Link Farming

Definition: The process of exchanging links with other websites in order to increase Search Engine Rankings.

Background: Amongst other things, search engines rank sites based on the quantity and quality of incoming links to a page – indeed Google’s pagerank algorithm is based on incoming links. Getting quality backlinks will perhaps have the most significant impact on a websites traffic. So how about Link Farming?

Link Farming emerged as the obvious solution – trading links brings in more pagerank. Surely it doesn’t matter whether any human visitor to a site will actually click on the link, simply having the link there increases your S.E. profile? Throughout the web you stumble on sites with link pages, or directories. If the Search Engine spider follows it, then surely you should get the benefit. But, it doesn’t quite work like that…

Link Farming has a bad name, Google has declared war on it. After all, link farming goes against the democratic principals upon which Google’s Pagerank algorithm works. A link to a site acts as a vote for that site – a vote that says “this site is good”, and relevant to my topic. A site that randomly exchanges links (or even sells its links!) kinda acts against that democratic principal. Where google can track down this behaviour, they will (and have) punish it – with penalties to the sites pagerank.

But, there is inherently a problem. The internet is built off hyperlinks, directories of links have existed for as long as anyone cares to remember. In this environment, gaining pagerank is more to do with time spent exchanging links as “SEO effort”, than the quality of content. While quality content may rise to the surface in time, well connected content will progress much more quickly. But anyway, what is the difference between a valuable directory, and one of those heinous link farms? There is an abundance of industry advice;

Only link to sites of a similar nature: it makes sense that my Chiang Mai travel site is of no interest to those looking for Viagra! (Or does it? Because who defines the blurry line of ‘semantic’ relationships? I could envision some old visitors who needs both Viagra and accommodation!)

Avoid Automated Link Generators: There is software available that takes the pain out of managing link exchanges… Again, this is open to interpretation.

Hang with Popular Sites: Hell Yeah! Exchange links to sites that have high pagerank, rather than brand new sites… But if everyone did this, how could anyone get started?

Link in Context: Rather than having a directory of links, build your links into your content…

Limit the number of external links on a page: I guess to trick the spiders into thinking it isn’t a directory?

All of this is good advice, and following it will create a nice website, with ‘suitable links’. But isn’t that just a ‘Link Farm’? There is surely a difference between “Link Farming”, in terms of generating valid interest in your site, and “Link Farming” as a SEO ‘scam’? I guess this is where “Link Baiting” comes in…