Google Hypocrisy: Keyword Rich & User Friendly Links Should Die

Jul 25, 2014 - 8:07 am 32 by
Filed Under Link Building

two facesBack in the days before Google, online usability folks were all about making user friendly hyperlinks that communicated to the user what the link was about and what to expect when they clicked it. That means, a keyword rich anchor text link that describes the page it is linking to.

I remember early on, folks in that community, being upset with me when I linked the words "click here" or "more here" and so forth and not using keyword rich anchor text to describe it.

Usability advocate, Kim Krause Berg posted in the Cre8asite Forums a rant about this.

She said, "Hypocritical Google Dislikes User Friendly Links."

I've stated before that I don't give a flying cow about whether or not Google thinks a site I link out to is acceptable or not. If I decide to link to a page I like, I'm doing it. If I choose link anchor text that describes where my visitor will land, that is my right. All links are mystery links to people unless it is clearly explained where the link will take them. This is usability 101. Google knows this.

Is Google trying to kill user friendly links because of the manipulation of it by a group of SEOs?

Do they have other choices? Is this what Google is aiming to do?

Forum discussion at Cre8asite Forums.

 

Popular Categories

The Pulse of the search community

Search Video Recaps

 
- YouTube
Video Details More Videos Subscribe to Videos

Most Recent Articles

Search Forum Recap

Daily Search Forum Recap: May 16, 2025

May 16, 2025 - 10:00 am
Google Ads

Google's Pichai: Search Ads With AI Overviews Earn Same As Ads Without

May 16, 2025 - 8:50 am
Search Video Recaps

Search News Buzz Video Recap: Google Rethinking Search, Replacing Reddit, Search Console Annotations & So Much More

May 16, 2025 - 8:01 am
Google Maps

Google Maps 2024: 999 Million Reviews & 752 Million Photos / Videos Published

May 16, 2025 - 7:51 am
Apple App Store

Apple Maps Adds Insights, Ratings & Reviews From More Sources

May 16, 2025 - 7:41 am
Google

Google Working To Make It Easier To Share AI Overviews & AI Mode

May 16, 2025 - 7:31 am
Previous Story: New: Google AdWords Dynamic Sitelinks