What does this penalty mean to you?
It’s important to note that the site with the unnatural links on it will receive the notices, not you. However, since any sites receiving this message will have the power of its unnatural links discounted, this could include any links to your site, so now is a good time to check that other sites are linking to your own website in a way that complies with Google’s guidelines.
If you have conducted any SEO activity for your company, take some time to think about how it was done. For example: was the website owner incentivised to link to your business in exchange for reimbursement of some kind, and was this made clear in their post? If not, your link is in breach of Google’s guidelines and, in the United States, also the law.
How does this relate to PR?
As the boundaries between digital PR and SEO continue to blur, it’s vital to have an understanding of what both disciplines bring to a digital marketing strategy and where they differ. On the whole, digital PR is more holistic than SEO: while links are an end goal for SEO, PR articles have a more rounded focus on building brand awareness and encouraging site traffic; gaining links is just a part of this.
Nevertheless, with the intersection of digital PR and SEO it’s important for PR professionals to understand the various search engine pitfalls they may encounter. Where there is the potential for PR to encroach on SEO’s turf, professionals should be aware of what is best practice and try to stay within those boundaries. At Partners, we’re well versed in the dos and don’ts of current SEO, and do our best to incorporate this knowledge into the work we do for our clients.