SEO impact from UKBF links

[MEAVO]

Hi there, apologies if this was already discussed at length in the past, but I think link posts in UKBF used to be "normal" links, not no-follow links, if you were a premium member and paid. Or you had to be a premium member to post links, I can't remember. I just noticed that links in posts now have the tag rel="nofollow ugc noopener" and also the link in member signatures. I assume with regards to SEO any backlink on UKBF is now useless (aside from getting direct website traffic of course) which I guess makes sense to avoid spam, or maybe Google cracked down on UKBF that they can't charge for backlinks. Just wanted to check this because if true (that backlinks on UKBF are useless) I won't renew my premium membership.

 

[japancool]

From what's been said here and elsewhere, backlinks have long since stopped being a major factor for SEO.

 

[MEAVO]

From what's been said here and elsewhere, backlinks have long since stopped being a major factor for SEO.

Yes for sure there are plenty of other factors, but backlinks are still an important factor (maybe the most important one).

What Are Backlinks & Why They Matter in SEO

Backlinks are links that one site gets from another. They can drive traffic and benefit the linked site‘s SEO.

www.semrush.com

"There are many other factors that contribute to Google rankings. But if you want to earn lots of traffic from Google, backlinks are important. Plus, backlinks help Google to discover (and therefore rank) your content."
This article is just a few weeks old.

 

[japancool]

Yes, but if the backlinks appeared in your posts or sig, that would be EGC, which wouldn't have any SEO effect anyway. It would have to be other people linking to your site (at least, that's what the article suggests). I'm no SEO expert, so better let someone else answer that.

 

[fisicx]

Yes for sure there are plenty of other factors, but backlinks are still an important factor (maybe the most important one).

Not true for just about all small businesses. Most ranking signals are on-site. A backlink will only be useful if it is authoritative, relevant and adds value. Self generated links are none of the above.

If your SEO strategy centres on backlinks you are doing it wrong.

All links from UKBF are no-follow

 

[Shopclicks]

"There are many other factors that contribute to Google rankings. But if you want to earn lots of traffic from Google, backlinks are important. Plus, backlinks help Google to discover (and therefore rank) your content."

Tell us you sell backlink related services without telling us you sell backlink related services.

Why would you believe anything Semrush tells you about the benefits of backlinks? That's a marketing post.

It's nearly as bad as Shopify telling people their platform is SEO friendly!

If your SEO strategy centres on backlinks you are doing it wrong.

This!

 

[HFE Signs]

I guess the idea with UKBF is that we all help each other and the networking may lead yo orders if we're lucky - it isn't here for building links, more building a network

 

[Ozzy]

The folk above have answered the main bits but to just pick up on some of your specific questions;

I think link posts in UKBF used to be "normal" links, not no-follow links

No this was never the case. They have always been no-follow and ugc (user-generated content).

you had to be a premium member to post links

Previously you had to be a member to have a signature with links. They would still be no-follow, ugc.

Google cracked down on UKBF that they can't charge for backlinks

Google cracked down on the member blogs that the previous site owners had in place, and UKBF was listed on Reddit's and other link-building websites as a site you could pay to set up a blog on and spam backlinks from. UKBF then became categorised as a link farm by Google and blackholed.
I removed that feature and deleted more than 50,000 blocks and about 200,000 pages of content to, and we undertook about 2 years of SEO repair work which I'm pleased to say is bearing much fruit and our search console reports are beautiful again.

We never charged for backlinks, but the blogs did cause a huge problem which is why they have been deleted.

If your only reason for being here is to build backlinks then I agree, this isn't the right place and would not be worth renewing your membership. However, if you're looking for business support, community and money saving benefits, then it may be.

 

[MarketingQuote]

Some interesting comments, but your thread really is asking how to get your website more traffic (in a nutshell).

Sadly Google's algorithm is always changing, what works today may not work in 6 months.

The buzz word 15 years ago was 'content is king' which is not necessarily the case these days.

Have you spoken to a few SEO companies? Chances are they will all tell you different things.

But as above, the purpose of UKBF is not about getting links, it is about each company trying to support others via advice from mistakes we have all made in the past and learned from.

 

[fisicx]

The buzz word 15 years ago was 'content is king' which is not necessarily the case these days.

Yes it is. And more important than ever. What has changed is the emphasis on the provision of quality content that adds value.

Get your content right and ranking will almost always improve.

Most SEO companies aren’t interested in doing this as it’s not quick or easy. All they want to do is build links and dump junk AI generated content on wherever will accept these posts.

 

[MEAVO]

The folk above have answered the main bits but to just pick up on some of your specific questions;


No this was never the case. They have always been no-follow and ugc (user-generated content).


Previously you had to be a member to have a signature with links. They would still be no-follow, ugc.


Google cracked down on the member blogs that the previous site owners had in place, and UKBF was listed on Reddit's and other link-building websites as a site you could pay to set up a blog on and spam backlinks from. UKBF then became categorised as a link farm by Google and blackholed.
I removed that feature and deleted more than 50,000 blocks and about 200,000 pages of content to, and we undertook about 2 years of SEO repair work which I'm pleased to say is bearing much fruit and our search console reports are beautiful again.

We never charged for backlinks, but the blogs did cause a huge problem which is why they have been deleted.

If your only reason for being here is to build backlinks then I agree, this isn't the right place and would not be worth renewing your membership. However, if you're looking for business support, community and money saving benefits, then it may be.

Thanks for clarifying!