How many back links per day is too many?
-
I wanted to get the community thoughts on the specific question of: How many high quality directory submission back links per day is too many for a new website with zero back links ? or is there never too many when it comes to high domain authority back links ?
-
In the industrial sector, directories are still being used with much success (companies like ThomasNet, MacRAES and Globalspec still create high quality leads). However, over the last 5 years or so (like Ryan's wine example) they are becoming more of informational portals that also has a directory component to it.
-
I consider those the only GENERAL directories worth submitting to, yes.
As an experiment with my site, I will be joining those and a few other directories and tracking all traffic received from each directory. After 1 year I intend to post an update with all traffic received and then make a determination.
To clarify, some niche directories are fantastic. Perhaps you have a site which sells wine and you find a nice wine directory which is visited by many wine enthusiasts. That could be an excellent find.
Directories were great in 1994-5 when search engines did not exist. Since that time, directories have steadily lost ground. The question is....when was the last time you went to a directory to find a site?
In order for a directory to flourish in today's world, they need to publish quality content. If a wine directory publishes content on wine tasting, how to locate a quality winery, etc. then visitors are more likely to find the site due to that content. Perhaps they hold contests, solicit ratings and feedback from visitors, etc. thereby generating more visitors. That kind of site can be quite helpful.
-
Lots of webmasters are paying big money to have trashy links removed. If you think that it is hard to build them, try to get them removed from a spammy directory.
Read about the Penguin update if you don't already know about it.
-
Unless that list has been thoroughly scrubbed, I would not recommend using it. I do not see anything on that list to say these directories are "recommended" or even have been reviewed to ensure they comply with Google Guidelines.
Either way I believe you are completely wasting your time. Google clearly understands the difference between an "earned" link and a directory link. Here is a simple rule of thumb for any link:
- How much direct traffic do you expect to receive from legitimate users who are seeking your product or services from the directory link? If the answer is zero I would suggest you are wasting your time and are more likely to damage your site then to help it.
If you have Google Analytics installed on your site, or the linking site does, then Google is clearly aware of how valuable the link is (i.e. how often it is clicked by a legitimate user). Of course, there are methods of manipulating that data and Google also has methods of detecting manipulation.
If there is a single lesson Google has tried to communicate this year it is...stop "building" links and start earning them. If a website owner asks their SEO what have they done to improve the site this month and the response is "we submitted your site to 3-5 directories each day" I would highly recommend that site owner find a new SEO provider.
-
We tend to use the majority of the the directories listed on seomoz directory page as like you stated they are the only ones that really meet the "criteria".
-
How many back links per day is too many?
Too many for what exactly? The only limit to how many links you can earn in a day are based upon your budget and creativity.
**How many high quality directory submission back links per day is too many for a new website with zero back links ? **
How do you define "high quality directory"? There are very few directories which comply with Google Guidelines and would not be viewed as manipulative. The primary general directories meeting this criteria are DMOZ, Business.com, Yahoo.com, botw.org, joeant.com. There will be a very few others along with some specific niche directories.
Additionally, there are a select few quality membership directories. For example, if you join the Better Business Bureau, you would be listed in their member directory. If you use McAfee for site security, you may be included in their directory.
or is there never too many when it comes to high domain authority back links ?
Domain authority can only be used to determine a link's quality if you are proceeding under the assumption the site involved is not penalized for manipulative links and the majority of sites linking in are likewise not penalized. DA, like most SEO metrics, can be manipulated.
In summary, if you are receiving links from quality, legitimate sources, then you are free to earn as many links as you desire. Google likely has a threshhold where if a new site earns a large number of links in a short time frame it will set off an alert causing the site to be reviewed, but if the links are of a quality nature then there is no problem. There are major companies opening new sites all the time and those sites receive massive amounts of links in short periods of time.
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
-
So many spam links that I haven't created are reflected in my domain
Around 500+ spam links got reflected in my domain. I actually haven't created them. Also, the links are not opening. These links affected my spam score. How can I remove them and reduce my spam score?
Link Building | | OrangeDigital160 -
Creating a Link Back Template
One of my clients supplies their product to a number of retail stores. Most of the stores do not currently link back to his website. He is hoping that they might be more motivated to link back if they had a template that made it easy to copy and paste the link back code into their website. Does it make sense to make a password protected page with different link back styles. Some plain text, some different size company logos (so they have different options)? Similar to what Yelp does with their badges.
Link Building | | rx3000 -
Guest Blogging Question? How many links in an article?
I am being offered by a blog to have more than 5 links in an article that points directly to our money sites. The blog is in the same niche. This is the first time i am being offered more than 2-3 links in an article. Should i do it? How many links should be in an article so not to be penalized by Google? Does it look unnatural to have more links in an article that points to the same site but different pages? Thanks
Link Building | | WayneRooney0 -
Why am I getting links in my link report from sites that no longer exist?
So, I have a link report from Link Detox. And I'm going through all of them and considering what sites need to be removed. and trying to find emails and contact webmasters. There is just one odd thing i'm starting to see more of. A lot of links are on websites or webpages that no longer exist. The link no longer exists. Some of the domains are even available for purchase. Why are these links showing on the backlink report and are they really harming my website? Also, do I need to add these links into the disavow document that I will submit to Google?
Link Building | | lightwurx0 -
Ecomerce: Would 4 link sections leak too much link juice?
Hello, In my content management for our ecomerce site, I've found that there are sometimes links to sites in our industry that have "helpful links" sections. Several strong sites link directly to these resource sections. There are 4 different topics that fit this trend in our industry. Would it leak too much link juice to make 4 comprehensive link sections and place a link to them on our "Useful Articles" page? Or should I stick to one comprehensive link section? Or perhaps a small link section? Or none at all? Thanks.
Link Building | | BobGW0 -
Links from any country?
My site is aimed primarily at the UK, 90% of the traffic is from the UK and most of my links are from other UK based and UK targetted websites. The content is actually fairly international (apart from certain terms like Plasterboard instead of Drywall, etc). My question is: Should I concentrate on gathering links from the UK, or should I widen my search and try to get links from US and European websites? Are there any particular advantages or disadvantages to keeping links "local"?
Link Building | | Jingo010 -
I don't know if i should post my articles to other forums or sharing sites to create back links?
All the articles on my blog are written on my own. I write about 5 ones per month. I don't know if i should post my articles to other forums or sharing sites to create back links? I have heard that it may cause adverse effect because my blog will be crawled more slowly than those forums, so Google will consider the articles on my blog (as) copies. Is that right?
Link Building | | tranduchieu0