The Dark Side of SEO: I Tried the Tactics You’re Not Supposed to Talk About (and Some Actually Worked)

I’ll be real with you—I didn’t always play fair in SEO.

Back when I was just getting my feet wet at a digital agency, someone handed me a “hacky” playbook of ranking tricks. Most of it felt… wrong. But curiosity won. I tried them anyway.

Some of those so-called grey and black hat tactics?
They worked.
Others? Let’s just say I learned the hard way.

This isn’t a tutorial or a moral lesson. I’m not telling you to go break Google’s rules.

But if you’ve ever stared at your stagnant traffic and thought, “What are these other sites doing that I’m not?” — this one’s for you.

🧭 What We’ll Cover:

• How fake clicks can still game the algorithm (yep, seriously)
• The gold mine of expired domains — and what to avoid
• Why spam still works (but comes with a price)
• A sneaky SEO trick using high-authority websites (no, not backlinks)
• How businesses are quietly using AI to pump out 50+ posts a month — and not all are getting penalized

Ready? Let’s explore the shadows.

1. CTR Manipulation — Google’s Little Blind Spot 👀

Ever heard of click-through rate (CTR) manipulation? It’s exactly what it sounds like: tricking Google into thinking your page is super relevant because lots of people are clicking it.

Let’s say you’re ranked #8 for “best coffee maker.”
But somehow, people are clicking your site way more than the sites above you.

To Google, that’s a green flag. “Wow,” it thinks. “Users love this page. Let’s move it up.”

So how do people fake this?

• Bots: Automated clicks from different IPs. Risky, but doable with the right tools.
• Click Farms: Real people paid to search and click.

Does it work? Sometimes, yeah.
Is it dangerous? Absolutely.

💡 Storytime: One local client I worked on tanked hard after overdoing this. They pumped 50+ fake clicks a day for a keyword that only got 500 searches per month. Google noticed. Their rankings disappeared overnight.

Lesson? Push too hard, and the algorithm will bite back.

2. Expired Domain Redirection — The Ultimate Shortcut 🧨

Imagine you find an old, forgotten website with killer backlinks… but the owner let it expire.

You buy the domain, and instead of rebuilding it, you redirect it to your own site. Boom—instant authority boost.

But here’s the trick: relevancy matters.

Redirecting a cat blog to your crypto site? Yeah, Google’s not buying it.
Redirecting a coffee review site to your coffee store? That might just fly.

Use tools like Wayback Machine and Ahrefs to vet the domain first.
Otherwise, you’re gambling.

3. Expired Domain Blogging — A Zombie Site That Ranks 🧟‍♂️

This one’s like the redirection tactic—but sneakier.

Instead of redirecting the expired domain, you revive it.
Same URL. Similar niche. Brand-new content.

Because Google remembers that domain.
It trusts it. And that trust can get you on Page 1—without the usual grind.

Here’s the method:

• Find a solid expired domain
• Check what it used to be (archive.org is your best friend)
• Recreate the niche or publish high-quality related content

Sounds like cheating? Maybe.
But if done right, it’s more like skipping the line at Disneyland. 🎢

4. Spam Link Blasts — The Dirty Trick That Still Works 💣

Okay, this one’s old-school. And ugly.

People still build thousands of spammy backlinks using Web 2.0s, comment sections, shady forums — all in the hopes that something sticks.

It’s like throwing spaghetti at the wall and hoping for rankings.

Surprisingly? It works.
In low-competition niches, that is.

One adult niche site I tracked was dominating Google… built entirely on spammy backlinks and expired domain redirects.

But here’s the kicker: once Google catches it, the punishment is brutal. Think manual penalties, de-indexing, and six months in SEO jail.

So yeah. Use at your own risk.

5. PBNs — Private Blog Networks That Aren’t So Private 🕵️

Ah, the infamous PBN.

This is when people build (or buy) a bunch of websites just to create backlinks to their real site.

It’s like running a fake endorsement network.
Google hates this.

But many SEO agencies? They love it. Especially when they sell those juicy links.

🧠 Want to spot a bad PBN? Look for:

• Same design theme across all sites
• Zero real traffic
• More outbound links than inbound
• No clear niche

Not all PBNs are trash, though. A well-maintained network with real traffic? That’s a different story.

But unless you know what you’re doing, you’re probably better off avoiding this one.

6. Parasite SEO — Let the Big Guys Rank For You 🦠

This one’s clever.

Instead of ranking content on your site, you piggyback on someone else’s authority.

Think: Reddit, Medium, Quora, LinkedIn Pulse.

You publish your optimized content there and let their domain authority do the heavy lifting.

The result?
You rank in days—not months.

And since the content is technically on their platform, you’re not risking your site either.

It’s the Robin Hood of SEO.
Stealing SERP spots from giants and giving traffic to the underdogs.

7. Local SEO Trick — Add a Location to Your Business Name 📍

Let’s say your business is called “Max Auto Repairs.”
Rename it on your Google Business Profile to “Max Auto Repairs Chicago.”

Guess what?

You’ll likely start showing up more for searches in that area.

But don’t push your luck.
If your real business name doesn’t include the location—and your documents don’t match—Google might suspend your profile.

So be honest. Or at least consistent.

8. Fully AI-Automated Blogging — Goldmine or Graveyard? 🤖

I know what you’re thinking: “Can I just use AI to churn out 100 blog posts a month?”

Short answer? Yes.
Long answer? It depends.

Google has said it doesn’t care if content is AI-written—as long as it’s helpful.

The problem? Most AI blogs aren’t. They’re just fluff.

Still, some folks are killing it.

Like Jake Ward, who reportedly “stole” 3.6 million in search traffic by flooding his site with AI-written articles. Total SEO heist. 💰

But for every Jake, there are 10 others who got de-indexed.
So yeah… it works, but you better do it right.

Final Thoughts: Tread Carefully, Think Strategically ⚠️

If you’ve made it this far, you now know more than 90% of beginner SEOs.

These strategies aren’t “best practices.” They’re not white-hat.
But they’re real. And in some cases? Effective.

Would I recommend all of them? Nope.
Would I use some again? Under the right circumstances… absolutely.

SEO is a game. A weird one.
And like any game, there are rules—and people who bend them.

Your move.

So, what’s your take?
Have you seen these tactics in the wild—or used them yourself?

👇 Drop your thoughts below. I’d love to hear your war stories.