It seems not only link building has a bad rep but also the link by itself.
How can we educate the people about the true “nature” of the Web and vindicate the image of the Web’s building stone?
Links Make or Break the Web
What is the nature of the Web? The question is already wrong. I have to ask it because nowadays the sheer elements the Web is made of – links – get accused of being “unnatural” [sic!]. To be honest that’s even true. All links are unnatural or in other words cultural and technical. The Web is a technological achievement of our civilization. It consists of hyperlinked pages that are online and interconnected with each other.
Without links the Web ceases to exist.
Using “unnatural” as an epithet for links is denouncing the whole foundation of the Web and endangering its future. I don’t have to tell who refers to links as “unnatural” and scares millions of webmasters around the world by threatening them with penalties. The search traffic monopolist and largest gatekeeper of the Web, I increasingly associate with all the goo it spreads.
Google is Intimidating Website and Business Owners
Why would Google want to intimidate website ad business owners? I suspected that they may want to replace hyperlinks with proprietary connection. By now, I think that they are just corrupted by the almost absolute power they wield over the formerly free Web. It may be even just idiocy. In large top down organizations everybody is afraid to speak out, because they may lose their job. Apparently supersmart Stanford nerds aren’t an exception. Thus I’d like to repeat for all those who work at Google high up in the hierarchy so that nobody tells them the truth: the Web is not part of nature. Links do not grow on trees. The Web is about technology.
One reason why Google says “unnatural” may be that they are afraid to tell the truth.
Otherwise the feds might go after them. Why? Google is an advertising company. Even after 16 years more than 90% of their revenue stems from text ads. What they refer to as “unnatural links” are in many cases text adverts from their competitors. Effectively they are using strong ram tactics to get rid f their competition. Either you don’t buy link at competing services or you don’t get traffic coming through our gate. This is what a monopoly is all about: forcing competition out of business by using your overwhelming market power.
Using the Web like a Book
How do you use the Web? Do you read the whole text of every web page from top to bottom and then read on on the next page? Probably not. This is how we read books but on the Web we click the first link that intrigues us and we’re off to the next virtual adventure. Having links to click is all about freedom of virtual movement in cyberspace.
When links are gone you will be literally trapped on websites and will have to click the back button in your browser. Of course Google doesn’t like competing link lists either. They are the ones who link almost everybody on the Web so why should anyone else link out? It only provides an alternative to Google.
I read a lot of novels after work, approx. one a week. I really enjoy them. I don’t skip text passages and don’t click anywhere. I relax from the Web frenzy where the most common use case is to find information quickly and to act accordingly. It it desirable to read the Web like that? No.
On the Web you are in a hurry. You need an information quickly. Often you don’t need “great content” you have to wade through until you locate the simple answer you are looking for. A link to an actual solution can literally save your life. I’m not only referring to searching for a doctor.
How did a link save your life?
I’d like to hear stories from you on how a link saved your life and had similar positive impact. Links may be unnatural as all technology, even paid for by advertisers so that Google can’t rank them accordingly to their flawed algorithm but that’s not a reason to cripple the Web.
Google loves to claim to improve the Web, make it more secure etc. but they don’t act accordingly. What they want is an easy controlled Web where they decide what’s going on. They probably don’t want websites to link to each other so that they can control the flow of Web traffic so they discourage webmasters from linking out by downright scaring them to do so.
Even legit blogs that take your content, either don’t link to you anymore or use the so called “nofollow” attribute Google pushes since 2005 unsuccessfully as an anti-spam measure. Google needs to come clean and explain, why it truly doesn’t want people to link to each other. The people should not allow the Google corporation to scare them from using the Web as it was intended.
No matter whether links are
- automated
- adverts
- “editorial”
they are always unnatural. I love nature, but I also want to apply technology as it was intended. I won’t allow a company that grew by monetizing our content and information to stop me. The Internet is free and not yet owned by Google. I sincerely hope it won’t be in the near future. Please link out freely to your fellow netizens. Don’t let the Google bully and intimidate you. Your link may save a life.
