How specific does keyword anchor text need to be?
-
I'm trying to get to the bottom of something. If you are trying to optimise for a phrase e.g.
"Keyword 1 Keyword 2"
And your anchor text is something like
"Keyword 1 keyword 2 Another word"
Does this still provide as much weight for "keyword 1 keyword 2" or does the additional word come into play and dilute the effect? If it does come into play does it have much of an effect?
-
Rodney,
Google spiders not only reads the anchor text on the link but also take into consideration ton of other factors including the text around the link, website url, domain name, domain authority, page authority, title tag and several on page elements to decide the worthiness of a link.
"Keyword 1 Keyword 2" anchor text definitely has more weight than "Keyword 1 Keyword 2 another word" or any other variation but that alone is not enough to rank for the keyword.
I have seen direct improvement in keyword rank due to exact anchor text vs anchor text with extra words but too many backlinks with exact anchor text will be considered a forced attempt to gain ranking and Google could disqualify the link juice completely.
Google is already beefing up their algorithm to disqualify paid and farm links. One of the most common themes in all paid links is the exact anchor text so it will be easier for Google to identify a set of exact anchor text links on a website with dofollow.
Always try to use anchor text variations in the link building campaign. There are far better chances of rank improvement with an organic link building strategy compared to a forced anchor text tactic.
Hope this helps.
Thanks
Sameer
-
Hi Rodney,
I don't think the additional word so much dilutes the value rather than it changes the context. Presuming you have done all your keyword research...
Play Sand Suppliers
Play Sand
Using the additional keyword Supplier would change the context to say purchasing rather than say landscaping. So Play Sand would be a broad term, and adding supplier would narrow that term as each additional keyword would.
I hope that helps
-
I have definitely heard advice from an SEOMoz video (purchased) that took the view that you can be penalised for anchor text repetition, I tend to vary everything when I link build including descriptions. If building for Directories I also like to see how the descriptions compare to those of the competitors just to make sure that they are all that they can be.
-
Thank you for your input,
I can be more specific, if you had a link e.g. <a href="">Play Sand Suppliers</a> or <a href="">Play Sand</a> Suppliers which of the two pushes the phrase Play Sand harder?
Thoughts?
-
I have payed around anchor text and found that all of the following work rather well:
phrase
word phrase
phrase word
word phrase word
phrase 1 phrase 2
Even these:
for more information on phrase visit: URL
phrase: URL
image link alt="phrase'
Without seeing specifics I can't say more but I woudl say if it makes sense to have the two phrases together then have it together by all means. In terms of dilution - I would not obsess over it to much if the link anchor looks natural.
-
This isn't really an answer to the question - in fact, it's something I've wondered about myself and I'd be happy to hear if people have anything to say on it that's backed up by research (probably wouldn't be too hard to design a test for anyone who's interested: take two new sites or new, identical pages on one site: promote one with KW1, KW2 only anchor text (gibberish words) and one with identical amounts of links (and from the same places) but some KW1, KW2 and some KW!, KW2, KW3 text, and see which one ranks first. Admittedly this isn't water-tight, especially considering one has to rank first, and even if the difference is reallt minute, with nothing else to go on Google might choose exact match.
On the other hand, we might see (and even if we don't see it in such a small test, it might be true) that Google would actually prefer to see variation - especially if you're talking about large numbers of links, it will make the link profile look more natural.
Maybe if I have the chance I'll run the test myself, but that might take a while to get around to it...
Good luck!
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Link Anchor Text post Penguin 2.0
I have heard a great variety of views concerning the anchor text used for link building post Penguin 2.0 but have yet to hear some consensus. Some say the anchor text for external links should be different than internal. Some say brand should be used on external and keywords on internal. Some say brand and a variety of keywords on external. Any thoughts on a strategy consistent with google expectations and guidelines?
Link Building | | casper4340 -
Over optimization of Anchor Text | Consequences, Guidelines, Precautions
Hi everyone. I am really worried because of the constant penguin and panda algorithms. I hired two or three SEO agencies and they did some link building for my pages a while ago. And just this time, our rankings dropped almost sitewide some 7-8 positions. I checked our link profile in this site , and we do not seem to have spammy links. I admit that we do have some low link quality, such as directories, blog posts, etc. And it seems to have 10-15 links with overoptimized anchor text, such as keyword exact anchor text, etc. I have a couple of questions regarding this matter? - What entitles an overoptimized anchor text? I mean, i can´t control people linking to me out there, and many of them used the product or brand name. Added to the fact that my former agency used article marketing links with exact keyword. - If i "overoptimized" my anchor text, what is the best solution?, I could change some anchor text by asking some people. Should i disavow, delete? What is your best bet here? - What is (May 27 2013) best practice for anchor text or link referall. I know it will keep changing, but i want to engage in the right practice right now. should link with www.domain.com/keywordpage.html, or how would one look natural? -I saw some recent links that are really strange to me. Could the competition be sending me some bad links in order to augment the situation. Is that something normal?, it sounds strange to me. Thanks for your valuable advice. I know many people are frustrated with these penalties and hits. Because there are still many sites with Mass EMDs, 3-page content, flash sites, that are ranking better than a high quality and engaging one. Any resource is more than welcome to recover from these dropped rankings. Regards,
Link Building | | JesusD0 -
Anchor Text Choices
Hi There, Looking for some advice on the choice of anchor texts. Is it smart to include your domain name in addition to key words? What are the pros cons of including both vs. just doing a key word? Thank you!!!
Link Building | | MaidafromCureeo0 -
Worth It to Post on Blog ? Need Guidelines and Tips for Newbie in Search of Links
I'm searching relevant Blog for pages where I can post content about furnace filters. I want to build link to my online store http://www.furnacefilterscanada.com In a SEO point of view, is it worth it to post content and leave my URL? Here are some example of blog I leave content today using my name, jean nichols: http://smartcanucks.ca/3m-canada-save-5-on-the-purchase-of-select-filtrete-furnace-filters-printable-coupon/ some need ''admin'' approval: http://greenfurnaces.org/heil-furnace-filters.html http://www.sigmams.com/change-your-furnace-filter/#comment-640 Thank you, BIgBlaze
Link Building | | BigBlaze2051 -
"gimme links" = easy to fill out profile/personal reputation links that offer a do-follow anchor text flexible link
I'm doing some SEO for small niche service sites...and aside from niche directories and some light article marketing and local search directories (yelp, etc) there really isn't a budget for content generation. I really only have a budget for profile/submission links. What are some sites where you can quite easily fill out a personal profile with an anchor text variable link that may not be THAT juicy but will stick (i.e. not a spam/fake profile type of link, but something like Linkedin). I'll start with giving away 1 www.istockphoto.com Any others that aren't obvious?
Link Building | | ilyaelbert0 -
Anchor Text vs Rankings!
Let's say I have a page about houses for sale (which has the biggest number of search queries/month). I want to rank with that page for another variations like house for sale, and house sale. Now, if i build links only with anchor text **houses for sale **(presuming that Google is OK with that) and i will take top 3 for that KW, i will rank very high too for the other two combinations of words? Or Google treats different plural vs singular and the stop word for. This is an example based on site for one client of mine. His site is about Hotels in Mamaia (hoteluri in mamaia in romanian) and i build links with anchor text hoteluri in mamaia. For this KW i took pos 4 but for hoteluri mamaia i am on page 9 from Google.ro. These two combinations of words are 90% the same in my language. For you to know hoteluri mamaia has bigger numeber of search queries/month (6 600 vs 260).
Link Building | | maldiniii0 -
Building on specific keywords
Hi Guys, I'm will be building on specific keywords for my site and I'm thinking of doing some article marketing & I would like some advise, please. I'm going to write 10 300 word articles and within each article I will have 2 anchor text links going back to my site. To reinforce this I will be pinging the articles once completed. I will be submitting the articles to ezine, go articles etc. Advise and some other suggestions as to best practice for building on specific keywords would be appreciated, thank you.
Link Building | | Socialdude0 -
Duplicate Content, Replicated Websites, Noindex Type Question.. Need Advice Please
So I am working for a Multi-Level Marketing Company. The members each get their own website which is a wilcard subdomain. So we have example.com (Main site) mysite.example.com (Replicated) They both are literally the same content and I have chosen to noindex, nofollow the subdomains, but as a SEO that presents a problem with linkbuilding. However, the member only gets credit (think affiliates) if the click comes from their subdomain. I don't want duplicate content penalties and I don't want the members to possibly lose out on a sale that would otherwise just be credited to the company if the link was redirected to the main site instead. Did I make the right decision?
Link Building | | floppy0