Effects of Google Farmer Update on Article Distribution Backlinks (UAW, Article Ranks, etc.)

by kposs
18 replies
  • SEO
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The majority of backlinks to my sites (and my clients' sites) come from article distribution via blog and article directory networks such as Unique Article Wizard, Article Ranks, Article Blueprint, etc.

The Google Farmer Update was a concern given the blanket application of penalties to sites that might be similar to those in blog networks.

I just completed ranking updates for all of the sites I track and I'm happy to announce that I see no negative effect on any sites thus far. All rankings are either holding steady or increasing.

I suspect it may be because of the percentage of links that come from individual blogs versus directories.

I'd love to get feedback from anyone else using article distribution as a primary backlink strategy.

thanks,

Valerie
#article #backlinks #distribution #effects #farmer #google #ranks #uaw #update
  • Profile picture of the author cellington
    We're hearing from our members that they're sitting at better positions now that the content farms have been pulled out of the way.

    It used to be that a search query about gardening would return a gardening article on EzineArticles, ArticleSnatch, AssociatedContent, etc. where it was surrounded by other articles on wide-ranging topics like antiques, internet marketing, and the latest diet craze.

    After the Farmer Update, searchers are being linked to actual gardening sites. That's a better result for the searcher, for the owner of the gardening site, for the author of the gardening article, and hey... even for Google!

    It's no wonder you're seeing increases for your sites from a publisher perspective - we're seeing the same thing from the writers' perspective around the DYA Community.
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  • Profile picture of the author IM Ash
    I don't think the latest update had anything to do with backlinks pointing to sites, but rather it was focused on on-page factors.
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    • Profile picture of the author kposs
      Originally Posted by Eleva8 View Post

      I don't think the latest update had anything to do with backlinks pointing to sites, but rather it was focused on on-page factors.
      Not directly. But if the sites where you are getting links are devalued (i.e., lose their 'authority') then the links you get from those sites could also lose value.
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      • Profile picture of the author IM Ash
        Originally Posted by kposs View Post

        Not directly. But if the sites where you are getting links are devalued (i.e., lose their 'authority') then the links you get from those sites could also lose value.
        Logically one can make that assumption, but analysis of the sites that were affected disproves this logic. I personally have many links from article directories pointing to my sites but the "panda" update didn't negatively affect my rankings.

        The guys at SEOMOZ did their own analysis and they say:

        "We generally interpret that to suggest that link analysis likely wasn't the culprit here - Google's Farmer Update is looking at something else on these sites - perhaps user/usage data, content analysis, page formatting, uniqueness/quality of user experience, etc."

        source: Google's Farmer/Panda Update: Analysis of Winners vs. Losers | SEOmoz
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  • Profile picture of the author kposs
    I agree. I was just indicating why those who do article distribution had concerns when the update first appeared.
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    • Profile picture of the author IM Ash
      Originally Posted by kposs View Post

      I agree. I was just indicating why those who do article distribution had concerns when the update first appeared.
      Yeah, I don't think anyone needs to be too concerned regarding devaluation of links from article directories. From my experience it didn't have any negative impact.
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  • The reason you didn't notice anything is because G discounted most of your article directory links a long time ago, and the rankings you have are because of your content and the better links (like blogs).

    And once again.....if article links hurt domains, then your competition would have a brand new article spinning, article "wizard" BS inbound to your site.

    Article marketing doesn't work nearly as well as most claim.
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    • Profile picture of the author kposs
      Originally Posted by TurnkeyBusinessBlogs View Post

      Article marketing doesn't work nearly as well as most claim.
      There are two completely different systems that are called 'article marketing' so I like to be specific.

      The first is writing articles and submitting them to well-trafficked article directories with the goal of getting direct readers/visitors. For me, that is inefficient and doesn't scale.

      What I call 'article distribution' is also called 'article marketing' by some. With article distribution, the goal is getting backlinks from a wide variety of websites. I focus on blog networks rather than article directories, although I do end up getting links on article directories because they're included in UAW. If done correctly (quality articles so blog owners will publish your material, correct keywords & categories within the blog networks, volume, consistency) then the backlinks from article distribution work quite well for rankings.
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    • Profile picture of the author IM Ash
      Originally Posted by TurnkeyBusinessBlogs View Post

      The reason you didn't notice anything is because G discounted most of your article directory links a long time ago, and the rankings you have are because of your content and the better links (like blogs).

      And once again.....if article links hurt domains, then your competition would have a brand new article spinning, article "wizard" BS inbound to your site.

      Article marketing doesn't work nearly as well as most claim.
      If that were true then my links from article directories wouldn't be appearing in my Webmaster Tools account.

      Can you actually provide proof that links from article directories are now discounted? I highly doubt it!

      If you going to make a statement of that magnitude, you better back it up with solid proof.
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      • Originally Posted by Eleva8 View Post

        If that were true then my links from article directories wouldn't be appearing in my Webmaster Tools account.

        Can you actually provide proof that links from article directories are now discounted? I highly doubt it!

        If you going to make a statement of that magnitude, you better back it up with solid proof.
        So you think that when your Google Webmaster account shows inbound links that proves those links are really helping you out? When you make a statement link that you better back it up with solid proof.

        I know I can prove that article directory links are worth less than the links you create in your own content (pages or posts) linking to your own URLs.

        I can give you stats showing a blog that has hundreds of inbound links from article directories, and a blog that only has links created internally, and of course all the links that a good blog gets normally.

        What G does is judge inbound links based on the quality of the page the link came from. Article directory links have been devalued for years now, and yet so many of the marketers here on the Warrior Forum claim them to be so important.

        The only help article directories give you is traffic from their articles, and not link juice. The traffic is going to dwindle more and more too, and professional level bloggers are now writing content that KICKS article directory drivel into the river.
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        • Profile picture of the author IM Ash
          Originally Posted by TurnkeyBusinessBlogs View Post

          So you think that when your Google Webmaster account shows inbound links that proves those links are really helping you out? When you make a statement link that you better back it up with solid proof.

          I know I can prove that article directory links are worth less than the links you create in your own content (pages or posts) linking to your own URLs.

          I can give you stats showing a blog that has hundreds of inbound links from article directories, and a blog that only has links created internally, and of course all the links that a good blog gets normally.

          What G does is judge inbound links based on the quality of the page the link came from. Article directory links have been devalued for years now, and yet so many of the marketers here on the Warrior Forum claim them to be so important.

          The only help article directories give you is traffic from their articles, and not link juice. The traffic is going to dwindle more and more too, and professional level bloggers are now writing content that KICKS article directory drivel into the river.
          No, that proves that the links are being counted by G! Your statement was that the links are discounted!

          Your stats do not prove anything! There are many variables to ranking a site and I can rank a site in a low competition niche with internal links and "all the links that a good blog gets normally" with relative ease. Link diversity is also important!

          I highly doubt that a PR5 contextual internal link is worth more than PR5 contextual link from a different IP address.

          I do agree that the quality of the page the link is coming from is important and that is exactly why people throw links to their backlinks - to increase the value of the 1st tier link.

          The main reason why a guest post carries weight is because the post usually appears on the homepage. If the homepage has a high PR then that PR is passed over to the page the post links too.
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          • Originally Posted by Eleva8 View Post

            No, that proves that the links are being counted by G! Your statement was that the links are discounted!

            Your stats do not prove anything! There are many variables to ranking a site and I can rank a site in a low competition niche with internal links and "all the links that a good blog gets normally" with relative ease. Link diversity is also important!

            I highly doubt that a PR5 contextual internal link is worth more than PR5 contextual link from a different IP address.

            I do agree that the quality of the page the link is coming from is important and that is exactly why people throw links to their backlinks - to increase the value of the 1st tier link.

            The main reason why a guest post carries weight is because the post usually appears on the homepage. If the homepage has a high PR then that PR is passed over to the page the post links too.
            Yes. Sure. "Counted by Google", BUT you don't know, and never will know HOW MUCH Google "counts" that link. I've seen an big uptick in traffic on one of our blog posts, investigated, and found out that some high ranking site had linked to us. Yahoo site explorer is good for that.

            What I'm saying in total is that chasing links is a total waste of time. If you write in-depth content on a properly configured dynamic CMS you will get ALL the links anyway. Article marketing is a long term waste of time.
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            • Profile picture of the author IM Ash
              Originally Posted by TurnkeyBusinessBlogs View Post

              Yes. Sure. "Counted by Google", BUT you don't know, and never will know HOW MUCH Google "counts" that link. I've seen an big uptick in traffic on one of our blog posts, investigated, and found out that some high ranking site had linked to us. Yahoo site explorer is good for that.

              What I'm saying in total is that chasing links is a total waste of time. If you write in-depth content on a properly configured dynamic CMS you will get ALL the links anyway. Article marketing is a long term waste of time.
              I agree that I wouldn't be able to gauge the value of the link itself, but if I can get a link from a directory --regardless of how much or little it is worth-- from content that I have already written - I do not see the harm in that because it adds to the overall link diversity.

              Writing good content and using link baiting techniques can help to gain natural links but I would rather chase links or be trampled by my competitors.
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            • Profile picture of the author kposs
              Originally Posted by TurnkeyBusinessBlogs View Post

              What I'm saying in total is that chasing links is a total waste of time. If you write in-depth content on a properly configured dynamic CMS you will get ALL the links anyway. Article marketing is a long term waste of time.
              Is this the "write it and the links will come" philosophy? Doesn't work when you need to rank for anything except very, very low competition long-tail phrases.

              When you get any competition whatsoever, you cannot count on 'natural' backlinks. You've got to take some action! I don't care if it's submitting press releases or sending status updates via Twitter. Something.

              If you write content, post it, then sit back and wait, by all means, please keep doing that. I'll keep submitting articles everyday
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  • Profile picture of the author cellington
    No one can say with any certainty how, or when, or why Google does what Google does. The only thing that is 100% certain is that Google displays content they deem relevant to the particular search phrase entered.

    Beyond that, one must temper statements with words that indicate uncertainty. "It seems that..." "From what I've seen..." "It looks like they..."

    Produce content that speaks to your target market. Then put it where they'll find it. Your site. Guest blogging. Twitter. Forums. Email. Facebook. LinkedIn.

    Google will catch up.
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