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Reciprocal Links: Do They Help or Hurt Your SEO?

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reciprocal links do they help or hurt your seo via juliaemccoy

Using reciprocal links – sometimes referred to as “traded” or “exchanged” links – was a popular method of link building in the early 2000s but has decreased in popularity in recent years.

Reciprocal links are still a relatively common occurrence. They’re a natural byproduct of owning a website, after all.

However, the way reciprocal links appear on sites today is different from 20 years ago.

In my research for this article, I found an insightful link building study done by Ahrefs, which states – and I must agree! – that developing relationships through authentic outreach, and linking to sources without expecting anything in return, are the most proper and natural ways to build reciprocal links.

This graph shows that only 26.4% of the authority domains used in Ahrefs’ study are not using reciprocal links:

Reciprocal Links: Do They Help or Hurt Your SEO?

So, yes, reciprocal links are still quite common.

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But the question still begs an answer: Do reciprocal links help or hurt your SEO?

What Are Reciprocal Links?

A link exchange occurs when an agreement is made between two brands to trade links to boost SEO and site authority by essentially saying, “you link to me, and I’ll link to you.”

In essence, a reciprocal link is a quid pro quo, or a “you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours” situation.

Does this sound shady?

Maybe.

Is it shady?

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It could be. That all depends on how – and how often – you’re using reciprocal links on your site.

In the third paragraph of this article, we linked to Ahrefs. The link sets us both up for a helpful, naturally occurring reciprocal link situation. Whether Ahrefs chooses to reciprocate by linking back to this article is entirely up to them.

Now let’s take a look at the other end of the spectrum.

Here’s an example of a shady link exchange offer, found on a site that exclusively hosts link exchanges:

Reciprocal Links: Do They Help or Hurt Your SEO?

Not very appealing, is it?

Are Reciprocal Links Good for SEO?

If you want to grow your authority and rankings (and reduce the risk of penalties from search engines), the key is to focus on less risky strategies and tactics.

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Above all else, your link building methods should enhance your customer’s experience on your site.

Rather than focusing on SERP rankings and your website’s link profile, focus on providing something of value to your readers and customers by producing high-quality content.

Including some external links on your site can be helpful to SEO, but they aren’t the driving force behind your site’s ranking.

How to Use Reciprocal Links to Help Your SEO

Linking to quality sites that are relevant to your content enhances your reader’s overall experience on your website.

Content is king, and consistently delivering original and valuable information to your readers will earn your site a spot on the throne.

When you link to high-value content, you can establish your site as a trusted source of information. In this case, if the other site reciprocates the link, consider it a bonus – the content matters first.

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If you’re going to request reciprocation, check the site’s SEO metrics to ensure that you’re exchanging links with a high-authority website.

When reciprocal links occur naturally between authority sites, both sites may benefit.

Here are a few things to consider before you pursue a link exchange:

  • Could the external site potentially improve your site’s traffic?
  • Does the site produce content and share information related to your niche?
  • Is the brand or business a direct competitor? (The answer to this one should be no!)

One example of reciprocal linking that is almost always OK is the use of online directories.

Ensure that the directory is related to your industry or niche and include a link back to it on your own site.

Here’s an example of a link exchange between Feedspot, a popular directory for blogs, which are categorized by niche, and travel blogger Euro Travel Coach.

4 Ways Links Can Hurt Your SEO

There are some benefits to naturally occurring reciprocal links, but when you don’t use common sense, exchanging links can harm your site’s authority and rankings. Here are four ways that links might actually hurt your SEO:

1. Site Penalization (Manual Action)

Simply put, reciprocal links are against Google’s Webmaster Guidelines.

If your site is abusing backlinks – if you’re trying to manipulate search results by exchanging links – your website runs a high risk of being penalized by Google.

2. Decrease in Site Authority & Rankings

If you’re linking to external sites that aren’t relevant to your content, your page might experience a drop in site authority or SERP rankings.

Before linking, ensure that the content is relevant, and check the site’s Alexa ranking.

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In some cases, it’s OK to link back to low-authority sites, but excessively linking to these sites will not improve your own website’s authority.

3. Boosting SEO for Direct Competition

When linking to sites with the same target keywords and phrases as your website, your chances of having that link reciprocated are low.

As a result, you’re only boosting your competition’s SEO, not your own.

Link exchanges or reciprocated links should be between sites with similar content and themes, and not between directly competing sites.

4. Loss of Trust

You never want to lose the trust of search engines. But reciprocal links can cause this to happen in two ways:

  • Your site has a ridiculously high number of 1-to-1 links
  • Your link’s anchor text is consistently suspicious, or unrelated to your content.

Developing Relationships Is Key

Building relationships in your industry is a crucial part of any effective link building strategy.

Linking to relevant, trusted resources is an excellent way to build trust and authority and develop relationships with brands in your niche.

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By linking to authority sites, your site has higher chances of being seen by those site owners, which could lead to links from them in the future.

Summary

Timeframe: Start at month 6

Results detected: 12 months

Average reciprocal links per month: 1-2, but this depends on the frequency of engagement

Tools: Alexa Site Info

Benefits of reciprocal links:

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  • Enhances reader’s experience on your site
  • Establishes your site as a trusted authority
  • Increased site traffic
  • Relationship-building

Image Credits

Featured Image: Paulo Bobita
All screenshots taken by author, October 2019

Searchenginejournal.com

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MARKETING

Trends in Content Localization – Moz

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Trends in Content Localization - Moz

Multinational fast food chains are one of the best-known examples of recognizing that product menus may sometimes have to change significantly to serve distinct audiences. The above video is just a short run-through of the same business selling smokehouse burgers, kofta, paneer, and rice bowls in an effort to appeal to people in a variety of places. I can’t personally judge the validity of these representations, but what I can see is that, in such cases, you don’t merely localize your content but the products on which your content is founded.

Sometimes, even the branding of businesses is different around the world; what we call Burger King in America is Hungry Jack’s in Australia, Lays potato chips here are Sabritas in Mexico, and DiGiorno frozen pizza is familiar in the US, but Canada knows it as Delissio.

Tales of product tailoring failures often become famous, likely because some of them may seem humorous from a distance, but cultural sensitivity should always be taken seriously. If a brand you are marketing is on its way to becoming a large global seller, the best insurance against reputation damage and revenue loss as a result of cultural insensitivity is to employ regional and cultural experts whose first-hand and lived experiences can steward the organization in acting with awareness and respect.

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How AI Is Redefining Startup GTM Strategy

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How AI Is Redefining Startup GTM Strategy

AI and startups? It just makes sense.

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MARKETING

More promotions and more layoffs

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More promotions and more layoffs

For martech professionals salaries are good and promotions are coming faster, unfortunately, layoffs are coming faster, too. That’s according to the just-released 2024 Martech Salary and Career Survey. Another very unfortunate finding: The median salary of women below the C-suite level is 35% less than what men earn.

The last year saw many different economic trends, some at odds with each other. Although unemployment remained very low overall and the economy grew, some businesses — especially those in technology and media — cut both jobs and spending. Reasons cited for the cuts include during the early years of the pandemic, higher interest rates and corporate greed.

Dig deeper: How to overcome marketing budget cuts and hiring freezes

Be that as it may, for the employed it remains a good time to be a martech professional. Salaries remain lucrative compared to many other professions, with an overall median salary of $128,643. 

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Here are the median salaries by role:

  • Senior management $199,653
  • Director $157,776
  • Manager $99,510
  • Staff $89,126

Senior managers make more than twice what staff make. Directors and up had a $163,395 median salary compared to manager/staff roles, where the median was $94,818.

One-third of those surveyed said they were promoted in the last 12 months, a finding that was nearly equal among director+ (32%) and managers and staff (30%). 

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Extend the time frame to two years, and nearly three-quarters of director+ respondents say they received a promotion, while the same can be said for two-thirds of manager and staff respondents.

Dig deeper: Skills-based hiring for modern marketing teams

Employee turnover 

In 2023, we asked survey respondents if they noticed an increase in employee churn and whether they would classify that churn as a “moderate” or “significant” increase. For 2024, given the attention on cost reductions and layoffs, we asked if the churn they witnessed was “voluntary” (e.g., people leaving for another role) or “involuntary” (e.g., a layoff or dismissal). More than half of the marketing technology professionals said churn increased in the last year. Nearly one-third classified most of the churn as “involuntary.”

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Men and Women

Screenshot 2024 03 21 124540Screenshot 2024 03 21 124540

This year, instead of using average salary figures, we used the median figures to lessen the impact of outliers in the salary data. As a result, the gap between salaries for men and women is even more glaring than it was previously.

In last year’s report, men earned an average of 24% more than women. This year the median salary of men is 35% more than the median salary of women. That is until you get to the upper echelons. Women at director and up earned 5% more than men.

Methodology

The 2024 MarTech Salary and Career Survey is a joint project of MarTech.org and chiefmartec.com. We surveyed 305 marketers between December 2023 and February 2024; 297 of those provided salary information. Nearly 63% (191) of respondents live in North America; 16% (50) live in Western Europe. The conclusions in this report are limited to responses from those individuals only. Other regions were excluded due to the limited number of respondents. 

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Download your copy of the 2024 MarTech Salary and Career Survey here. No registration is required.

Get MarTech! Daily. Free. In your inbox.

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