Entries from Search Engine Roundtable tagged with 'link building'

Is Network-Linking Frowned Upon?

A High Rankings Forum member talks about how he has a variety of sites that are all networked on the same server with the same owner. They're not related topically, but there are some subpages where adding links may be...

Does the Multiple Link Penalty Really Exist?

A WebmasterWorld member wants confirmation if getting multiple links would cause a penalty in the SERPs. He notes that very popular sites which rank on the first page of Google have a lot of links, including those from "shady" places....

The Link Farm: How Does Google Define a Link Farm?

A Google Groups thread has a long discussion on how Google defines what a link farm is or is not. I have decided to isolate a Googler's comment, because who can best define what Google feels a link farm is,...

Google Basically Admits to Minus 60 Penalty

Remember when I reported that we saw Google Sitelinks in position 60? I said then that it seems Google is admitting to the minus 60 penalty: What I do find very interesting is that Googler, JohnMu, tells the webmaster to...

Poll: Can A Competitor Hurt Your Google Rankings with Links?

Forums have been buzzing and buzzing about the possibility of a competitor being able to hurt your Google ranking for the past few years now. We have covered this topic time and time again, just see here for some of...

Do You Engage in 3-Way (Triangular) Link Exchanges?

As the link building strategy becomes more and more difficult (at least by some), people are seeking out alternatives to the standard two-way linking practice. In a WebmasterWorld thread, a member is looking at a triangular link strategy which wouldn't...

Buying 70,000 Links From Same Site Equated to "SEOicide"

A newish term, named SEOicide, caught my attention via a WebmasterWorld thread. The thread discusses how an SEO has the opportunity to buy 70,000 links from a PR7 site for a great price. He asks if it he should do...

Are Links from StumbleUpon Valuable?

Over at WebmasterWorld, users are discussing the potential value of a link from social bookmarking site StumbleUpon. Is it worth trying to submit to or is it completely not worth the effort? Well, it depends on the content. Is it...

Google Offers More Advice On Linking Out

Googler, JohnMu, has some basic linking advice in a Google Groups thread. In short, John explains that logic behind who you should or should not link to. I'll quote John: In general, if you can provide relevant links for users...

Where Do You Find Link Partners?

Some link builders spend a significant time just trying to build up some sort of rapport with other webmasters. Eventually, they may feel that the pool is drying out. With so many link requests nowadays, you can't blame but feel...

New Link Building Strategy: "Link Unbuilding"

I was doing my forum research this morning and I spotted a HighRankings Forum thread with the title "Link Unbuilding." I love it! The new link building, for some, is link unbuilding! Here is the SEO's concern and this concern...

Is it Worth it to "Buy" Links from a PR0 Website?

Face it. Sometimes you can exchange links for free, and other times, you just have to buy a link. But is there a minimum toolbar PageRank number that you should go by before buying that link? Obviously, this isn't a...

SEOs Split On Value of DMOZ.org (ODP) Link

On February 20th, I asked our readers if they thought a listing in the Open Directory Project would have a major impact on a site's Google ranking. The response was split down the middle. We only had 58 responses, which...

Why You Shouldn't Use Automated Link Building Software

Should you save wads of cash to buy link building software that contacts hundreds (or thousands) of webmasters for you to give you some links? Wiep Knol says no. In his recent blog post, he explains why link building software...

Is it Normal to Plateau When Doing Continuous Link Building?

A WebmasterWorld member has been applying regular search engine optimization and link building techniques and is noticing that the traffic hasn't improved as substantially in the latter months of the campaign as it did initially. Is this something normal? Actually,...

Are there Best Practices for Link Building?

In Search Engine Land's weekly column about link building, Eric Ward tackles a question about link building best practices. Is there such a thing? Guess what? The answer is no. He explains: The problem with link building best practices is...

The Fundamentals of Link Building

Adam Audette wrote a brilliant piece on the fundamentals of link building on his blog, and he's right on the money. His core message is that links reflect value, so your linking strategy should focus on finding that valuable link...

Use "Directory" + [Local Area] to Find Local Directories

A WebmasterWorld member asks how to find local directories for link building purposes. One member suggests that you search with "directory + [your local area]" on Google or Yahoo to find some really targeted local directories. There are also some...

Many SEOs Feel The Minus X Penalties Are Back Link Related

A month ago I wrote, Google's Matt Cutts Replies to -60 Penalty Thread at Google where I summarize how Matt said some links are hurting a particular site. At that point, I decided to poll our readers and see if...

Why Does Google Hate Link Manipulation?

Anyone who knows the Google Web Spam team well, knows that they all have a huge distaste for link manipulation. In my opinion, it is more than just a distance for some of the web spam team members, specifically Matt...

Does The First Anchor Text Link Only Count in Google?

SEOmoz posted results from a study he did where he concluded that only the first anchor text on a page is counted by Google as the anchor text for that link. For example, let's say you have a two links...

Is it Spam if You Add Your Link to Blog Comments?

Ann Smarty poses an interesting question on Search Engine Journal. As blogs are communities, it's useful to comment and leave your thoughts. But what if you add your link to the comment? Is it spam? There are numerous tools that...

Link Building Techniques and Tricks

Three recent link building articles have appeared on Sphinn that are worthwhile for link builders. I'll walk through each of them and explain why they are important. In Squeezing the [Link] Juice out of Low Hanging Fruit, Bob Massa talks...

Hey Buddy: Link To My URL Not My IP!

When a webmaster was looking at his site data in Google Webmaster Tools, he noticed that one of the "Pages with external links" was linking to his IP address and not his site. He's pretty baffled about why that would...

65% of SEOs Prefer Old & Aged Links Over Fresh & New Links

The results are in, and SEOs voted on which link they would prefer. 65% of SEOs said they would prefer an old and aged link over a fresh and new link. 35% said they want the newer fresh links over...

Link Building Secrets from Established SEOs

Pole Position Marketing did an excellent writeup on some link building secrets from 12 link building type people, including Rand Fishkin, Hamlet Batista, Jim Boykin, Debra Mastaler, Bob Gladstein, and Michael Gray and published the findings in a 24 page...

Why Link Pages & Directories Might Not Work

A WebmasterWorld thread touches on a simple topic, the topic of link pages. Many sites have them, a page that contains links to link partners. Some of these pages are labeled "resources," some are labelled "partners," some are "directory," and...

How Important is the Site Relevancy for Backlinks?

A WebmasterWorld member is in a bit of trouble because he feels that there are no relevant sites for his ecommerce shop. Obviously, since search engines like relevant links, this is a bit of a challenge for those who can't...

SEOs Can't Agree on the Value of an Image Link

Mid January I asked An image link is worth what percentage less than a text link? The question was probably not clear enough and I honestly don't blame the respondents. It is a hard question to answer, because there are...

Bad Links Can Kick You Once You Are Down

Taking you back to the -60 thread I blogged about earlier. The thread is at Google Groups and it shows us a little of something that may be obvious but should be spoken about. Once you are penalized in Google...

Google's Matt Cutts Replies to -60 Penalty Thread at Google

A Google Groups thread on the -60 penalty at Google (there are so many of these now, -6, -10, -250, etc) now has several responses from Matt Cutts of Google. Matt replies specifically to the nature of the posters site...

Can A ODP (dmoz.org) Removal Hurt Your Search Engine Rankings?

A WebmasterWorld thread has a Webmaster saying that a site of his recently was removed from the ODP. He said, soon after he noticed his rankings drop in Google. He wants to know if it can be related to the...

Survival of the Small Webmaster in a World of Link Building

If you've been following the paid links debate and related linking news, you're probably wondering what to do next. A webmaster says that he's ruled out reciprocal linkings for two reasons: he's seen people get penalized and he's also aware...

What Do You Do to Manage a Group of Link Builders?

A Search Engine Watch Forums member asks what kinds of people you should seek for link building opportunities, what pay they should receive, how to evaluate their performance, and other related questions. Most people agree that the best thing is...

Does Using a NoFollow Attribute Raise a Red Flag at Google?

Eric Lander wrote a piece at Search Engine Journal named NoFollow: An SEO Red Flag? which sparked some interesting debate over in a Sphinn thread. The question at hand is, does using a nofollow attribute on many of your links...

How You Shouldn't Ask for a Link

Many people need links. It's what you do to gain favor in Google's eyes and get ranked higher. I get hundreds (?) of link requests every day. Most (all?) of them are completely junk. A WebmasterWorld thread goes into these...

Do You Vary Anchor Text in Your Search Engine Optimization Efforts?

A Search Engine Watch Forums thread asks whether it's useful (or detrimental) to vary your anchor text. Should anchor text be differentiated? The answer is yes. As AussieWebmaster says, "always vary your anchor text." Is there a sweet spot? Not...

The Value of Fresh Links in the Eyes of Search Engines

Branko at SEO Scientist wrote an excellent post named Tapping into Unconventional Link Attributes. The post was so good, it made the hot list at Sphinn over the weekend. Since I am out on vacation, I'll do a quick quick...

Learning from Google's Red Flags in Link Building

SlightlyShadySEO wrote an interesting blog post about how you can look at things that no longer work in terms of SEO and use what you've learned to avoid making mistakes that will cause penalties. Here's what he's found from his...

Do Links Get Old & Expire As They Get Older?

A SitePoint Forums thread asks, as links get older, to they loose their power? Here is the exact question: This is something I have noticed couple of times in the past - it "feels" that old backlinks expire or loose...

Image Links, "The Next Best Thing" to Text Links

A short WebmasterWorld thread asks if links from logos or images give off any link popularity amongst the search engines. WebmasterWorld Link Development moderator, pageoneresults, replies that although text links are preferred, "you are getting the next best thing which...

Buy Expired Domains For SEO Link Value?

Link building is a crucial aspect for SEO. SEOs have and continue to try everything to build quality links quickly for their sites and their clients. Often, the topic of buying a an expired domain - to leverage the links...

Is it Worth it to Build Links for Bad Websites?

Wiep Knol wrote an interesting post on how to build links for crappy websites. I'm sure many of you have been there: your client has a website that has no real value and you want to build links to it....

Are Your Link-Building Tactics Failing? Don't Blame Google

Eric Ward wrote a wonderful piece at Search Engine Land about the fallacies of link building beliefs. The summary, as written by Chris Sherman, is as follows: Many of you have had your entire portfolio of clients blown up because...

Automatically Mixing Up Your Anchor Text in Link Building Campaigns

Getting the Most out Of Your Anchor Text: It’s not as Simple as you Think from Slightly Shady SEO goes through how one should vary their anchor text used in their link building campaigns. As described in the blog post,...

Experts Weigh in on Link Value Factors

On his own blog, Wiep collected data over the past few months from many esteemed link builders and presented his own link value factors. How important is the anchor text? How important are the number of links? What about the...

When Will New Links Impact the Search Results?

A WebmasterWorld thread asks how long might it take for a search engine to discover new links and then have those new links impact your search results. For example, let's say you write an awesome article and you get 50...

Need Help Getting Links from Education (.EDU) Sites?

There is no doubt that link builders love to get links from sites on edu TLDs. But those are not always that easy to obtain. We have covered the topic several times here, including: Finding Some of Your EDU Links...

Are Link Exchanges All Manipulative of Search Algorithms?

A Cre8asite Forums thread goes into a debate about the nature of link swaps or link exchanges. EGOL, forum moderator, sparked the debate by saying: Link swapping is manipulation. Now, you and I know that he did not mean that...

Will SEOs Stop Buying Links in Light of the Risks?

We recently had the October 2007 Paid Link Debate which recapped the discussion around Danny Sullivan's Official: Selling Paid Links Can Hurt Your PageRank Or Rankings On Google. But will SEOs and Webmasters stop buying links? That is the question...

Link Building is Getting More Difficult, but Why?

WebmasterWorld members wonder why link building has become more difficult. Years ago, it would be easy to ask a webmaster to create a link on his/her site to point to your site. But now, everyone is requiring reciprocity or they...

Hiding The NoFollow from Advertisers on Ad Links

A WebmasterWorld and DigitalPoint Forums thread discusses how some publishers are now applying the nofollow attribute to ads they had already sold without the nofollow attribute on them. One publisher actually was accused of "breach of contract" over applying the...

Stuck & Need Links Fast with Little Budget

A Cre8asite Forums thread has a story of an SEO who got himself in a mess. The mess is that he has to get his client 20 PR6 links all for the price of $475. Yea, read that again. The...

Sitewide Links: Do They Hurt or Help?

A WebmasterWorld thread asks if sitewide or "run of the site links" help or hurt a site do well in Google and other search engines. We have covered the topic in January 2006, where we quoted Ammon Johns as saying:...

How to Check if a Site Passes Link Popularity

A WebmasterWorld thread asks if there is a way to tell if a particular site or page is able to pass PageRank. In more global terms, is there a way to check if a particular site or page is able...

What's Better? Image Based Links or Text Links? What About in H1 Tags?

A very interesting discussion has emerged on WebmasterWorld about link equity from images or text links. What's better? Do image links pass PageRank? Do they imply trust? According to moderator pageoneresults, both links pass equity, but image links are not...

YouTube Video Links Are 'NoFollowed'

A DigitalPoint Forums thread asks if Google counts the links from YouTube videos. The simple answer is no. If you look at a YouTube video that has a link in the description field, you will notice that in the code...

Link Building Tips and Tricks

When you have to reach a quota of building links (particularly on forums), the job can get inundating and frustrating. In a Search Engine Watch Forums, one of the members has been assigned by his company to do just that....

Using Flickr in your SEO & Traffic Building Strategy

A Search Engine Watch Forums thread asks how Yahoo's image hosting service, Flickr, can be used in your SEO strategy. I am a big fan of Flickr so I thought I give some examples of how it can be used...

Hyperlinking Keywords to the Same Page: Spam, Usability Issue, or Both?

A webmaster asks WebmasterWorld if hyperlinking terms on a single page to link back to that page is considered spam. His argument is that it shouldn't be construed as spam if it's only being used for emphasis. However, the majority...

Finding Some of Your EDU Links with Yahoo Search

There has always been this perception that links from domains with a .EDU TLD is better than links from .COM, .NET, .ORG and so on. Chris Boggs covered the debate with Are Links From .edu and .gov Domains Really "Better?"...

Google Webmaster Link Tool June 2007 Update

Google has updated Google Webmaster Tools with a link update and I suppose other data updates as well. There is currently discussion at DigitalPoint Forums and two threads at WebmasterWorld. Here is a look at our top pages, by links...

Yahoo! Search Indexing Email Addresses As Links

We asked the question in the past, Can an Email Address Be Counted as a Back Link? Well, maybe the answer is yes. I was looking at Excel Diamonds backlinks in Yahoo! Site Explorer for fun and found that Yahoo!...

When Buying Links, PageRank is Not the Final Answer

A WebmasterWorld thread talks about how they noticed how the Yahoo! Directory pages are showing a PageRank score that is typically lower than what they showed in the past. A member says based on that, "Looks like that $300 link...

Ethical Link Building Incentives