How do you perform your link audits?
-
What methods and tools do you guys use to perform link audits? Do you also use a traffic light system for links?
-
No problem - if you have any more questions then just drop me an email (my email is on my profile page). Good luck!
-
Excellent, thanks again mate. That's a really big help.
-
No problem, Gareth.
Regarding the distribution of PageRank. I gather a list of all the referring domains to the website in questions, then I lookup the PageRank for these domains (sometimes I use Domain Authority or Citation Flow - depends on your preference). Once I have a list of all the domains and their PR, I create a graph (bar chart) that shows the number of links coming from PR0 domains, PR1 domains, PR2 domains...
This is a nice visual display that you can see the kind of links coming to the site and usually gives a good signal of the quality of links coming through to the domain. Here's an awesome post by Pete Myers that goes through all of this - http://moz.com/blog/link-profiling-with-open-site-explorer
Now, in terms of what indicators I look for with regard to toxicity... I look for the following factors:
- Is the referring domain indexed by Google? If not, then it could be a signal that they have been de-indexed and I would remove this link.
- Is it a sitewide link that is part of a blogroll/footer/sidebar?
- Does the link come from a very low authority domain? (note: this isn't necessarily bad, but you will be able to see if the page has spammy looking content yourself)
- Does the link contain exact match keywords that aren't relevant to the page content at all?
These are the key factors that I look for but once you start analysing your link profile, you will be able to detect a pattern in the links.
Hope this helps
-
Thanks Matthew.
Can you go in to a little detail as to what you mean by distribution of PageRank please? Also, what indicators do you look for in terms of quality and toxicity? Thanks again.
-
For the link audits that I do for my clients, I use a variety of different tools. With link analysis, the more tools the better really. The tools I use are as follows:
- Majestic SEO
- Open Site Explorer
- Ahrefs
- Google Webmaster Tools
- Yandex Webmaster Tools
- Link Detox Tool
I compile all the link information from the first 5 tools mentioned and then import them into Link Detox tool. I can then start manually analysing the links and highlighting any potentially toxic links. Next step is using BuzzStream to find the contact information for the toxic links and then I compile a separate spreadsheet for this. I also put together a graph that shows the distribution of PageRank from external links within Excel - this is a good visual cue for the client.
Hope this helps.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Internal no follow links
I have just discovered that the WordPress theme I have been using for some time has no follow internal links on the blog. Simply put each post has an image and text link plus a 'read more'. The Read more is a no-follow which is also on my homepage. The developer is saying duplicate follow links are worse than an internal no follow. What is your opinion on this? Should I spend time removing the no follow?
Technical SEO | | Libra_Photographic0 -
What is Too Many On-Page Links?
in campaigns i see " Too Many On-Page Links " what is this ? can anyone please tell me ?
Technical SEO | | constructionhelpline0 -
Removal of all low PR links
I have a lot of old directory links which where done years ago, most I think will be effecting my site. Is there away to find them all ie through open explorer and then remove them in one go?
Technical SEO | | Cocoonfxmedia0 -
Is there a suggested limit to the amount of links on a sitemap?
Currently, I have an error on my moz dashboard indicating there are too many links on one of my pages. That page is the sitemap. It was my understanding all internal pages should be linked to the sitemap. Can any mozzers help clarify the best practice here? Thanks, Clayton
Technical SEO | | JorgeUmana0 -
Broken LInks Tool?
Hi I am trying to find broken links on my site, Is there a tool for this? Free or Paid tool is fine thanks.
Technical SEO | | daracreative0 -
Do links hold there value after 12 months?
Hello, We need to find out if links that we setup, which are older than 12 months hold any value? Do new links hold more value than old ones and therefore should we let the old links become inactive? If we do let the links become inactive after 12month will that effect the PA/DA of the site?
Technical SEO | | Entrusteddev0 -
Are multiple links devalued on the same domain?
I'm in negotiations to get links placed on a popular blog with good stats. I'm allowed to pick older posts on the site, and I get to pick the anchor text. Is it best practice to diversify the links by having different keywords pointing to different pages or am I better off pointing as many links as I can at one page (varying anchor text)? Also, is it best to pick a more recent blog post, or is it ok to pick one from say, 2009?
Technical SEO | | MichaelWeisbaum0 -
Do Link wheel works?
Hello, I am new to link wheel over web 2.0 sites and then linking your website or website article really helps in SEO and link building. Do you think its still works? Since i have also heard that many says that its too ok if we do spin content submitted to our web 2.0 properties small sites which are created for linking back to our main website. Will wait for reply...
Technical SEO | | anand20101