Back links issue and how to resolve it

[Globalgraphics]

Hi there! We have a client who has been generating back links from external sites over a period of two years with all the same anchor text which all link back to the home page.

This anchor text is also their main search phrase they wish to score highly on.

In total, they have roughly 300 domain names linking to their site. Over 50 of these domain names all have the same anchor text. These links have been generated through articles and blogs.

So roughly 20% of the total number of links all have the same anchor text.

Over the past 6 months the client has noticed a steady drop in their rankings for this term.

From the back link analysis we have done, we believe it is this which is causing the problem.

Does any one else agree?

For the remedy, do we go in and see if we can change the anchor text or disavow them through Google webmaster tools? Suggestions?

Thanks for your help!

P

[effectdigital]

Thanks!

[DonnaDuncan]

Nice explanation effectdigital!

[effectdigital]

I agree that with the information you have stated, that could well be the problem. One thing you should know, Google seldom 'rewards' good behavior 'after' you get caught.

What has happened isn't a penalty, it's known as an 'algorithmic devaluation'. Basically your client's site was ranking higher than it should have for a term, and it was getting more search traffic than it should have been (it's important to be clear on that point)

The action which Google applied was likely to the link / blog network(s) and not to your client's site. So why are you suffering then?

Imagine your client's site like a big water tank with pipes connecting to it. As the water flows in to the tank from external sources, it fills up right? That's like links piping SEO authority onto a domain

When Google detects that some websites should no longer be able to 'give' SEO authority to other websites, it's like the tap at the end of one of the pipes is turned off. What you have to ask yourself is, if Google was saying that authority was illegitimate, will disavowing that website - cause Google to artificially restore the SEO equity which it was previously sending to you? Obviously not, that doesn't happen. If Google were to allow that site to send you SEO authority again (knowing that the link seller was helping you game the system) they'd be willfully damaging their own search results (which they won't do)

So if nothing good can come of disavow work, why the heck does anyone do it!?

Simple - to stop an algorithmic devaluation from 'mutating' into a full blown penalty. It's like pleading guilty in court on the charges of fraud. Just because you handed yourself in, doesn't mean you get to keep what you stole. But you might get out of going to jail, you might get less jail time

The real solution is to replace the links which are being 'de-valued' with better links that will stand the test of time (which could be expensive)

Disavow work is necessarry, but it typically yields the same results or dips you very slightly lower. It does however, stop you losing everything! So that's good.

In terms of recovery though... Replace fool's gold, with real gold

Hope that helps