Missing back links in Google Webmaster Tools

[justinmarch]

When I look for Back Links within Google Webmaster Tools some links seem to be absent.

When I search for the link in Google and click on "Cached" under the appropriate listing I can see the back link on the page.

I'm not obsessing or anything (I just download this to keep track) but would like to know why this is the case.

Anyone got any idea why this happens?

Anyone seen this on their own site?

 

[maxsaigon]

That's a simple thing, you should try with some link tracker software instead of Google Webmaster tool. Cause google webmaster need a long time to update backlink and some of them was broken during the time.

 

[Michelle101]

same thing happen with me too.. i tried every way but didn't success to get any good result...

 

[justinmarch]

I think it maybe some sort of delay perhaps to establish if the page is going to stick around on the site itself, but that is conjecture.

I don't like using link tracker software, I would use a Yahoo search if I wanted to do this, am more interested in why it happens not how to track my links.

Anyone know any more?

 

[barginboyrob]

Q: I know I have [one / several / dozens of ] links that Webmaster Tools isn't showing. What gives?
A:[FONT=arial,sans-serif]Although the link reports in Webmaster Tools are more comprehensive than doing a [link:example.com] query in Google search, they may not include 100% of all links that you know about. This is normal and should not be cause for alarm. Webmaster Tools does not always show 100% of the links that Google knows about, so just because a particular link doesn't appear in Webmaster Tools doesn't mean that Google doesn't know about that link, or that your site isn't "getting credit" for that link.

Note that the link report in Webmaster Tools only shows whether a site is linking to yours; it doesn't show which links are most significant, and it can include links [/FONT][FONT=arial,sans-serif]that are nofollowed or that [/FONT][FONT=arial,sans-serif]don't pass PageRank.


Taken from here: http://sites.google.com/site/webmasterhelpforum/en/faq--webmaster-tools


edit: whoops, I just noticed I didn't answer your specific question, I'm not sure why they don't include it. Maybe if they included all of them it would be easy to work out which are most important to google, and then would be easier to manipulate the google results
[/FONT]

 

[justinmarch]

[FONT=arial,sans-serif]Although the link reports in Webmaster Tools are more comprehensive than doing a [link:example.com] query in Google search, they may not include 100% of all links that you know about. This is normal and should not be cause for alarm.[/FONT]

Not alarmed Bob just curious, as stated if I wanted to know backlinks best to use Yahoo for this.

[FONT=arial,sans-serif]so just because a particular link doesn't appear in Webmaster Tools doesn't mean that Google doesn't know about that link, or that your site isn't "getting credit" for that link.[/FONT]

Hence my question Bob

[FONT=arial,sans-serif]Note that the link report in Webmaster Tools only shows whether a site is linking to yours; it doesn't show which links are most significant, and it can include links [/FONT][FONT=arial,sans-serif]that are nofollowed or that [/FONT][FONT=arial,sans-serif]don't pass PageRank.
[/FONT]

I know that Bob

[FONT=arial,sans-serif]
Maybe if they included all of them it would be easy to work out which are most important to google, and then would be easier to manipulate the google results
[/FONT]

That's not what I asked Bob

I'm not interested in working out how valuable the links are, simply why they are not included when I can find them cached via a Google search.

Any one got any ideas?

 

[barginboyrob]

Well that's what I was trying to get at, they just show a random sample in different places so that the ranking factors are not as transparent.. I think..

 

[emmadean]

For all my backlinks monitoring I either use SeoQuake or MarketLeap.

 

[justinmarch]

Well that's what I was trying to get at, they just show a random sample in different places so that the ranking factors are not as transparent.. I think..

That maybe the case, but if it is they might as well have emulated the results returned with the Google link: search.

My thinking subject to a better theory is that the links are not present due to some sort of delay perhaps to establish if the page with the link is going to stick around on the site itself, but that is also conjecture.

Have also posted similar question on the Google Help Forum so far no reply that helped.

Does anyone have other thoughts?

 

[webpromoterservice]

google takes ages to show backlinks.you can also use yahoo site explorer to see how many pages are linking to your site

 

[justinmarch]

google takes ages to show backlinks

Yes it could just be a delay I'm talking about a discrepancy between cached pages which show links and the google webmaster tools.

yahoo site explorer to see how many pages are linking to your site

Yes I know, that's not what I'm trying to find out.

To reiterate:

When I look for Back Links within Google Webmaster Tools some links seem to be absent.

When I search for the link in Google and click on "Cached" under the appropriate listing I can see the back link on the page.

Any ideas about why this might be?