Google AdWords Now Allowing Link Buying Ads?

Feb 11, 2015 - 8:45 am 15 by
Filed Under Google Ads

Google AdWords LinksRand Fishkin from Moz posted on Google+ that Google AdWords seems to have lifted their ban on link selling/buying companies from advertising on their network.

He shared a screen shot showing link selling services and companies selling links to link buyers. But is it just expanded keyword match or a new change in AdWords policy. Truth is, I never knew Google AdWords did not allow link buying/selling ads and I can't find a source that had said this (am I missing it?).

Here are some screen shot of ads for queries around these services:

[buy links] has no ads:

click for full size

[buy pagerank] has ads mostly for books on Google PageRank:

click for full size

[buy backlinks] has ads:

click for full size

[link building] has ads:

click for full size

[buy links for seo] also has ads:

click for full size

Is this new? I am not sure, to be honest. Of course, the ethical question of if Google should take money from advertisers selling services against their guidelines is another topic.

Forum discussion Google+.

 

Popular Categories

The Pulse of the search community

Search Video Recaps

 
Video Details More Videos Subscribe to Videos

Most Recent Articles

Search Forum Recap

Daily Search Forum Recap: January 15, 2026

Jan 15, 2026 - 10:00 am
Google

Personal Intelligence In Gemini & Soon In Google Search AI Mode

Jan 15, 2026 - 7:51 am
Google

Google's John Mueller Says Universal Commerce Protocol Won't Kill SEO

Jan 15, 2026 - 7:41 am
Google Search Engine Optimization

Google: Favicons In Search Not Impacted By Google Core Updates

Jan 15, 2026 - 7:31 am
Google Ads

New Google AI Mode Ads: Explore Guides and Articles

Jan 15, 2026 - 7:21 am
Google

Google Trends Explore Page Adds Gemini

Jan 15, 2026 - 7:11 am
 
Previous Story: Google: We Don't Have Whitelists For The Penguin & Panda Algorithms