Using (and Abusing?) rel=”nofollow” to Preserve Page Rank

Bloggers, how many times have you noticed that you’re getting traffic from a link on one of the “huge” blogs and websites on the web…only to check your Technorati links and Google alerts to find that the link isn’t showing up? Have you wondered why that’s happening?

Chances are pretty good that the Biggie-Blog (or social-networking site) is adding the code: rel=”no follow” to its outgoing links.*

As we know, one of the ways to increase Google page-rank (and Technorati authority) is to get links from other blogs (For more info on why Page Rank is important, see Why Conservatives Need to Geek-Up). All of the Biggie Blogs got big by receiving lots of links from other bloggers. But now, it seems, even among politically-conservative bloggers (which are decidedly a minority in the blogosphere), some are unwilling to help other like-minded blogs in the same manner. They have started putting the rel=”no follow” code in all of their outgoing links, to preserve their own page rank.

Others are selectively inserting the code, so that they only support other bloggers that they want to support with “link love.” This is a more responsible use of the rel=”nofollow” code.

 

What is rel=”nofollow”?

This code was actually developed by Google a couple of years ago to try to help prevent comment spam. It didn’t work for that, but what it did do was give bloggers a whole new way to compete with each other for page rank. Some figured out that they could use their knowledge about the code to preserve their own Google ranking while still receiving links from lesser-experienced bloggers who didn’t know how to use the code.

 

How does using rel=”nofollow” preserve (or stop leaking) page rank?

A couple of very thorough explanations are here and here, but in a nutshell, the more links you have on a page, the less each link is worth in Google’s highly-secretive and ever-changing system for determining page rank. Therefore, linking to outside bloggers reduces the “value” of your own internal links. Currently, if you use rel=”nofollow” in your outgoing links, those links will theoretically not be counted against you, and will also not increase the linked blogger’s page rank.

 

How/Where do I insert rel=”nofollow” on my links?

(For general information on hyperlinks, see Adding Hyperlinks, and Hyperlinks on the WWF Wiki) When the code is added to a link, the link will look like this:

 

So, when should rel=”nofollow” be used?

Here are my suggestions (and I am open to discussion on these) – these are guidelines, not hard and fast rules:

1. Use it when you know the linked blog is not going to return the link. (Some blogs simply don’t return links.)
2. Use it when you do not wish to increase the page rank of the other blogger (i.e., the other blog is a competitor or opponent).
3. Use it when you need to link to a for-profit blogging site, like a retailer, or so-called “spam blog.” (Google often punishes these blogs on the page ranking, as well as any blogs that link to them.)
4. In the comments section, which is susceptible to spam (Wordpress does this automatically -in fact, if you want to disable the feature, you’ll need to a plug-in like one of these.)

 

Is there a time when rel=”nofollow” should NOT be used. (i.e. Wouldn’t it be easier to just include it in all outgoing links?)

Sure, this is a good idea of you are so big and so powerful that you no longer need to network with other bloggers to maintain your success online.

For the rest of us, who actually are interested in building up the conservative movement online, I would strongly recommend not using the rel=”nofollow” tag on links to other bloggers you want to network with. This would include:

1. Blogrolls (Assuming you’re using blogrolling software that IS recognized by the search engines).
2. Blogbursts (Remember, one of the reasons you signed up for the blogburst was to get links from other bloggers, so don’t be ugly, and not return the links.)
3. “Hat-Tips” (”Thank-you’s” for good leads for stories, either via e-mail or from other blogs)
4. Links to information you’ve borrowed or quoted from another blog to support a point you’re trying to make (C’mon – if you’re going to use their stuff, give them credit, and share some link-love! This does not necessarily apply when you’re “exposing” rather than “using” info from other blogs – see #2 in the previous list.)

 

Alright, who is Using and who is Abusing the code online?

To see if your favorite blogger is using (or abusing) the code, simply go to a post on their site, and click “view” then “source” (or “page source”). Then use “Edit-Find” to see if the rel=”nofollow” code is in ALL of the links, or just in links to their opponents, competitors, advertising sites, etc.. You might be surprised at who is more interested in preserving their own page rank, rather than promoting conservatism online.

 

More information on using rel=”nofollow” can be located on the following sites:

• LinkTutorial.com: Attribute ‘rel=nofollow’
• Wikipedia: nofollow
• About.com: rel nofollow – What does this mean?

 

*Another possibility, if the link is not showing is that the link may be included in a script that is not recognized by the search engines…see:Why Blogrolling is Useless