Custom PBN links are private networks of websites owned by one entity used to build backlinks to a primary website. These backlinks are meant to pass authority to the main site, increasing its SEO performance and rankings. However, if used improperly, PBNs can be penalized by Google and cause significant damage to search engine visibility.
72 percent of SEO professionals believe that backlinks are the most important ranking factor. The fascination with using PBNs comes from the ability to manipulate rankings in an unnatural and controlled manner. This method of link building also offers the advantage of generating fast results. However, the risks associated with this black hat strategy are high and it is vital to find ethical alternatives to this tactic.
PBN Links vs. White Hat SEO: What You Need to Know
Despite not explicitly mentioning them in its guidelines, Google is clear in its stance on manipulative link-building tactics. In fact, it’s been known to penalize sites that employ these strategies with manual actions that significantly decrease PageRank and organic traffic. In addition, it’s not uncommon for Google to deindex websites that use PBNs, rendering them inaccessible to users. These effects can be difficult to recover from and have long-term impacts on traffic and revenue.
PBNs are inherently risky because they involve a significant amount of money and time to maintain. In addition, they are susceptible to being detected by search engines that are constantly evolving and developing algorithms that can identify unnatural link patterns. This can result in severe penalties that dramatically reduce rankings, hurting both brand reputation and visibility.
While the benefits of using a PBN can be substantial, the process can be very time consuming and labor intensive. Most importantly, if you’re not careful, your entire network can be destroyed with a single penalty from Google.
It’s common for businesses to run multiple websites and link them to one another. It’s not necessarily unnatural for these websites to link to one another, especially if they have a common niche. However, the linking of these sites must be natural and done in a way that makes sense for each website’s audience. Otherwise, it’s likely that search engines will penalize these sites for a variety of reasons, including low quality content, duplicate content, and an unnatural linking pattern.
A thorough evaluation of a website’s link profile is the best way to detect suspicious PBN links. Thin or low-quality content that provides little value to users is a telltale sign, as is the presence of similar content themes among multiple linking sites. Abrupt changes in ownership and a history of rebranding can also indicate PBN involvement. Once detected, these suspicious links can be disavowed by submitting them to Google’s disavow tool.