External Linking
External linking is the practice of including links to other websites within your content. These links help search engines understand the context of the page, as well as provide a good user experience. External linking to high-quality sources may help boost ‘E-A-T’ (expertise, authority, & trustworthiness) in the ‘eyes’ of search engines and build topical authority for your website.
Below, we’ve compiled key takeaways relating to external linking best practices from Google’s ongoing SEO Office Hours sessions.
For more on optimizing your website’s links for search engines check out our additional resources:
5 Internal Linking Strategies to Boost SEO and Drive Organic Traffic.
Affiliate Links are OK
Google doesn�۪t necessarily treat affiliate linking as a negative thing, as it can be genuine, but it does look down on link directories.
Link Position Doesn’t Affect Their Value
In general Google does not treat links differently depending on their position on the page.
PageRank to 404 Pages is Lost
If a site links to an external page which returns a 404, the PageRank will be lost.
Shortened Affiliate Links are OK
Affiliate links which are redirected through URL shorteners won’t cause any problems.
Unlinked URLs Don’t Count as Links
Unlinked domains and URLs within body text don’t have any ranking benefits. if something isn’t linked, it won’t count towards PageRank.
You Don’t Need to Remove Links If Asked
If someone asks you to remove a link to them, you can just ignore them. They can disavow you if they want, which won’t harm your site.
Most Affiliate Links Are Automatically Nofollowed
Affiliate links for main affiliate programs are automatically recognised and effectively nofollowed. They won’t cause penalties.
Affiliate Links Should be Nofollowed
Affiliate links should be nofollowed like any other paid link.
Google Plus Posts Are Treated Like Any Other Page
Google Plus posts are ranked, and pass authority to other pages, in the same ways as normal web pages, not in any special way.