In many ways, search engine optimization is a guessing game. The search engines, understandably, don't give away many clues about the factors in their algorithm. When it comes to judging how much weight links have, where keywords should go and other various SEO factors, SEO experts are playing a kind of game of Battleship with the search engines. The search engines won't tell you if you miss... but they sometimes tell us when someone's made a hit.
Google and the other search engines do give away clues. The rest of the search engine optimisation industry's methods come from careful testing. The following are tips gathered by SEO pros after such tests, with some clues provided by the search engines. Although, like almost everything to with SEO, these are not absolute rules, heeding them is a good idea.
1. Internal links aren't as powerful as external or inbound links. Although initially PageRank didn't seem to take shared domains in as a factor, it's fairly certain that they do now. Most of the evidence for this has been gathered by SEOs in the field, who have noted that client sites with lots of backlinks do far better than client sites that have a really good internal linking system. That said, internal links shouldn't be completely ignored, as they are an asset that you completely control. Talk to us at SEO Consult about the comparative value of links.
2. Two links from one site count less than two links from two sites. Another widely believed idea is that unique links carry more weight than non-unique ones. This makes sense. Having one site give you 100 links is much like having your mother gush about you - it's impressive, but doesn't speak for your objective popularity. This idea has been borne out by studies of link data.
3. Links from important sites count for more. This is something your SEO company has probably already drilled into you. Obtaining links from trusted websites is the goal of almost every search engine optimization campaign. It should be noted that even unimportant pages from important sites give good link juice.
4. A site that links to spam won't pass much link juice. Although there's a lot of hysteria surrounding spam pages, this is something that's widely suspected and seems to be borne out in casual tests. Even high-profile pages seem to lose influence after linking to spam. It's another reason to check the links of potential linking sites carefully before approaching them. The average search engine optimization company will do this sort of research to get links from a site with a pristine reputation.
5. An influx of links helps rankings. While some SEOs are cautious about swift link acquisition, it is thought that gaining a bucket load of links can help you trump your competition. This is one to be careful of, as it is also thought that Google uses sharp link increases as a warning signal for spam. It's best to talk to your SEO company about your link building plan.
Google and the other search engines do give away clues. The rest of the search engine optimisation industry's methods come from careful testing. The following are tips gathered by SEO pros after such tests, with some clues provided by the search engines. Although, like almost everything to with SEO, these are not absolute rules, heeding them is a good idea.
1. Internal links aren't as powerful as external or inbound links. Although initially PageRank didn't seem to take shared domains in as a factor, it's fairly certain that they do now. Most of the evidence for this has been gathered by SEOs in the field, who have noted that client sites with lots of backlinks do far better than client sites that have a really good internal linking system. That said, internal links shouldn't be completely ignored, as they are an asset that you completely control. Talk to us at SEO Consult about the comparative value of links.
2. Two links from one site count less than two links from two sites. Another widely believed idea is that unique links carry more weight than non-unique ones. This makes sense. Having one site give you 100 links is much like having your mother gush about you - it's impressive, but doesn't speak for your objective popularity. This idea has been borne out by studies of link data.
3. Links from important sites count for more. This is something your SEO company has probably already drilled into you. Obtaining links from trusted websites is the goal of almost every search engine optimization campaign. It should be noted that even unimportant pages from important sites give good link juice.
4. A site that links to spam won't pass much link juice. Although there's a lot of hysteria surrounding spam pages, this is something that's widely suspected and seems to be borne out in casual tests. Even high-profile pages seem to lose influence after linking to spam. It's another reason to check the links of potential linking sites carefully before approaching them. The average search engine optimization company will do this sort of research to get links from a site with a pristine reputation.
5. An influx of links helps rankings. While some SEOs are cautious about swift link acquisition, it is thought that gaining a bucket load of links can help you trump your competition. This is one to be careful of, as it is also thought that Google uses sharp link increases as a warning signal for spam. It's best to talk to your SEO company about your link building plan.
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