Link building, does query string matter?
-
Hi All, We have some partners which link to our site, and they put "?ref=SITENAME" so we Can identify the source of the link....but does this matter to the search engines? Does this count as a different page than the one without the query string? -Rasmus
-
Yep. Remember to do the same in Bing's webmaster app too.
-
I have just checked GWT, and we had over 7000 pages with the ref string.
So I have changed the setting for this query string, telling Google that it does not affect the content of the page. That should be it right? From now on the Google should regard http://www.betxpert.com?ref=XXX as http://www.betxpert.com right?
-
Canonical will work yes, but I think it will be quicker and easier to change handling of the query parameter in gwt and bwc. If you use other query parameters canonical might be best.
-
As far as I can see in GWT, I have pages with the "?ref=XXX" which gives me pages with the same meta descriptions and titles.
So you are saying that using canonical this would help it?
If i am missing link juice to my home page because of this reference I really want to fix it
-
Hi
I think you're asking a question about duplicate content, and Google possibly indexing more than one version of the same page?
To avoid this from happening, add the canonical tag to the head of all your pages;
Each canonical should contain the original URL for each page. This will avoid indexation of the same page multiple times.
Jassy is likely correct, that the engines know how to ignore referral parameters, but you should have a canonical in place in most cases anyway.
-Dan
-
Google and bing probably are ignoring them (you can check how they're being handled if you look in GWT or BWC at how parameters are being handled). To be 100% sure, tell bing and google to ignore the ref parameter.
I'm assuming you only really care about bing and google.
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
-
Is guest posting recommended as a link building strategy?
Is guest posting a powerful methods when it comes to building backlinks? There are many relevant websites that have been set up to accept guest posts, still with good DA and PA and traffic Many relevant websites where it's easy to get a guest post on with good DA, PA and traffic What are the metrics to approach websites for guest posting?
Link Building | | elenamendez0 -
Site review : Should I finish on-page optimization before I start link building ??
Site Review am seeing slight improvement with a few keywords and have revamp site do i need to first on page before link building ? I was wondering do i need to complete all on page seo before i move on to link building & marketing content ?? Kindest regards, Stephen sportingdesires
Link Building | | sportingdesires0 -
Link building for a new site... where do I start?
Hi all, I'm new and have just launched my website. I need to start building my backlinks and I need to know how I can go about getting started? I read the beginners guide but still stuck on where to start? Any advice Thanks
Link Building | | edward-may0 -
Internal Linking Building
I'm launching a new blog for my new website. What's the best way to do internal link building for 3D Scanning? Do I link 3D Scanning to another page on my website or on a different website that has high authority for 3D scanning? Thank You in advance! -Nick
Link Building | | X2Metrology10 -
Is Back Link Building still Good Practice
Since all the updates from Google I'm unsure as to whether I should be pursuing good quality back links and how many per month?for my website www.polesandblinds.com . We don't have a very large back link profile and its at least half of some of our competitors, we are currently active on blogging and the 4 main social sites. Many Thanks I look forward to your suggestions/advice/criticism.
Link Building | | JonnytheB0 -
LInk Building Ideas for Large Site
Hi, I have a very large sized website of about 5 Million Pages. Earlier i used to rank very well with many naturally occurred links, But now, i lost my rankings with numerous Google updates. My content is user generated content and it wont be pure original as my users will post the same on other forums too. I all of my pages rank on #1 page for their keywords. Can anyone suggest me good link building strategy for larger websites as each url will have different keyword, i want all of my urls to be ranked well. Waiting for your replies.
Link Building | | Vegitss0 -
Do you have PA and DA minimums for link building outreach?
Hi all! I'm putting together a list of sites I want to attack for link building. I'm looking at my competitors while also seeking specific sites I know would work well to link to us. My question is, since this is very time-consuming, do you have a minimum PA and/or DA that you require in order to perform manual link-building outreach. For example, if a site has a DA below X and PA below X, what would X have to be for you to not consider it worth your time. I'm just trying to gauge where my efforts will be best spent and trying to get some benchmarks. Thanks!
Link Building | | Kibin0 -
Can someone recommend a proven link building company?
Hi there. Can someone please recommend a link building company? Can somebody recommend a tried and trusted linking building company that they have used and have really good results from? There are so many link builidng companies out there all promising they can deliver X,Y AND Z! Please help if anyone can recommend a company has am going roun in cricles! Thanks guys Gareth
Link Building | | GAZ090