Google Link Disavow and sites with extremely heavy but poor link metrics

[mattylac]

Need help/opinions from the SEO's out there. I am working with a site that in the past hired an SEO company out of India. Over the course of their time together, this company submitted the clients url to tens of thousands of link exchanges and directories.

Around the time of Penguin, the owners told me their inquiries dried up. Literally that same week they had a new website launched (designed by a local competitor) that really butchered the site. They were convinced the reduction in traffic/inquiries was due to the new site but I am convinced otherwise (suspect Penguin).

Not only does the site need to be re-structured but their link portfolio needs to be diversified.

Now on the plus side, the company caters and sponsors a number of events that earns them organic, relevant links. These are overshadowed by the tons of poor, irrelevant ones though.

I read a few posts recently on the Google Link Disavow tool and to proceed slowly due to the unknown nature surrounding it. I have a good idea of what links are problematic and which ones are well served. However, the number of problematic links in my estimation is quite high (thousands). I am very hesitant to dive into Google Disavow and submit such a large number of requests.

What are your thoughts? How would you proceed?

[Klarke]

So far I've only seen a beta tester of the tool post results.  Looks promising.

http://www.davidnaylor.co.uk/google-disavow-tool-released-we-tested-it.html

http://www.davidnaylor.co.uk/disavow-tool-beta-test-recovery-laid-bare.html

[mattylac]

I know that some of them are very questionable. The sites listed right next to this persons in some cases are explicit to say the least.

Others are very misleading and have no relevance to the company in question what so ever. These really bad ones I will work on manually removing. Others that seem to provide no value might go the route of a domain level disavow.

Has anyone used the Disavow tool yet? Any successes?

[Klarke]

You know they are bad ?  Try to get as many as possible removed.  And THEN Disavow the rest.  I stress the importance of actually getting some removed.  I don't think you'll be successful in just disavowing all those thousands of links alone.

So yeah, those links may have been helping the site to rank before ..but that's not going to happen again.  You need to get rid of them, while also attracting new links at the same time.