So, what’s the deal with AI-generated content? That’s one question we’ve heard clients ask us more often than anything else. And today, we’ll address the matter of whether AI content is considered spam and can negatively impact your rankings.
Let’s settle this once and for all.
What Type Of AI Content Is Considered Spam?
So, before we get started, let’s get one thing straight. Spam content is characterized by certain markers, and that applies to both human-written and AI content. So, if AI content meets these criteria, it will be considered spam.
To put this into perspective, here’s what Google considers spam:
- Scaling content or producing numerous low-quality pages using generative AI tools.
- Repurposing content from other pages on search results and publishing it without adding any original value to it.
- Copying content from other sites and using automated techniques to make minor modifications, like switching some words for their synonyms, or translating text without verifying the information provided.
- Stuffing keywords or unnecessarily repeating specific phrases (whether manually or using AI).
- Using AI to spam comment on forums and blog posts.
Google’s Take:
Google has made it clear in their guidelines that its policies do not discourage automation. That is, until automation is used to game search engine results. For example, if a website produces hundreds of low-quality content pages and stuffs them with keywords just to get ranked, it is an absolute no-no.
Content should be produced with one key purpose in mind, to help users find answers. The use of AI for helpful, people-first content is not considered spam.
Here’s what Google says when addressing AI content.
“…it’s important to recognize that not all use of automation, including AI generation, is spam.”
So, one thing’s clear: AI content isn’t spam, but does it actually have the potential to rank?
Simple answer: Yes, but with one condition. If it’s “useful, helpful, original, and satisfies aspects of E-E-A-T.” If it’s just created by websites to look like a thought leader to Google search bots, it’s probably not going to make the cut.
How Google Recognizes AI Spam:
Google uses SpamBrain, an AI-based spam prevention system, to identify and penalize spam across the search. This is combined with their manual enforcement capability to improve the overall efficiency of identifying and preventing spammy results in search.
What Is SpamBrain?
SpamBrain launched in 2018 as an automated system developed to recognize the widespread spam on search. Over time, this became a part of Google’s core algorithm, which works consistently to penalize sites using spammy tactics.
In an official blog, Google states the following:
“Google has many years of experience dealing with automation being used in an attempt to game search results. Our spam-fighting efforts—including our SpamBrain system—will continue, however spam is produced.”
SpamBrain targets multiple types of spam, including:
Scaled Content Abuse – Mass-produced, low-value, or automated content with no value for users.
Content Scraping – Copied or republished content taken from other websites without originality, added value, or permission.
Cloaking – Showing different content to search engines than what real users see in order to deceive rankings.
Comment Spam – Irrelevant, promotional, or automated comments posted to gain links, traffic, or visibility.
Hacked content – Unauthorized content injected into compromised websites to spread spam, malware, or manipulative pages.
Link Spam -Sites buying, selling, or exchanging links purely to manipulate rankings.
While spam remains a bad SEO practice and will always see the wrath of the algorithm, any tactics or AI abuse employed to narrowly escape violations of quality guidelines are not spared either. Google clarifies this saying:
“Besides spam, we also work hard to reduce low quality content and ranking manipulations by fighting behaviors that attempt to narrowly avoid violating our quality guidelines, but are still manipulative in nature and degrade the user experience.”
When AI Content Is Useful:
AI content automation can be a valuable tool for improving a website’s performance when it is used responsibly and aligned with the following best practices.
- When the purpose is to automate parts of content production processes without trying to manipulate rankings.
- When content is verified, edited, and reviewed by humans to ensure accuracy and authenticity.
- To create content that addresses search intent and aims to help users by means of people-first, high-quality, authoritative content.
- To produce content that complies with the standards specified in E-E-A-T guidelines.
- When AI isn’t misused to mass-produce low-quality, user-unfriendly pages.
To sum it up, there is no concrete evidence to back up the myth that AI content is considered spam. In fact, it isn’t spam. And neither does Google perceive it as such. Using automation in content is fine as long as it doesn’t go against Google’s spam policies.