The Truth about EDU Links
It has been common knowledge in the link building world for years that edu links are valuable. Practiced widely and accepted, the coveted EDU link is prized. But as of late, you may be hearing a twitter or two that Edu links are no more valuable than any other link. After all, SEO guy Matt Cutts said so. He said officially in 2005 that a leading search engines algorithm does not value the edu tld any more than any other extension. As recently as May 2008, there were confirmations that leading search engines did not place any more importance on the edu domain.
Then why still the demand? Simple: They work. Regardless of what the search engines say. Of course they cannot admit this, they guard their algorithm. Not that they are blatantly lying, it's just that the EDUs work not so much because of the 3 letters E - D - U on the end, but what that typically represents.
Leading search engines flat out say they do not value the .edu link over others. Matt Cutts said it way back in 2005. Even in May 2008 on a thread, we read that there is no additional weight added to an EDU link. Numerous threads pop up with a naysayer claiming that obtaining an EDU link is a waste of energy. One must wonder why there is so much naysaying.
Why is that? The EDU value can be discounted somewhat by several factors: irrelevant sidebar links, links not in content, sitewide links (for example, links often sold in college papers-- why do you think they are so cheap?) A link in content on an EDU or GOV site however, with or without page rank on that page, is quite a value.
So the EDU link persists, and becomes harder and harder to obtain. classified ads, college paper sitewide links, bribing a professor... they can be done still but the value is suffering due to the overuse, and more importantly, the lack of relevancy of the link. Remember that the traditional link weights will still count even on an EDU.
Then why still the demand? Simple: They work. Regardless of what the search engines say. Of course they cannot admit this, they guard their algorithm. Not that they are blatantly lying, it's just that the EDUs work not so much because of the 3 letters E - D - U on the end, but what that typically represents.
Leading search engines flat out say they do not value the .edu link over others. Matt Cutts said it way back in 2005. Even in May 2008 on a thread, we read that there is no additional weight added to an EDU link. Numerous threads pop up with a naysayer claiming that obtaining an EDU link is a waste of energy. One must wonder why there is so much naysaying.
Why is that? The EDU value can be discounted somewhat by several factors: irrelevant sidebar links, links not in content, sitewide links (for example, links often sold in college papers-- why do you think they are so cheap?) A link in content on an EDU or GOV site however, with or without page rank on that page, is quite a value.
So the EDU link persists, and becomes harder and harder to obtain. classified ads, college paper sitewide links, bribing a professor... they can be done still but the value is suffering due to the overuse, and more importantly, the lack of relevancy of the link. Remember that the traditional link weights will still count even on an EDU.
About the Author:
If you have a site that needs a boost, one effective way to direct people your way is to buy links. The specialists at www.EduTextLink.com are the web's premier provider of high quality text links. They can provide quick and simple solutions for your tough problems.
