You scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours.
It’s a prospect of mutual exchange that’s ostensibly beneficial to both parties, with no victims or consequences to worry about.
At least in theory, this represents reciprocal link building.
But there are some counterintuitive risks associated with reciprocal link building.
So is reciprocal link building too risky to try?
Contents
An Introduction to Reciprocal Links
Reciprocal links are links between two websites pointing to each other. Site A has a link to site B, and site B has a link to site A.
In this closed loop, there’s really nothing wrong. But on a grander scale, reciprocal links can become problematic.
For example, what if site A has thousands of links pointing to site B, and site B also has thousands of links pointing to site A? And what if things get even more complicated from there, with a site for every letter of the alphabet participating in an open, collaborative agreement in which all of these sites point to each other?
Studying the most pure form of authority measurements from Google’s algorithm, this might work to make every site in the network seem more authoritative. But of course, Google has countermeasures against this.
The Risks of Reciprocal Links
Excessive reciprocal links can be considered a kind of link scheme. As would be the case in our above hypothetical example, if a group of people get together to execute a plot to manipulate their rankings, it doesn’t exactly bode well for the average user experience.
If you build a single reciprocal link, perhaps even by accident, there’s nothing for you to worry about. But once identifiable patterns start to emerge at scale, the risks of penalty begin to grow.
The exact details of Google’s algorithm on this front aren’t known, but we’ve been able to identify several examples of websites that have been penalized simply because they engaged in too much reciprocal link building.
In other words, on a small scale, reciprocal links aren’t a big deal, but on a large enough scale, they become categorized as link schemes, and they jeopardize everyone involved.
The Reasonable View on Reciprocal Links
Are reciprocal links good or bad?
No one with a reasonable view on the subject thinks they belong in either camp.
Inherently, reciprocal links can’t be a bad thing, because they can emerge completely naturally. If two equally authoritative journalistic sources cite each other’s facts on a given topic, literally everyone benefits, including the readers.
At the same time, they aren’t a purely good thing, because they can quickly spiral into rank manipulation territory.
The reasonable view on reciprocal links is that they are fine in moderation, so long as you’re practicing responsible link building in general.
When Are Reciprocal Links Too Risky?
So what is it that makes reciprocal links too risky?
- A weak backlink profile overall. Your backlink profile has a massive impact on your overall link building ROI. If you have thousands of links from hundreds of authoritative sources, it’s unlikely that Google will bat an eye at a handful of links that happen to be reciprocal in nature, especially if those links are relevant. On the other hand, if nearly all of your links come from the same small handful of sources, and you also link to those sources directly, it’s a bad look that’s probably going to get you penalized.
- Low site quality. It’s always the case that sites with very low domain authority should be avoided in your link building strategy. Exchanging reciprocal links with low quality or spammy websites is a bad move that could get you penalized, even if the links themselves are relatively sound.
- Repetitive conduct. One of the biggest red flags in Google’s eyes is repetitive conduct. It’s completely natural and reasonable for a single pair of reciprocal links to exist. But if pairs of reciprocal links between you and another website emerge frequently, or in predictable patterns, it’s going to make both of your sites look suspect. In general, you should avoid following strict patterns in any of your link building tactics.
- Similar links. Similarly, if your reciprocal links happen to be pointed to the same page or group of pages, it’s going to look bad for your overall authority. It’s much better to engage in link building practices with links pointing to a variety of internal pages, and it’s even better if that diverse collection of links is distributed among a diverse selection of publishers.
- Bad content. Say it with us: content is king in SEO. You need to have good content on your website, and you need to have good content supporting the link that points to that content. It’s content all the way down. If your content is not original, not well written, not relevant to the publisher or your industry, or otherwise low in quality it’s going to make any reciprocal link look much worse.
- Spammy anchor text. It’s important to be mindful of the anchor text you use. It was historically common for businesses to use specifically targeted keywords and phrases in their anchor text, hoping to increase their relevance for those terms. But this practice has largely faded in favor of more natural, relevant anchor text. If your anchor text is especially spammy, it can make an otherwise natural reciprocal link questionable.
- Unsound practices generally. Almost any bad SEO practice can corrupt a reciprocal link. There are literally hundreds of ranking factors to consider, and even more nuances to think about when it comes to things like content quality. But the bottom line is this: the more attentive you are to SEO best practices, the less you’ll have to worry about, even if you’re building or earning a reciprocal link.
We understand that much of the topic we’ve covered in this article is ambiguous.
What exactly counts as a reciprocal link? What exactly counts as good content? How many reciprocal links are too many?
We don’t have specific answers to these questions, in part because Google is opaque when it comes to its ranking algorithm, and in part because it’s contextual.
Navigating this terrain is tough, and the bigger your SEO campaign is, the tougher it gets.
That’s why so many businesses turn to the help of an SEO agency, which can clarify some of these ambiguities and conduct experiments to shed light on others.
SEO agencies aren’t perfect, and they aren’t a good fit for every business or every SEO practitioner, but they’re especially valuable in matters like these.
The Bottom Line
The bottom line here is that reciprocal links aren’t forbidden, and in some cases, they’re actually quite beneficial to all parties. But at the same time, you need to be cautious about how you approach reciprocal links so you can minimize risks and avoid potential penalties.
This is a challenging field, in part because of ambiguities like these.
That’s why SEO agencies like ours exist, to help companies like you better understand the purpose and nature of quality link building, so you can ultimately rank higher without fear of penalty.
If you’re interested in learning more, or getting help with your existing link building strategy, contact us today!
Tim has spent more than two decades in organic online marketing, working with some of the most well-recognized online brands in scaling their content marketing campaigns.
Connect with Tim on Linkedin & Twitter.
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