Parasite SEO: Types, How It Works? Pros & Cons, What Is the Cost?

Are you looking to rank your web pages higher on the SERP? There are several ways to do it by using a combination of on-page and technical SEO techniques. What if they are not enough? That is when parasite SEO comes into the picture. 

In this technique, the content marketers do not use the original websites to share the content. Instead, they use high authority websites for content distribution. This technique is generally used when you try to rank higher against a highly competitive keyword. 

In this blog, you will learn briefly about parasite SEO, its working process, cost and most importantly the advantages and disadvantages, etc. 

What is Parasite SEO?

Parasite SEO is the practice where you can use the authority and reputation of an established site to drive more visibility to your business. To do this, marketers usually post content on high-authority websites instead of posting it on their website. 

Before jumping to grab the opportunity, you should be aware that Google explicitly discourages webmasters from doing the same. Site reputation abuse is a vital penalty from Google which could happen due to parasitic SEO practices. One should be fairly vigilant while implementing this practice.    

Different Types of Parasite SEO

The actual strategies to implement parasite SEO techniques vary as per the business and the end goal of your campaign. Following are some common types of parasite SEO practices you may fall back on:

1. Social Media Websites

Marketers usually choose popular social media platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook etc. to post their content. For these platforms, you can create engaging and relatable content. With that content, you can get backlink to your website or eCommerce store.

2. Community Discussions and Online Forums

On these platforms, you can engage in different types of discussion where people generally look for answers on a specific topic or industry. On such websites, you may share your links strategically and make constructive collaborations.

3. Blog Posts on Free Platforms

High-authority blog posting websites are great places to submit your content. Some of the famous websites are Blogger, Medium, LinkedIn, WordPress.com etc. You have to share SEO-optimized and valuable content on these external blog posts.

4. QnA Platforms

Some of the popular Q&A platforms are Yahoo Answers, Quora, Reddit, etc. First, you need to find relevant questions about your industry or organization. Here you can share information in an informal tone and create links back to your website.

5. Business Listing Websites

You can share reviews about your company on free business listing sites like Google My Business, Trust Pilot, G2, etc. With valuable and genuine information, you may also share the link of your targeted content on these platforms. However, some review platforms may not allow posting external links to their websites. 

What is Black Hat Parasite SEO?

Besides the above mentioned practices of parasite SEO which are analogous with off page strategies, there are a wide range SEO practices. The only catch is, such wider practices may violate the webmaster guidelines and as a result they attract penalty from Google. 

Black hat parasite SEO refers to the use of unethical techniques within the broader strategy of parasite SEO. It targets high authority domains to publish unrelated content in an attempt to lure users to a desired website or page. 

You can execute parasite SEO techniques in legitimate ways by creating quality content and building genuine backlinks from peer websites. However, black hat practices include manipulative tactics. These may include the mass production of low-quality articles, the usage of spammy backlinks, or using automated AI tools to generate links without adding real value. 

About White Hat Parasite SEO

The main difference between White Hat and Black Hat Parasite SEO is simple. It is just how you are creating links for your website. In this way, you can create genuine backlinks for your website without using any spammy tactics or link wheels. 

Here you share high-quality guest posts and reputable links that direct the traffic towards your website. 

This SEO technique is safer than the Black Hat SEO technique and helps to build the long-term authority of your website. Ultimately, it helps to create long-lasting content with improved rankings in the search engine.

How to Implement Parasite SEO in Your Website?

The following are some practices that can be safely used to enhance your website’s reach. You can leverage these widely used practices to effectively reach your target group aside from building a strong backlink profile. So here it goes:  

1. Search for High DA Sites that Allow Content Submission

To start with parasite SEO, you need to identify high-authority websites that allow third party content submission. You may research top-ranking pages related to your target topic. Then, familiarize yourself with these sites and pitch your content to the thought leaders of the industry. 

For example, SI.com with a domain rating of 87, allows you to benefit from its established authority and visibility to enhance the ranking potential of your content.

2. Distribute Public Relations Copy to Media Peers

Even if you are able to drive a sizeable chunk of audience to your website, it is not enough to scale. To drive increased traffic, you can focus on media and peer websites. 

For example, media websites with highly authoritative domains offer opportunities for PR content submission. As a marketer, you can utilize this to enhance search engine optimization. 

3. Apply Varied Set of Off-Page Strategies

While the name Parasite SEO sounds predatory, it is a useful strategy when used strategically and in combination of multiple digital marketing channels. 

You may utilize this technique to diversify and enhance your backlink profile. As part of it, consider guest posting on peers’ platform. Additionally, you can target multiple web 2.0 platforms like Medium and Quora to host your content. 

Pros and Cons of Parasite SEO

By following this table, you will learn the advantages and disadvantages of Parasite SEO techniques:

Pros of Parasite SEO	Cons of Parasite SEO
It can make the ranking easier for competitive keywords by leveraging the established authority of other websites.	Your brand visibility will be less in search results, as the third-party sites will rank with your content instead of your own.
Parasite SEO helps in better content distribution to reach a larger audience because of the established readership of major sites.	Compared to your website, here you will have less control over the content. Also, there are limitations on updates and modifications.
This is a cost-effective approach that reduces the need for extensive link-building efforts and costs.	Your “parasite” content may be removed or altered by the site owner at any time. This can lead to a loss of visibility.
Quicker results compared to traditional SEO methods, allowing for faster traffic generation.	Dependency on external platforms can be risky if their authority or policies change.

Is Parasite SEO Ethical or Unethical?

This strategy involves sponsoring posts on high-authority sites to maximise visibility of the brand. While this approach can deliver short-term gains, it brings significant risks, such as potential penalties from Google that can impact organic performance and credibility.

On the other hand, there is a white-hat technique to use parasite SEO which is also known as barnacle SEO. This focuses on creating high-quality guest posts on reputable sites. This method emphasizes sustainable practices and ethical content creation. 

However, black-hat techniques dominate traditional parasite SEO. Thus, parasite SEO can be effective, but its ethical use largely depends on how it is implemented and the long-term consequences it incurs for both marketers and host sites.

What is the Cost of Parasite SEO?

The cost of parasite SEO varies significantly on multiple factors such as the quality of the content, and the keyword difficulty of the targeted keywords. Additionally, it depends on the resources required for content creation and to get backlinks. Here is a detailed breakdown of the typical costs associated with parasite SEO:

Name of the Item	Cost Range	Important Notes
Cost of Publication	$600 – $2,000+	Depends on the authority and quality of the publication.
Cost for Backlinks	$50 – $450 each	Varies by provider or if you do outreach on your own.
Payment for Writers	$100 – $500+	Costs depend on article length and the writer’s experience.

Higher authority domains generally charge more for sponsored posts. Therefore, this is crucial to determine your budget accordingly. Additionally, in highly competitive keywords, you may require more backlinks to achieve desired rankings. 

Therefore, it will increase the costs significantly. To determine the number of backlinks needed, you can do research on your competitors in your target SERP to see how many unique domains link to their sites. 

This analysis will help you estimate your backlink requirements and associated costs effectively. In short, parasite SEO can provide quick visibility and rankings, but careful budgeting and strategic planning are essential to maximize its effectiveness and ROI.

Before setting the budget for this SEO technique, you should also know about your content marketing Goals.

How to Keep Your Parasite SEO Strategy Hidden?

To keep your Parasite SEO strategy hidden, you may consider the following tricks:

• Quality Control: The most important thing is to use high quality, informative and content that adds some value to users. This not only helps in avoiding penalties from search engines but also builds trust with the audience of the host site.
  
  
• Content Integration: You can place your affiliate content seamlessly within the existing content flow of the host site. This helps to minimize the visibility and makes it appears the content is a genuine part of the website. Thus, you can reduce the chances of detection by search engines and others.
  
  
• Avoid Unique Subfolders: Try to avoid creating unique subfolders or subdomains for your content, as these are red signals for search engines. Instead, you can use existing structures on the host site to hide your information.
  
  
• Maintain Consistency: All the content should be managed by the team of the host site. Use similar author names, blog feeds, and site folders to provide a consistent look that complements the brand identity of the host website.
  
  
• Monitor Algorithm Changes: You need to stay informed about updates to search engine algorithms as it may impact your strategy. Being proactive, you can adjust your Parasite SEO techniques before they become visible to search engines or competitors.
  
  

By implementing these strategies, you can effectively reduce the risk of exposure while using the benefits of Parasite SEO.

Summing Up

Parasite SEO is a controversial but effective method that allows marketers to use the authority of existing websites to boost the exposure of your content in search engine results. By publishing on high-authority websites, you can get faster results for competitive keywords and increase traffic to your websites. 

However, this strategy contains dangers including potential penalties from search engines if marked as unethical. Finally, while parasitic SEO can provide short-term benefits, organic SEO techniques are critical for long-term success in digital marketing.

Are you looking for the best content marketing company in India? Contact Das Writing Services where we provide the best services. We have worked in 2,000+ projects of local, national and multinational brands. Contact our team and get a free sample of our work.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the definition of Parasite SEO?

Parasite SEO is a content marketing strategy that involves publishing content on high-authority websites to leverage their established trust. This helps to gain better visibility in search engine results. This technique helps rank for specific keywords faster than building your website authority from scratch.

2. What is the working method of Parasite SEO techniques?

Parasite SEO utilises established platforms’ credibility like news websites, blogs, social media, etc. By publishing articles or posts on these high-authority sites, brands can benefit from the high domain authority. Therefore, it helps the content to rank higher in SERPs (search engine result pages) with minimal link-building efforts.

3. What are the benefits of using Parasite SEO?

The main advantage of Parasite SEO is that it ranks for competitive keywords with high keyword difficulty faster. It also helps to reduce the time and effort spent building domain authority and can generate traffic quickly. It is useful for affiliate marketers and businesses that are looking to test keywords or gain visibility without a huge investment in traditional SEO strategies.

4. What platforms are best for implementing Parasite SEO?

Some common platforms for effective Parasite SEO are Quora, Medium, Reddit, Google Sites, and various news websites. These platforms have high domain authority and can help content rank quickly due to their established trust with search engines.

5. Are there any risks associated with Parasite SEO?

Though Parasite SEO can be effective, there are several risks involved such as potential penalties for violating platform guidelines regarding self-promotion. Additionally, if you rely too much on third-party sites, it may lead to a lack of control over the content and its long-term visibility. Because it can be removed anytime.

6. How can I create a successful Parasite SEO campaign?

To create a successful Parasite SEO campaign, you must start by researching high-authority websites which is relevant to your niche. Then, you have to conduct keyword research and need to create engaging content by following platform guidelines. Include strategic links back to your website. Finally, you must regularly monitor the performance and adjust your strategy as needed.