12 replies to this topic

[jeepster]

I'm new at this SEO malarkey but have been told "linkwheeling" is the Next Big Thing.
I get that the idea is that I get links to my site from a range of other sites, which I also then link to one another.
What benefits does this have over just getting good, old-fashioned links pointing to my site?
(I still remember spending ages PR-sculpting internal links on my site...only to find out the practice was sooo last year...)
Thanks in advance

[SelfMade]

I'm new at this SEO malarkey but have been told "linkwheeling" is the Next Big Thing.
I get that the idea is that I get links to my site from a range of other sites, which I also then link to one another.

When you say "links from a range of other sites" I am of the assumption these 'other' sites are theme centric to your site?

If so, then no problem.

If not...PROBLEM!!

What in the hell is linkwheeling by the way, who came up with that clap trap cack??

[jeepster]

I mean stuff like this:

[removed...we don't link to spammy stuff]

WTF? Benefits? Drawbacks?

[1dmf]

I'd suggest you get links from far more than 6 websites! linkwheeling my ass!

[Jill]

It's the ultimate definition of a link farm.

And no, it's not a good thing, nor the next best thing. In fact, it's from the 1990's.

[piskie]

I agree with Jill.
A link farm is what it is and will undoubtedly get the same treatment that the older versions eventually got.

[PatrickGer]

I agree with Jill.
A link farm is what it is and will undoubtedly get the same treatment that the older versions eventually got.

I read about the "new concept" of a "link wheel" on another forum just a couple of days (or weeks?), ago. wondering where this originated from lol.

[Michael Martinez]

The idea is probably a modification of the old "link circle" concept. I would say that calling it a "link farm" is a broad extension of the old link farm concept. All these link tricks are borrowing from each other, though, so I don't feel too inclined to be a definition cop.

I suppose the next big thing will be something like "link sponges" -- and please don't ask me to explain that. I just made it up. Along with "link cheese".

[piskie]

No doubt all created in the knowledge that they will be vigorously chased by "Link Junkies"

[Randy]

Link Sponge. hmm.... It sounds like a Web 2.0 version of Link Bait.

[Mhoram]

I remember them being called "rings", at least when they connected related sites. If you had a site about Commodore 64 gaming, for instance, you'd join the C64 Gaming Ring, and you'd have a little widget that would link to the next site in the ring, and some other site in the ring would link to you. Like Jill says, it was popular in about 1998, so I have this image in my head of garish animated GIFs on black or brightly textured backgrounds.

[Michael Martinez]

Webrings are totally different from the link spamming technique usually called a "link circle". In a circle, site A links to B, B links to C, and C links to A. In a Webring all the sites host code that is usually not going to lead search engines anywhere useful, although older HTML code blocks did provide useful links to the Webring home page.

A link circle doesn't use link management code like a Webring would. A Webring is a useful, natural Web community resource. A link circle is just a way of keeping crawlings flowing through a small number of Web sites.

In a "link wheel", all the sites in the circle link to to the main site, which may or may not link back.

These techniques and patterns have been identified and discussed in academic papers that analyze Web spam patterns. My opinion is that if the academic community knows the technique well enough to describe it and propose multiple methods for detecting and filtering it, the technique is not a very useful one.

Use at your own risk. I strongly recommend against these kind of artificial linking tactics.

[chrishirst]

"The Next Big Thing" eh . Almost every junk "technique" has been described as that over the years!

As usual, I was somewhat blunt in my opinion of link wheels