Matt Cutts Speaks on Paid Links

[WebMeUp]

Head of Google's Web Spam team Matt Cutts just published another video, in which he explains how Google defines "paid links".

What are your thoughts on that?

Did the video make things clearer or only spread more confusion? Do you believe that Google can actually detect all these types of paid links?

 

[zigojacko]

Your website interrupted my reading of your article with an annoying pop-up asking if I wanted to subscribe to your newsletter. I've promptly left your site without finishing reading or sharing your article now as you distracted me...

In short though, nothing really new here. We've all got our opinions on how Google treat paid links and what they can do to detect them. Many think it's all fluff though and Google couldn't detect a paid link algorithmically if it hit them between the eyes. They're wrong in my view. It doesn't take a great deal of science to match flags and correlation between sites and on external links and detect similar/repeated patterns.

 

[StevePoster]

I already visited the website and while in the reading session with the content, the annoying pop up appears, and I think this is the reason why the other readers leave a site page immediately.

 

[WebMeUp]

Hey folks,

thank you for your feedback regarding the pop-up: we'll figure out a way to make it less annoying. As a side note though, pop-ups is a controversial topic. Many people do get annoyed, yet it is pop-ups that double subscription rates (http://danzarrella.com/my-data-shows-email-popups-work-and-dont-hurt.html), and there's hardly a blog these days without them.

Appreciate speaking your mind anyway, we see we need a closer look into it.

 

[seowise]

I understand Google don't like the paid links because it rank fast your website to Google top of listing even the website are not good according to Google guidelines. So the other good website are still on the same rank that they were. So, Google treat the paid links as a kind of spamming.

Google has bee quite successful at catching paid links lately. However PBNs still work in my opinion.

 

[fisicx]

Many people do get annoyed, yet it is pop-ups that double subscription rate.

Has it worked for you?

Nothing really new in the video. The rules haven't changed, it's just people trying to game the system and getting hung up on definitions.