Google Webmaster Guidelines Updated

[peter_d]

http://www.google.com/support/webmas...y?answer=35769

Updates include:

Redefine cloaking:

"Cloaking refers to the practice of presenting different content or URLs to users and search engines. Serving up different results based on user agent may cause your site to be perceived as deceptive and removed from the Google index"

Why should I report paid links to Google:

A bit of spin, but thankfully they also stated "Not all paid links violate our guidelines. Buying and selling links is a normal part of the economy of the web when done for advertising purposes, and not for manipulation of search results. Links purchased for advertising should be designated as such".

Thx Blogoscoped

[king2163]

paid link is a paid link , how can anybody determine the purpose of buying link.

marketing or increasing pr.

[Jesse Vlasveld]

Originally Posted by peter_d

"Not all paid links violate our guidelines. Buying and selling links is a normal part of the economy of the web when done for advertising purposes, and not for manipulation of search results. Links purchased for advertising should be designated as such".

This sets me thinking..
Buying links for search engine manupilation could also be seen as a form of advertising. For what other reason then ' promoting ' their site would anyone buy links (there could be reasons like increasing pagerank, and faster indexing but this will also result in promoting the website in question).

[Cornbread]

Originally Posted by peter_d

http://www.google.com/support/webmas...y?answer=35769

Updates include:

Redefine cloaking:

"Cloaking refers to the practice of presenting different content or URLs to users and search engines. Serving up different results based on user agent may cause your site to be perceived as deceptive and removed from the Google index"

Why should I report paid links to Google:

A bit of spin, but thankfully they also stated "Not all paid links violate our guidelines. Buying and selling links is a normal part of the economy of the web when done for advertising purposes, and not for manipulation of search results. Links purchased for advertising should be designated as such".

Thx Blogoscoped

If I set up my 404 error code page as my home page would that be considered cloaking?

[John Scott]

Not all paid links violate our guidelines. Buying and selling links is a normal part of the economy of the web when done for advertising purposes, and not for manipulation of search results. Links purchased for advertising should be designated as such

Designated as such for whom?

[charlesgan]

user agent redirection is a bad thing to do...
i tried it once, and drop in serp... front page to 4th 5th page.
realised it last month. and removing it.
have to start the seo all over.

[eshop600]

How does google know what a paid link is? if you pay me money and I put a link inside my content or even write a whole page for you how does google know?

Are they blacklisting known paid link sites?

[Cornbread]

Originally Posted by charlesgan

user agent redirection is a bad thing to do...
i tried it once, and drop in serp... front page to 4th 5th page.
realised it last month. and removing it.
have to start the seo all over.

If I set up my 404 error code page as my home page would that be considered cloaking?
__________________
Are you talking about this? Anyone?

[bizman]

Originally Posted by king2163

paid link is a paid link , how can anybody determine the purpose of buying link.

marketing or increasing pr.

Agree, this makes no sense...