Search Engine Optimization Hyperlink Creating 101
Search Engine Optimization Hyperlink Creating 101
Link Building 101: Understanding the DoFollow Phenomenon
Backlinks are the bread and butter of SEO. They are extremely important for boosting the rankings of a website, but not all backlinks, or inbound links, are created equal. Backlinks come in two forms: DoFollow and NoFollow, and the vast majority of SEO Consultants will say that DoFollow links are good and NoFollow links are bad. This isn’t the case!
What is DoFollow?
DoFollow is the slang term for a hyperlink or the webpage itself that isn’t using ‘NoFollow’ tags. NoFollow is a hyperlink tag that tells search engines like Google or Yahoo to not pass on ‘link juice’ or link credibility to the link. The tag was developed to help the blogging community at large reduce the amount of link spam on their posts, and it’s a fairly standard add-on to blog comments these days. It ultimately allows the blog or website owner to keep spammers from blasting their blog and gaining an advantage by inserting a link on a popular page or post.
How NoFollow & DoFollow affect link building
As a result of spam, the addition of the NoFollow tag has caused the link-building process to become difficult for both ethical SEO companies and spammy black-hat SEOs alike. It’s also made DoFollow links extremely rare and there are websites dedicated to the location and exploitation of these websites around the internet. KeywordLuv, a WordPress plugin, was also developed to help bolster the ethical SEO community and gave them a way to insert a DoFollow link into their blog comments as a way to link build.
The NoFollow Myth…Busted
We’ve said it before, and it needs to be said over and over again. NoFollow links aren’t a bad thing. They’re actually quite important to getting click-through traffic to your site from other blogs or forums. While they don’t actually give your link credibility, they help associate your website with the keywords you’re trying to optimize, and increase overall brand visibility and site exposure. These links are the gateway to getting actual DoFollow links.
For more information on link-building and ethical SEO, contact us at 847.537.0067 for information on our SEO link-building strategies.
SEO 101 – Video 5- Off-Page SEO – Inbound Links
