Been Paying For Links? Uh Oh Google's Gonna Get You!

[whitebark]

From Google: "Google uses a number of methods to detect paid links, including algorithmic techniques. We also welcome information from our users. If you know of a site that buys or sells links, please tell us by filling out the fields below. We'll investigate your submissions, and we'll use your data to improve our algorithmic detection of paid links."

This of course opens a pandora's box of problems least of which is how do they know paid from non and what's to stop abuse of this?

Read more - Google Report PageRank Cheater

 

[Keral_Patel]

The very first question that is always attached to this is what about real buyers and sellers who are not doing this for PR but are doing this for traffic.

They do have a solution with rel="nofollow" but they cannot update whole internet with their ideas within some specific period of time. And what will happen to a new webmaster who is just in and does sells his advertisement spaces without the knowledge of rel="nofollow". He will be penalized. This is like beating a new guy on his head from nowhere and that poor guy doesn't even knows what did hit him.

I am not taking anyone's side and am not even debating on this issue but as NP is for discussion on issues I think some more opinions will not hurt on this one.

 

[whitebark]

What about directory owners? Are paid directories now going to go extinct? And besides - how can they prove you paid for a link unless you do so on a webpage they can actually read?

I'm thinking it's going to lead to more abuse - ie - another way to google bowl your competition.

 

[SuperTrooper]

Many big issues here, and the main one is competitors filing false reports on other sites for buying links. Just hope google has some smart people handling this end of it, otherwise people will be banned for false info.

 

[malibumobile]

This is really nothing new.

Us SEOs have been dealing with Google's Link checking and devaluing technology for years now.

 

[whitebark]

This is really nothing new.

Us SEOs have been dealing with Google's Link checking and devaluing technology for years now.

But this IS different. They want you to report cheaters and claim they will act upon it. That begs for abuse. It's one thing for them to develop their search engine to filter good links from bad links (where they are placed, anchor text used etc etc etc), and quiet another to ask for people to report on one another.

Let's say xyz.ext is beating me in the search rankings and I'm not liking it. Now all I have to do to get them penalized is buy a bunch of text links pointing to their website then report them for it. To leave 'evidence' you sign up on forums with their moniker and openly buy links from those selling them. You then use this to report them as a cheater to google. There is no way that google can police this. The manpower needed to ascertain what is real and what has been faked would be tremendous. Are they really going to go that far, or are they just going to act on the tip and penalize xyz.ext because of the report?

Gaming PageRank is one thing, getting gamed is another. On the Adsense blog this has been covered but one thing is missing - a real answer, and i think they know they can't offer one as they have bitten off more than they can chew.

 

[-PS-]

i still think this is just another way for google to increase their bottom line..

think about it, if you can't buy links to get higher pr (which traffic comes with it) you'll need to take other avneue's, ie adwords.

it just seems a good way for a marketing company to increase it's bottom line ...

 

[Darth_Dub]

It's just big business doing what they do best,staying big by changing the rules to benefit themselves. Google has a paid directory service don't they? They don't care if you buy links as long as you buy from them. You really pay for any link you have out anyway. A link in your sig on a forum costs you a post, right? It may not cost you money,but then again they say time is money. Now i doubt they would count a sig link as a paid link,but i'm sure they will when they start to feel cheated by them.

 

[Zurvan]

IMO, this makes sense. From what I understand, they aren't penalizing people for having paid links. They just aren't going to value them as highly as a natural backlink.

As far as I'm concerned, this benefits webmasters that develop quality websites, and the end users. The only people it hurts are the guys out for a quick buck with a crappy site, who have to pay to get links.

Google has always been focussed on providing quality search results to their users, and this is an extension of that. If they can make it work, then good for them, and good for internet users.

Buying quality links will still be great for advertising. You just won't see every Tom, Dick & Harry starting a paid web directory that nobody visits except to submit their links.

 

[Marck]

Forget Google. Look to your traffic names. The domainers have the real power.

 

[whitebark]

So we can't do what they are?

"Google Caught Selling High PageRank Links, Again
Google is buying marketshare for Google Checkout by profiling merchants who use it, and giving them free high PageRank links from Google sites. The Google Checkout blog, currently a PageRank 8 site, recently posted about the success of GolfBalls.com on their blog."
http://www.searchnewz.com/topstory/...CaughtSellingHighPageRankLinksAgainAgain.html

 

[Keral_Patel]

LOL Now that's something. That is why I don't pay attention to this kind of news.

They can do anything they like for link sellers or anyone. I have a habit of living in democratic country and I don't like being bullied around with some search engine. In fact they are the one who should obey some rules from webmasters as they are caching our pages and making profits by showing our pages to others. :D Yes I know we get traffic but that traffic was already ours as someone was searching for it. They just give us what we are entitled for. But in that also they have problems with Black Hat SEO's pumping out the traffic.

 

[Amnezia]

Its really not anything to be worried about unless your are blantantly buying links.

Keeping your link buying underwraps with the following do's and dont's.

don'ts

1. Don't buy links from a site's sponsor section - its very easy for googles algorithms to pick these up.
2. Don't buy sitewide links bellow the footerbar - i see alot of sites selling links this way. Firstly its debatable if google even trusts links placed that low on a page. Secondly its very easy to detect algorithmically.
3. Don't buy links from places that openly advertise link selling - this is obvious, if you start openly buying links in forums or link broker sites a competitor can easily report you.
4. Don't buy links from well known link brokers. Many of the well known link broker sites require you to place code on your website to render the links. This code leaves a 'footprint' which again the search engines can detect.

do's

1. Do contact the owner of the website where you wish to purchase a link privately. Offer them a fair price for a link on their page.
2. Do try to get 'in content' links where ever possible. Google seems to trust in content links more and they are hard to detect as paid.
3. Do vary the anchor text of your links, if you go and purchase 100 links all with the same anchor text its going to look pretty fishy. Try to think of ways which people would naturally link to your website.
4. Do try to purchase links from on topic sites. If you buying "buy viagra" links on politics sites then its gonna look pretty unautural.

Hope this helps explain how i buy my links. If in doubt always ask yourself does this link lot natural? If it doesn't then move on.

 

[deep_3657]

What about directory owners? Are paid directories now going to go extinct?

As I read somewhere by matts cutts, whats google is against is those paid links which are totally for the purpose of transfer of PR. Directories however serve dual purpose, transfer of PR as well as guiding their users to relevant sites. Therefore its unlikely to me that directories would go extinct.

 

[Posterboy]

Adwords

i still think this is just another way for google to increase their bottom line..

think about it, if you can't buy links to get higher pr (which traffic comes with it) you'll need to take other avneue's, ie adwords.

it just seems a good way for a marketing company to increase it's bottom line ...

Does paying to get on Adwords help increase the PR of your site?

 

[Skip]

I'm curious how the algorithm could detect and know the difference of a purchased link from a normal link. It does seem like they're telling us not to do something they're doing.

As long as you don't rely on Google for the majority of your profitable traffic, this news shouldn't affect you much.

 

[Keral_Patel]

Does paying to get on Adwords help increase the PR of your site?

No it doesnt increase or decrease PR.

Thanks.

 

[lpstong]

Ok first go to a Google Engineers blog to get the update on Paid Link info.

Matt Cutts blog where this info pretty much first broke from. Besides goting to his blog you can here 2 different interviews with Matt Cutts on Paid links at YouTube
http://youtube.com/watch?v=wpcZyNW9E-w
http://youtube.com/watch?v=_r2vp4x-JtU

Second if I understand correctly you only will get penalized if your reported. Or your site looks to obvious of paid linkage(using certain words on your site for links such as affiliates et cetera).

Third - They say there is a big difference between buying links for PR vs Advertising for traffic.

 

[netzilla]

I believe if you purchase a paid link from a site that has a subject related to yours you will be fine. However, if you buy a link from farm equipment website and your site deals with selling viagra....I think G is going to catch that LOL!

Another option is to put on a "Link Condom" which is also known as 'rel=nofollow' on any paid links you buy or sell. That way G doesnt think you are trying to cheat

 

[beamup]

4. Don't buy links from well known link brokers. Many of the well known link broker sites require you to place code on your website to render the links. This code leaves a 'footprint' which again the search engines can detect.

i agree with this point. Sometime ago my friend hire some brokers to get some links of some magazines sites. Later he was told to add some code and since he didnt think it was nothing harmful..., and later he saw how his site was getting downfallen and only when he looked and found the reason behind this. I am not saying do not trust brokers but you have to be very very careful on the links and the website whether they are trust worthy or not..

Steve.