Islamic SEO.
Is it really a thing?
Yes it is.
It’s SEO, but of an Islamic nature. But that’s only one perspective.
The other is that it’s SEO for products and services of an Islamic nature. Or that which is tailored to a Muslim audience.
Whichever way you look at it, there’s a thoughtful discussion to be had.
SEO often has dark cloud hovering over it because of the way some people exploit it to get results.
And if you really look at it, there’s exploitation of sorts in every form of digital marketing. Maybe exploitation is a bit harsh – you could perhaps call it manipulation.
But what is Islamic SEO?
My view is that it’s SEO, with Islamic principles guiding the process. It doesn’t necessarily relate to doing SEO for a Muslim brand. But it could be.
Islamic principles are rooted in justice and doing the right thing, always.
So to me, this is about doing SEO for the betterment of humanity. It also means not doing SEO for anything that would go against this ideal. Not just things that are outright haraam (forbidden) like alcohol, gambling and adult entertainment.
Islamic SEO is also about doing SEO the right way by following the rules as recommended by each platform. Now I’ve been in the game for long enough to know that even if you do follow the rules to a tee, you may not get great results (or any for that matter). But this doesn’t mean you give up on your principles.
You could continue down the slippery slope, using ‘black hat’ techniques without ever getting penalised. It could last years and years. But nothing lasts forever (neither good times nor bad times!) and when the hammer finally drops, it could be catastrophic.
One thing to note is that SEO is constantly evolving. Search engines are adapting to changes in user behaviour. It means that techniques that were once acceptable, soon become unacceptable (they’re either frowned upon or become ineffective). To me, this is the beauty of the work that we do in the SEO field. As much as core principles remain the same (the goal is always to improve visibility), the way we go about doing this always changes.
It really just comes down to ensuring you’re doing things the right way (the Islamic way, if you will).
And if you want good, Halal results, conducted by using good, Halal SEO practices, you need a Muslim SEO consultant who always has your best interests at heart.
Islam and SEO go hand in hand. Let me show you how.
Photo credit:
Shiraz – Aramgah-e Hafez. Tomb of Hafez, tombstone placed by Karim Khan 1773. Octagonal pavillion added 1935 (photo: R. Henry).
