Link Wheel In SEO – Should You Create One Or Not?
June 15, 2023
Rudra Kumar
SEO, or search engine optimization, is a complicated science requiring marketers to try a range of strategies for their websites to rank high on organic search results. One such strategy is creating a Link Wheel.
The Link Wheel in SEO is a network of interconnected websites purposefully linked to one another in an attempt to give backlinks to the money site. This tactic seeks to increase the total visibility and authority of each site by dividing link authority among several sites inside the wheel.
It sounds good in theory, but should you create a link wheel?
You Shouldn’t Create a Link Wheel.
A link wheel violates the rules and guidelines established by search engines like Google for SEO, and often such tactics may fall under Black Hat or Gray Hat SEO Techniques. And search engines have become a lot smarter and can de-rank and can even penalize websites using these tactics.
If that does not alone dissuade you from creating a link wheel, here are a few other reasons –
Limited Returns
You can create a Link Wheel through sources that are or are not owned by you. Whatever path you decide to choose requires a lot of effort, and since it can get flagged as a Black or Gray Hat SEO technique, the entire strategy is not worth the investment. But even if you push through and create one, the results aren’t sustainable.
Requires A Lot Of Maintenance
Maintaining and managing a Link Wheel network requires continuous effort. You have to maintain link hygiene, coordinate multiple properties, and live under constant fear that search engines will flag this Black Hat SEO technique and penalize your websites.
Private Blog Network (PBN) Concerns
In a private blog network (PBN), the websites within the network are typically owned by the same entity or individual and exist primarily to pass link juice and authority between them. These are highly condemnable by search engines. So even though a Link Wheel can involve a broader range of web properties, including social media profiles, forums, or legitimate websites, if your tactic gets identified or associated with PBNs, the chances of Google blacklisting them are quite high.
Content Spinning & Duplication Challenges
Link Wheel in SEO is often associated with replicating or spinning the same content and even having thin content on each web page. When information is reproduced across several websites, worries about content duplication may surface, which could have a detrimental effect on SEO efforts and overall website reliability.
What You Should Do Instead
Adopting these ethical SEO methods mentioned below will help you establish a long-lasting online presence and raise your search engine rankings over time-
Do On-page Optimization
To raise the exposure and relevancy of the individual pages on your website in search results, optimize them by incorporating appropriate keywords, meta tags, headers, and structured data markup. This guarantees that each page’s relevance and content may be better understood by search engines, enhancing visibility in search engine results.
Use Topic Clusters (via a hub and spoke model)
Use Topic Clusters to create pillar content centered around broad topics and support it with related subtopic content. This approach gives you the opportunity to organically link all the content pieces you’re creating to pass the link juice to the hub and spoke, as well as genuinely resolve user queries as they’re able to navigate between pages more easily.
Focus on Natural Link Building
In SEO, it is advised to put more emphasis on developing a solid and building natural backlink profile through ethical practices rather than relying on unscrupulous tactics like Link Wheel. So place a strong emphasis on producing valuable content that connects with your target audience to improve your chances of obtaining real backlinks.
Build External Links Via Digital PR and Niche Guest Posting
Instead of relying on Black Hat SEO practices, you must try to gain external links through Digital PR and Expert Guest Posting on niche websites. For this, you will need to form partnerships with reputable websites, media outlets, and industry influencers. Not only does this approach allow you to get backlinks, it also helps promote authority, credibility, and visibility, while maintaining ethical SEO principles.
Use HARO Backlinks
HARO, or Help a Reporter Out, is a platform that allows information-seeking journalists/reporters to connect with folks willing to provide that information. If used correctly, it can be an excellent tool to gain natural backlinks. Basically, all you need to do is set up HARO alerts and keep a lookout for queries that you have the expertise to resolve and provide valuable insights on the topic to journalists.
That’s it, folks. That is all you need to know about Link Wheel in SEO. Although, in theory, they might be appealing, their inherent dangers and violations of search engine criteria render them as an unproductive and potentially dangerous SEO tactic. Rather, concentrate on ethical SEO techniques focused on gaining natural links.