Should i buy links

[lesliedocherty]

Ive heard loads about google not liking paid links and that yahoos £150 a year link is now ignored by google.

A few good directories have a paid listing policy, so whats a man to do ???

Also just got a quote for SEO frm Just Search and in their quaote they mention 'buying high quality links', these guys are no1 on google for 'SEO' so they know their stuff.

So to buy or not to buy ??

[Simon-M]

With all SEO you have a risk. SEO by it's very nature is designed to make your site appear higher in the SERPS. Google hates anything you do to make yourself appear higher. Sure they have guidelines but would you call that SEO? Some do and make a mint just implementing them. True SEO though entails fighting the fight. Doing what you have to do to get where you want to be whilst understanding the risks involved in getting there.

Paid links are hated by google. Can they tell you bought a link? Depends where you bought it!. The thing to understand here is that buying links is outlawed. If yo uget caught you may well face the google judge and jury.

Simon

[lesliedocherty]

Thats what i thought aswell, just found it odd seeing it on a quote from a company specialising in SEO

[nickpp]

bad news if the links are from a bad "Bad Neighborhodd"
As google calls it, also your competition can report link buying to google.

We used it a couple of years ago, only got us to the top of yahoo. The company we used said all link would come from pr 3 sites or higher. This was nonsense. Won't mention who they were :)

[ken_uk]

There is a big difference between paid for links as such, and paying for a review for acceptability into a directory.

If a directory publishes any link as long as they pay, then its one to avoid.

If a directory only publishes the relavent, quality links that have paid, then its not a bad thing.

Paid for links on their own are simply where you pay for a link on another site somewhere, not usually on a directory, often in the footer, or even the content.

Those type require careful evaluation of many variables before deciding one way or the other.

[lesliedocherty]

so paying for inclusion in business.com, yahoo.com, botw.org and the like is not a bad thing

[ken_uk]

No idea, I dont know what policy they have these days or whether they accept any site that pays.

Just because something is not a bad thing also does not mean it is automatically a good thing.

Usually you wont know how much traffic you will get from a link until you try it, and SEO benefits can change at any time. Google may or may not pass PR etc to any site as it see's fit at the time.

Its all a gamble, if you have the money to spare then why not, but there could well be other things you could spend the money on that are more effective for the price - such as improving a website, advertising, marketing etc.

Personally I have never bothered with any paid directory submissions, but if I had money to burn I would have no objections to paying for submission in quality directories that were highly relavent to any site I had, and that after careful research had proved they only accept the best sites, and reject the spammy ones.

[An Oasis]

Given that we are talking about G (no one ever talks about any other search engine)...I think they have played a blinder in terms of directories, which were a natural competitor albeit in a smaller way. Now everyone talks about paying for inclusion, if it will affect their rankings in G, what a bloody masterstroke.

How to neutralise the opposition and kill them off at the same time, genius.

[Simon-M]

How to neutralise the opposition and kill them off at the same time, genius.

Oh yes. Google have certainly turned the internet into their own playground.

Remember the motto though "Do No Evil". And with that remember "Absolute power, corrupts absolutely".

Simon

[ken_uk]

One of the first things google did was show paid links.....

They listed links to the organisations that had 'donated' equipment to get them started. Some major names if I recall.

Ok, it was not paid for directly as cash=link but it was paid for in the sense they got lots of moneys worth of equipment and all they seemed to give back was a link to them.

[sirearl]

Also just got a quote for SEO frm Just Search and in their quaote they mention 'buying high quality links', these guys are no1 on google for 'SEO' so they know their stuff.



Afraid not this tells you they can get to No1 for"SEO"

Not that they have the ability to get your particular site up there.

Always look for a company that has a wide range of good results across many products and industries.

Most of the top SOE's do not advertise,as they are swamped with work.

Earl

[boho]

Also just got a quote for SEO frm Just Search and in their quaote they mention 'buying high quality links', these guys are no1 on google for 'SEO' so they know their stuff.

So to buy or not to buy ??

Dont buy links! :eek: by all means pay for a decent SEO service where part of the management of the SEO is links swapping and campaign management, but buying links is a whole different matter and frowned upon by the search engine generally.

Links should be something which are naturally built, that way you know they are good quality and relevant to your site, they should be related or relevant products/industries from a good link neighbourhood - ie they are not linked to rubbish such as adult sites, pharmaceauticals, dating sites etc (unless thats the industry you are in in which case its obviously relevant) and they should be added gradually over time.

A whole pile of spammy poor quality links purchased from a link farm is no use to you whatsoever.

[lesliedocherty]

I was under that impression aswell, so the quote about buying links is a no no.

someone posted last month about buying the yearly link from yahoo for £150, and no-one mentioned it was a bad idea

[boho]

Its not a link, as such, its entry into the yahoo directory. Though I think most times this has come up most of us have said people are crazy to pay it. Personally I think the free submit url is quite good enough and there is no need to pay for inclusion into the directory.

[lesliedocherty]

sorry for my ignorance here

what is the difference between a paid link and paid entry into a directory ?

[sirearl]

Dont buy links! :eek: .

disagree buying high quality links from a highly relevant site is as safe as houses as long as no one tells Big Brother.?:|

I don't really believe google is that much interested,but the new algo has hit a lot of sites that were penalised who were not buying links.

Earl

[deniser]

I have number 1 /2 google positions for practically everything I sell and haven't paid for any link or directory submission, ever.

Behind me are Boden and Debenhams who have bought links.

So it can be done without.

[boho]

disagree buying high quality links from a highly relevant site is as safe as houses as long as no one tells Big Brother.?:|

I don't really believe google is that much interested,but the new algo has hit a lot of sites that were penalised who were not buying links.

Earl

Earl, what would you give as an example of a site worth buying a link from though? Generally most link 'sales' as it were seem to be a dodgy load of link farms. Can you explain the process/distinctions as it were.


Re the Yahoo Directory - this is is https://ecom.yahoo.com/dir/submit/intro/

Others may disagree but personally I see 'links' in the terms of links I swap or can buy as a reciprocal exchange between sites, effectively getting a vote off another site (even if its not a reciprocal link swap) whereas directory and shopping sites although giving a link to my site have a wider business purpose and are an equivalent to the yellow pages/thompson etc online, I am using them as its a resource my customer might visit i.e Wedding/Bridal online directories.

Directories still have an SEO benefit because they are still a link to the site, but are they the same as a paid link? To me the answer would be no as I consider there to be a distinction between my actions and purpose of their use, I guess I have no idea if Google still views these as 'Paid links' or not though?

[boho]

I have number 1 /2 google positions for practically everything I sell and haven't paid for any link or directory submission, ever.

Behind me are Boden and Debenhams who have bought links.

So it can be done without.

I would agree with you, I have never bought links or not in the sense that seems to be being described either. I do pay for some Directory inclusions but they are not just links they are actual ad and product space in a relevant directory.

[fisicx]

sorry for my ignorance here

what is the difference between a paid link and paid entry into a directory ?

Some people will pay to have an article or blog post written that links to their site. Google can spot these and will just ignore the link.

Matt Cutts explains it here: http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/how-to-report-paid-links/

In essence, if you want to pay for links do it for the traffic not to influence your ranking.

[Simon-M]

The thing is, google owns the internet. If they say don't buy links then you have to make a choice. Buy links and risk the wrath of the google gods or don't buy links.

The thing with playing the SEO game is that whatever you do (even the so called white hat stuff) you risk falling foul of the ever moving goal posts.

If you understand the risks involved in buying links and you are prepared to take the risk then you go for it. Just like any other business decision.

Simon

[edmondscommerce]

Worst case scenario realistically is that you will waste your money on links that google ignores for SEO benefit

I would always recommend exploring link building avenues that do not cost significant money first and get a feel for what's working - that will help you to choose the right paid links