Google’s New Fight: Sponsored Blogging

It looks like Google could have a fight on its hands as sponsored blogging and tweeting are becoming increasingly popular. The search giant has always taken a very strong stand against the controversial topic of paid links and although the debate has quieted in recent years, Michael Gray believes it is about to get revived and expanded upon.

Warning: Don’t Hack Websites for Links

Can you believe it? Matt Cutts and Michael Gray, otherwise known as Graywolf, actually agree on something! The two have had a long history of disagreeing on the issue of paid links, but they have come together in a joint effort with a word of caution about hacking websites for links.

Latest Drama with Canonical Tags and Duplicate Content

We first told you about the canonical tag back in February as the three major search players announced their joint effort. The industry responded favorably since the tag would give users more control as well as reduce duplicate content. Now, nearly four months after the announcement, there seems to be a problem.

WPN Exclusive: Matt Cutts Apologizes on Behalf of Google’s Penalty against Google Japan

Last week, Google was forced to swallow some pride as it issued a penalty against Google Japan. We all know that Google is strongly against paid links, so it was surprising when Google Japan was recently found out for buying blog posts as part of a promotional campaign for a new service. Matt Cutts expresses Google’s deep remorse and apologizes on Google’s behalf in this video.

PubCon: Buying and Selling Links, Good or Bad?

The Linkfluence session at PubCon reportedly had a packed out house with many opinions. We already brought you Aaron Wall’s take on the infamous link buying subject, and now we’re going to delve into Rand Fishkin’s ideas on the subject.

Here’s the question that causes so much debate: Is link buying good or bad? Which is it?
If you are selling links and making money, then it seems to be working out “good” for you. Another scenario in which it seems to be “good” is when you are purchasing links and your ranking is improving.

SES: The Mystery of Link Marketing

It’s no secret that Google frowns upon the buying and selling of links. Todd Malicoat of Stuntdubl.com tells WebProNews that even if Google approved of paid links, your problems wouldn’t be solved in the mere process of purchasing links. You still need to market your links. Watch as Todd explains more about link marketing in his video interview from SES San Jose.

What’s in a Good Link?

According to Stephan Spencer of Netconcepts, a good link is in the main body of the page, looks natural, is not all over the page, and is earned through merit. Stephan also discusses the difference between a commercial relationship of link building and Google’s argument on paid links. Catch all that and more in the WebProNews video from the 25th Annual ACCM Conference.

Going Beyond Paid Linking

Seth Besmertnik talks about how you can build links and what you should look for in the process.

MSN Talks Webmaster Tools

Product Manager of Live Search Webmaster Tools, Jeremiah Andrick spent the day here at the WebProNews headquarters. Our very own Mike McDonald took him on a wild, Kentucky escapade while picking his brain about Webmaster tools at MSN. Andrick discusses indexing issues, cloaking detection, and goes into detail about why AdSense showed up [...]

MSN and WebProNews Viral Marketing Strategy?

Product Manager of Live Search Webmaster Tools, Jeremiah Andrick spent the day here at the WebProNews headquarters. Our very own Mike McDonald took him on a wild, Kentucky escapade while picking his brain about Webmaster tools at MSN. Andrick discusses indexing issues, cloaking detection, and goes into detail about why AdSense showed up [...]