SEO and Link Farming & Duplicating content. Not bad!?

Hmmm... yes I think links that are relevant are a good thing. My question is does it help to put my Spokane Mortgage Link at the end of my comments on other peoples posts?

Thanks for sharing this.  All good points.  I really really don't see that posting your own content on more than one of your OWN sites is a bad thing.  You often have complete, discreet visitors and why should you not share some information that would not be helpful to two sets of readers?  Regarding link farms, if the links are helpful and on topic, I also don't see how this is a bad thing.  I think the whole issue is moderation, if the link farm and duplicate content is done in good faith and to be helpful and share info, go right ahead and do it. If it is done simply as a technique to "cheat the system", cut it out.  But of course, as in real life, the ones who want to cheat the system will go right ahead doing it even if it is not socially acceptable, and taint the use of the system as it is intended to be used, for the rest of us.

Frank. Thanks for the link. You may also be interested in this other post that i did about link exchanges. Also keep in mind that Google does account for how long those links have been in place. They "grandfather" some sites due to their age they can get away with more.

Hi Frank!

To my way of thinking, a "link farm" is different from a "link directory". Wikipedia defines a "link farm" as -

"A link farm is any group of web pages that all hyperlink to every other page in the group. Although some link farms can be created by hand, most are created through automated programs and services. A link farm is a form of spamming the index of a search engine (sometimes called spamdexing)."

On the other hand, Wikipedia defines a "link directory" as -

"It specializes in linking to other web sites and categorizing those links."

Quite a difference! And having a "link farm" was what got Advanced Access sites in trouble, just to name 1 example. The reason AA sites were penalized was because they were creating "link farms" with all the linked sites being hosted on the same IP address, rather than showing their subscribers how to do reciprocal linking correctly and create legitimate "link directories". What does that mean? They were primarily linking AA sites to each other - pretty incestuous. The search engines know the IP address and the web host where your web site lives. So it is real easy to achieve reciprocal links from eveyone who is being hosted at the same place. Yahoo! and Google saw this as "gaming" the system and took action against those sites with "link farms". And now, AA is just doing a CYA in their blog to downplay the fact that they should have known better! Their technique got many of their subscribers' sites in trouble.

Dirk Johnson responded in another comment to a Post on this subject here on Active Rain. He wrote in part -

"Reciprocation between sites in the same realm of interest is a fundamental web marketing practice that pre-dates every single search engine. For Google to stomp on that would be for them to try to alter the fundamentals of the World Wide Web. The web is network of links. Sites in the same realm will inevitably link to each other. 

Matt Cutts and Adam Lasnik from Google do have a problem with sites trying to link to anything and everything. An example of that would be a health supplement site linking to automotive sites, gambling sites, etc.

It is not a matter of believing me or them, since reciprocation will continue on unabated, regardless of what I say, or what some SEO consultant says. This is not about opinion. It should be about actual real world examples. And, if you look at actual search results, especially in real estate, you will see that those reciprocating sites are doing quite well. And this condition applies acutely to the most competitive markets in real estate."

So it is entirely appropriate for home and real estate-related sites to link to and from each other, for their mutual benefit and the benefit of their visitors.

Now as to www.suburbanvirginia.com, Google may be showing only 37 links in the method you mentioned above. That would hardly get that site into the Top 40. Ha! But in fact, that site has over 870 links in Google's eyes... and that is part of what is taking her into the top rankings for a very competitive search phrase. The link directory on her web site follows the definition above - it is nicely categorized into sub-areas of interest, not merely to other real estate agent or company sites, but also to sites dealing with other home owning issues like home products and services, etc. Those links have been acquired naturally over time. So don't think if someone immediately puts up 500 links today in a directory, where there were none yesterday, that this will rocket a site to the top. It won't! It fact, it may get you banned for "gaming" the search engines. "Wait a minute! Where did this site all of a sudden get 500 inbound links?" ;-)

Lastly, it is more than just the Title tag as well that is attractive to the searchbots. I also wrote another Post called, "Is Your Web Site Being Found?" that might help you see an overview of good SEO techniques. So it is the combination of all of these techniques in the HTML coding as well as a good, growing link directory that can help any site achieve good rankings. But it takes time, knowledge and work to implement and maintain this. Unfortunately, that is something most real estate agents either don't know how to do, have no access inside some real estate templates to implement, or just won't take the time. All of this is simple, but its not easy! 

 

Win,

 You seen to be quite knowledgeable so I have question for you. I own a web design company and mortgage company. I have been creating and hosting sites for realtors that are on the same Ip as my mortgage site. I plan to continue to do the same for more realtors sites and more mortgage sites for myself all the while linking them together... will this get me banned because there all on the same Ip? I have four other Ip's, should I spread out the sites amoung the other Ip's? Thanks in advance :)

Hi Scott!

Hmm. That really depends on how many sites you are talking about linking to each other. If you are only talking about a handful, that would probably be OK... as long as you have links going to other sites outside of your IP address as well in a different directory someplace on your site. Or if you are merely putting them up on a page on your site to create a REALTOR directory, (like you have on http://www.unlimitedlending.org/findrealtor.php), then that is OK too. For example, I put a link to my own web design site on every custom site I build... and I almost always host every client as well on my two servers (thus, the same IP addresses). And I also have a portfolio of my work on my web site that links to each of them too. That doesn't seem to be a problem for them OR for me with the search engines.

The problem is when you are linking to all of them and they are also linking to each other that can get everyone in trouble. Now you are creating a round-robin effect, where everyone is just linking to other sites on the same servers. There is really no need to do this anyway. For you to mention them on your site and they mention you on your site seems only logical. You are a lender and they are REALTORS. But there is no need for all of them to link to each other too. They are competitors in the same general area. Certainly it would be logical for them to link to an agent in Texas, California or Florida... but it would not be logical for them to link to competitors in the same geographical area where the visitor could now leave one agent's site to go work with another agent in the same vicinity. Might be good for you as a lender, but bad for that agent. Ha!

And as I wrote here, the search engines know where you live. It is right there in any Whois record - the host name and the IP address - all part of the DNS. So if they see that all of these links are just going to the same host and the same IP address, you have created a "link farm", not a real "link directory". And that is exactly what got Advanced Access people in trouble! So think carefully about linking everyone to everyone... and stick to just you putting them in your directory and they putting you in theirs.

Hope that helps... and I haven't confused you too much. ;-)

Interesting advice regarding duplicate content.