The further down the page you put information, the less importance the reader will give to it, and the less likely it is to be seen.

I ran it through a popular content spinning program that I shall call the Wordinator and this is the result:

Each network page on your place has a best and bottom ... and varying breadth and duration controlled by the user's preferences and hardware. The one inevitable matter about any browser is that it starts at the side of the page. This gives you a coherent spot to place significant data, or substance overviews. It too gives the reader a fast glimpse at what you look is the principal level of the place or the page. The farther downward the page you place data, the little importance the reader will offer to it, and the less possible it is to be seen.

Now you know where all those strangely worded pages are coming from. Martians have not taken over the internet, but content spinning software has. Unguided by human intellect, software spins the content out of nowhere to mean nothing. The Wordinator, like all the rest of the spinning software, is swapping words of similar meanings to generate the new content. The fallacy behind word swapping is that there are almost no true synonyms. Dame, broad, wench, slut and lady are all terms that can be applied to female humans, but they have shades of meaning that could be hazardous to your relationships if you misuse them.

I re-ran the Wordinator on my text, asking for "more changes". It warned me the quality would be lower. It was.

Each network page on your website has a best and worst ... and varied breadth and distance controlled by the user's preferences and hardware. The one certain matter about any browser is that it starts at the side of the page. This gives you a coherent home to place great data, or subject overviews. It too gives the subscriber a fast glimpse at what you find is the important end of the website or the page. The farther downward the page you place data, the little importance the subscriber will have to it, and the less potential it is to be seen.

How hard would it be to detect that the last two are mangled versions of my original? Check what the Wordinator left untouched. That's enough similarity to spot with a text-comparison program.

Each ___ page on your ___ has a ___ and ___ ... and ___ ___ and ___ controlled by the user's preferences and hardware. The one ____ ____ about any browser is that it starts at the ___ of the page. This gives you a ___ ___ to ___ ___ ___, or ___ overviews. It ___ gives the ___ a ___ ___ at what you ___ is the ___ ___ of the ___ or the page. The ___ ___ the page you ___ ___, the ___ importance the ___ will ___ to it, and the less ___ it is to be seen.

One commercial content-spinning software vendor claims this: "... if you create a well-written article to start with, and then use the software correctly, the software can re-write it into hundreds or even thousands of unique, high quality articles that you will feel proud to put your name on. And more importantly, they will be more than unique enough to avoid the duplicate content filters." Here is a sample he shows to prove how well his $100 software works, with the substitutions underlined.

Original: Many dental insurance companies offer deductibles that can be decided upon. If you can afford to have a higher deductible, you may find that it then becomes more affordable dental insurance. This is one way that you can lower your rates.

After spinning: Many dental insurance companies agreement deductibles that can be absolute upon. If you can present to have a senior deductible, you may find that it then becomes more affordable dental insurance. This is one way that you can worse your rates.

Anyone who feels proud to put their name on the second paragraph is either a scum-sucking bottom feeder or functionally illiterate.