: SEO impact of text in the footer of a webpage that has little to do with its content I am going to be developing a new site for a local company. I noticed in their footer (above the copyright)

@Becky754

The Google Webmaster Quality Guidelines clearly specifies that using hidden text is viewed as deceptive and a violation. Using Irrelevant keywords could also be considered keyword stuffing, which they indicate here refers to:


loading a webpage with keywords or numbers in an attempt to manipulate
a site's ranking in Google search results. Often these keywords appear
in a list or group, or out of context (not as natural prose). Filling
pages with keywords or numbers results in a negative user experience,
and can harm your site's ranking.


They go on to list examples of that:



Lists of phone numbers without substantial added value
Blocks of text listing cities and states a webpage is trying to rank for
Repeating the same words or phrases so often that it sounds unnatural



So based on the above, they would consider a list of various cities that the site might be trying to rank for as keyword stuffing.

Although the site might be ranking well now, it does run the risk of being penalized by Google, and a competitor knowledgable in those guidelines could report this Google as well. It doesn't seem the reward is worth the potential long-term risk, as recoveries are lengthy and time consuming prospects.

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