Do “Bad” Links Hurt Rankings?
Question: Can getting links from “bad sites” negatively effect your rankings?
Answer: No.
It still amazes me at how many “well paid” people in this industry get this question wrong. It’s a question that needs no expert opinion or explanation. The reasoning should be self evident to anyone that has basic comprehension of how search engines rank websites.
I am posting this is because in the current issue of Wired (a magazine I love and respect) Mr. Know-It-All, Clive Thompson, helps propagate the myth when discussing “Link Farming”.
Thompson states, “most search engines can detect if you’re being aggressively linked from these “bad neighborhoods” (as Google calls them) and they’ll probably punish you by reducing your rank in the search results.”
This statement is partially true. Search engines can detect your linking patterns BUT your rankings will not be negatively effected by these rankings. These links will typically be ignored by the search engines and will thus have no effect on your ranking.
Here’s why:
If links from “Bad Neighborhoods” could lower your rank then this technique could be used to “sink competitors”. In fact, Black Hat SEO’s could make a living simply creating “bad neighborhoods” and then linking them towards a client’s competitors. It’s just not a realistic way to determine ranking.
Mr. Know-It-All also seems to have a misunderstanding of what “link farming” is or how it works. Link farms are bad and WILL hurt your rankings but not because “thousands of sham Web sites” link to you. Link farms hurt rankings because they require you to link back to these neighborhoods. That’s the main thing to stay away from. All the “bad sites” on the planet can link to your site with no effect but if you link back to these sites then you become part of the problem.
Linking to “bad neighborhoods” such as link farms is an action that can be viewed as an attempt at spamming the search engines. This makes you a search engine spammer in the eyes of the search engines and that is not a blacklist you want to be on.
So if someone wants to link to you, good for them. Just make sure you don’t link back unless you are sure of their integrity.
The best links to get are from respected sites with related content to your own website. And the best way to get links is to offer something of value to web. It’s just that simple.
Learn More: Link Farms
Tags:
SEO, Search Engine Optimization, Search Engine Rankings, SERPS, Wired, Mr. Know-It-All, Clive Thompson, Link Farms, Black Hat SEO, Links, Linking, Link Strength, Google, Yahoo, Search Engines
