'No-follow' links are those which are prevalent within social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, along with the comment sections of blogs for example. Unlike a 'do follow' link, which passes weight and is understood to be highly valuable from a search marketing perspective, no-follow links have long been considered to be of little value in terms of a brand's visibility within search engines.

The ease of access to these social sites results in many publishers - both blog publishers through either choice or default settings and large social sites through the decisions of the site owners - has resulted in the prevalence of no-follow links being the standard. This approach effectively discourages spam and unscrupulous search marketers using these opportunities as link distribution platforms.

However, anecdotal evidence through a number of tests, which have used only this technique for a new, otherwise un-ranked and un-promoted page, has recently indicated that search engines are indeed beginning to factor in no-follow as one of a growing number of factors measured within each site's algorithm.

Pete Goold, Managing Director of Public Relations Consultants Punch Communications, commented:

"This news really pulls together the PR, search and social disciplines - and underscores the value between a coordinated approach to all three. Links generated by PR - and now also social media - have a direct influence on search, which is the key driver traffic for many sites and which, therefore, has become the key success criteria for many marketers."

For more information regarding PR, search and social media, or for a friendly, informal chat regarding how online PR can help your business, please contact the Punch team on +44 1858 411600. Or via http://www.punchcomms.com.


Source: PRWeb
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