Optimization companies get the attention of a search engine by adding relevant keywords to a page or by linking to other pages with more information on the same subject.

Google and other search services encourage these techniques, known as white hat optimization methods, because they can provide valuable information to the public. But the search services wage a nonstop battle against black hat tactics — gimmicks that can boost a site’s search ranking without making it more useful.

“Sites sometimes violate Google’s webmaster guidelines in an attempt to game our algorithms and trick their way to the top of our results,’’ said Matt Cutts, the Google engineer assigned to protect the purity of his company’s search results. “If they succeed, this hurts the search experience for people coming to Google, because high-quality information gets buried by spammers, and sites don’t get to compete on a level playing field.’’

It’s a contest with high stakes. A study released in September by the Pew Internet & American Life Project found that 58 percent of those who were surveyed search the Internet for information on products and services before they buy.

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