Things That Make Me Laugh - "Our Site Is SEO'd" Links
I'm going to do an occasional "Things That Make Me Laugh" (but its actually a polite way of saying "things that get my goat!"
Today's victim are SEO agencies that feel the need to link back to their own site from the bottom (they even do sides!!!) of their client's sites.
Are they that desperate for link juice that they abuse their client's websites?
Take JustSearching.co.uk, they link back to their own site from virtually every client page and there's 69,500 of them.
In fact only 3 of the first 100 links listed have anything to do with SEO! Pure madness! This is the sort of trick I used to play in 1998 when I SEO'd my first client site.
A couple of things. My view of links, and I'm sure Google's too is that they should be earned and be in context to the site they're on.
If a visitor is on a site about cufflinks, fashion or villas are they really worried, concerned or interested in who did their SEO? It's obviously just there for SEO purposes.
You could say that its there to game Google. My view is that SEO is a people business, its a service. That's why all my business is from recommendations. I don't even bother ranking for any SEO phrases. In fact my site is five years out of date and I'm only getting a new one built as its about time bloody time (and people kept saying it's shite).
But why infect your clients' sites to benefit your own business - in my mind its not on. Client's needs come first!
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posted by getvisible @ 17:01
3 Comments
3 Comments:
Yeah but they rank.....
but they shouldn't be using their clients to do it! That's my point -their site should be able to stand on its own without obtaining these links!
Well, it's good to have a place to rant. You're as entitled to your own pet-hates as anyone else may be.
However, it is worth noting that Google (and Matt Cutts personally) have publically stated that such links are ok in the past. Who works on a site is relevant to that site, just as much so as an 'About Us' page is.
Now personally, I too would prefer to stay clear of site-wide default links on client sites. Not because it is 'dirty', but simply because I don't feel it is quite right from the user perspective.
Ideally, my own choice would be to have a paragraph in the About Us page on each client site that mentions partner companies, and details where they fit into the equation. That to me seems a lot more relevant and customer-focused.
It'll still count in SEO, but on a much better level.
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