“Follow” and “nofollow” are attributes that can be applied to hyperlinks on web pages. These attributes indicate to search engine crawlers whether they should follow the link and crawl the target page or not.

A “do-follow” link is a hyperlink that has no rel=”nofollow” attribute applied to it. This means that search engine crawlers will follow the link to the target page and may consider it as a vote of confidence or endorsement of the target page’s content. Therefore, do-follow links are considered to be more valuable for search engine optimization (SEO) purposes, as they can potentially improve a website’s search engine rankings.

On the other hand, a “no-follow” link is a hyperlink that has the rel=”nofollow” attribute applied to it. This means that search engine crawlers will not follow the link to the target page and will not consider it as a vote of confidence or endorsement of the target page’s content. Therefore, no-follow links are less valuable for SEO purposes.

However, it’s worth noting that no-follow links still have value in other ways. They can drive traffic to a website and can also help to diversify a website’s backlink profile, which can be beneficial for SEO.

Overall, both do-follow and no-follow links have their own advantages and disadvantages, and a good backlink profile should contain a mix of both types.

image credits to https://seopressor.com/

what is no follow link in seo?

In SEO, a “no-follow” link is a hyperlink that has the rel=”nofollow” attribute applied to it in the HTML code. This attribute instructs search engine crawlers not to follow the link to its destination and not to pass on any authority or “link juice” to the linked page.

The “no-follow” attribute was introduced by search engines to combat spammy link building practices, such as paid links and link exchanges. When a website owner or webmaster adds the “no-follow” attribute to a link, it signals to search engines that they are not vouching for the credibility or quality of the linked page.

So, in short, a “no-follow” link does not contribute to a website’s search engine rankings, as search engines do not count it as a vote of confidence or endorsement of the linked page’s content. However, no-follow links can still drive traffic to a website and diversify its backlink profile, which can be beneficial for SEO in the long run.

what is do follow link in seo?

In SEO, a “do-follow” link is a hyperlink that does not have the rel=”nofollow” attribute applied to it in the HTML code. This indicates that the link is a ‘do-follow’ link, which permits search engine crawlers to follow the link to its intended destination and transfer the link authority or ‘link juice’ to the linked page.

When a website receives a “do-follow” link from another website, it is considered as a vote of confidence or endorsement of the quality and credibility of its content. Therefore, “do-follow” links are more valuable for SEO purposes, as they can potentially improve a website’s search engine rankings.

However, It is worth noting that “do-follow” links are not all equivalent in value or impact. The value of a “do-follow” link depends on several factors such as the authority of the linking website, the relevance of the linking page to the linked content, the anchor text used for the link, and more.

It’s also important to maintain a natural and diverse backlink profile, as an excessive amount of “do-follow” links from low-quality or irrelevant sources can be seen as a red flag by search engines and may lead to penalties or a drop in rankings.

How Dofollow and Nofollow Links Impact SEO?

Both “do-follow” and “no-follow” links have an impact on SEO, but they impact it in different ways.

In terms of SEO, “do-follow” links are more valuable than “no-follow” links. When a website receives a “do-follow” link from another website, it’s considered as a vote of confidence or endorsement of the quality and credibility of its content. This can improve the website’s search engine rankings and increase its visibility in search results.

On the other hand, “no-follow” links don’t pass on link authority or “link juice” to the linked page, so they don’t have a direct impact on a website’s search engine rankings. However, “no-follow” links can still drive traffic to a website and diversify its backlink profile, which can indirectly benefit its SEO in the long run.

It’s important to note that having a natural and diverse backlink profile is crucial for SEO. A backlink profile that contains an excessive amount of “do-follow” links from low-quality or irrelevant sources can be seen as a red flag by search engines and may lead to penalties or a drop in rankings. Therefore, it’s important to focus on acquiring high-quality, relevant “do-follow” links and mix them with a healthy amount of “no-follow” links to create a well-balanced backlink profile.

How to Make a Dofollow Link?

To create a “do-follow” link, you simply need to add a regular hyperlink to your content without applying the rel=”nofollow” attribute to it. Follow these steps to generate a “do-follow” link:

  • Find a web page that you want to link to on your content.
  • Write the anchor text that you want to use for the link. The anchor text should be relevant to the linked page and should accurately describe its content.
  • Highlight the anchor text and click on the “link” button in your content editor.
  • In the link dialog box, enter the URL of the linked page in the “URL” field.
  • Check to make sure that the rel=”nofollow” attribute is not applied to the link. If it is, remove it.
  • Click on the “Insert” or “Save” button to create the link.

That’s it! Your link is now a “do-follow” link, and search engine crawlers will follow it to the linked page and pass on link authority or “link juice” to it.

Do Nofollow Links Help SEO?

While “no-follow” links don’t directly contribute to a website’s search engine rankings, they can still have a positive impact on SEO in several ways:

Diversify backlink profile: Having a diverse backlink profile with a mixture of “do-follow” and “no-follow” links looks more natural to search engines, and can help improve a website’s overall authority and trustworthiness.

Drive traffic: Even though “no-follow” links don’t pass on link authority, they can still drive traffic to a website. If someone clicks on a “no-follow” link, they may still visit the linked page, potentially leading to more exposure and conversions.

Increase brand visibility: Getting your website mentioned or linked to on high-traffic websites, even with “no-follow” links, can increase brand visibility and awareness, which can lead to more organic search traffic over time.

Relationship building: Building relationships with other websites and bloggers through “no-follow” links can help establish your website as a valuable resource within your industry, potentially leading to more “do-follow” links in the future.

Therefore, while “no-follow” links may not have a direct impact on search engine rankings, they can still play an important role in a website’s overall SEO strategy.

When Should a Nofollow Backlink Be Used?

There are several situations where using a “no-follow” backlink may be appropriate:

User-generated content: If your website allows users to create content, such as comments, forum posts, or guest blog articles, it’s a good practice to add a “no-follow” attribute to any outgoing links in those pieces of content. This can help prevent spam and manipulative link building, which can harm your website’s reputation and search engine rankings.

Sponsored or paid links: If you’re using paid or sponsored links, it’s important to add a “no-follow” attribute to those links to comply with search engine guidelines. Google, for example, requires websites to mark all paid links as “no-follow” to prevent them from influencing search engine rankings.

Untrusted or low-quality sources: If you’re linking to a website that you don’t trust or consider to be of low quality, it’s a good idea to add a “no-follow” attribute to that link. This can help protect your website from being associated with spammy or harmful websites, which can negatively impact your search engine rankings.

Internal links: While internal links on your website don’t necessarily need to be marked as “no-follow,” there are some situations where it may be appropriate. For example, if you have a page on your website that you don’t want to be indexed by search engines, such as a duplicate or low-quality page, you can add a “no-follow” attribute to any internal links pointing to that page.

Overall, it’s important to use “no-follow” backlinks appropriately to ensure that your website is in compliance with search engine guidelines and to protect your website’s reputation and search engine rankings.

Are Nofollow Links Bad?

No, “no-follow” links are not necessarily bad. While “do-follow” links are considered more valuable in terms of passing link authority and potentially improving search engine rankings, “no-follow” links can still be beneficial in several ways, as I mentioned in my previous response.

In fact, using “no-follow” links appropriately is an important part of a well-rounded backlink strategy. If a website has too many “do-follow” links without any “no-follow” links, it can look suspicious to search engines and potentially trigger a penalty.

It’s also worth noting that “no-follow” links can still drive traffic to a website and increase brand visibility and awareness, which can lead to more organic search traffic over time.

So while “no-follow” links may not be as valuable for SEO purposes as “do-follow” links, they can still play an important role in a website’s overall backlink strategy and should be used appropriately.

How to Tell if a Link is Dofollow and no follow to search engine?

To tell if a link is “do-follow” or “no-follow” to search engines, you can inspect the link’s HTML code using your web browser’s developer tools. Below are the steps to accomplish this:

  • Right-click on the link that you want to inspect and select “Inspect” or “Inspect Element” from the context menu.
  • This will open up your web browser’s developer tools, which will show you the HTML code for the link.
  • Look for the “rel” attribute in the HTML code. If the “rel” attribute is designated as “nofollow,” it indicates that the link is a “no-follow” link.
  • If the “rel” attribute is not present or is set to “dofollow,” then the link is a “do-follow” link.
  • If you’re having trouble finding the “rel” attribute, you can also try searching for it using your browser’s “Find” or “Search” function (usually accessible by pressing Ctrl+F or Cmd+F).

Alternatively, there are several browser extensions and online tools that can help you quickly determine if a link is “do-follow” or “no-follow.” These tools typically highlight “no-follow” links in red or some other color to make them easy to spot. Some popular tools include the MozBar browser extension and the Ahrefs SEO toolbar.

How long will it take times Google to recognize a dofollow link

It’s difficult to determine an exact timeframe for when Google will recognize a “do-follow” link, as there are several factors that can affect the indexing and crawling process.

Generally, it can take anywhere from a few days to a few weeks for Google to crawl and index a new link. However, this timeline can vary depending on the authority and trustworthiness of the linking website, the frequency of content updates on the linking website, and the crawl frequency of Google’s bots.

It’s also worth noting that just because a “do-follow” link is recognized by Google doesn’t necessarily mean that it will immediately improve search engine rankings. The quality and relevance of the linked content and the linking website, as well as the anchor text used in the link, are also important factors that can influence the impact of the link on search engine rankings.

Overall, it’s important to focus on building high-quality “do-follow” links over time, rather than expecting immediate results. By consistently creating valuable content and building relationships with reputable websites in your industry, you can improve your website’s authority and increase the likelihood of earning valuable “do-follow” links that can positively impact your search engine rankings.