UPDATE: Since I am really liking the conversation started around this topic, I decided not to publish a new post today and instead keep it going ’til next tuesday. Thanks for everyone who commented and keep on giving me your views on the matter, much appreciated.
I remember when I switched this blog to DoFollow, it was October of last year, and it seemed to me like an excellent choice in order to attract more visitors and give something back to the people who chose to invest some of their spare time in commenting one of my posts. I always thought it was a very good choice, until recently.
Well, nothing bad happened really. I read a lot from people claiming switching their blog to DoFollow attracted an unbearable amount of spam, and this overwhelmed them totally, even using anti-spam plugins. Honestly, everything’s pretty fine for me from that point of view. So what made me doubt my choice?
I recently stumbled upon a couple of very interesting posts by Suresh Khanal, about DoFollows vs NoFollow (here and here) and I was really hit by a couple of points he made.
The one which stuck the most in my mind is about ethics.
To sum it up, by making all my commenters’ link DoFollow I cast a sort of “vote of trust” on that link, stating that it’s relevant to my blog’s info and one should definitely check it out. Truth is, the amount of really relevant information from those links is close to zero. Most of the times the links send you to blogs/websites in a completely different niche than the one I am, and if someone ideally trusted my “DoFollow” vote, they’d be stuck with something they’re most likely not interested about.
Of course, the DoFollow is more for search engines, it’s a valid backlink search engines consider in their rankings, and that’s probably the reason most people comment here anyway.
So, I did start to wonder: what’s the point? I mean, sure, I got posts with many comments, but if most of the people do comment to get a DoFollow link back, is that really worth the trouble? Isn’t it better to actually CHOOSE which link to award a DoFollow rather than blindly giving it to anyone?
It’s about content curation as well. If I decide what content to recommend to others (search engines included) it matters a lot more when I do that, rather than recommending EVERYTHING, no matter what.
That’s why I am in a big, big dilemma right now, and that’s also why I am writing this post, to ask people’s opinion.
What Is Going To Happen?
Well, if I decide to witch back to NoFollow, it’s almost sure I’ll see a drastic drop in comments, but is it so bad? The blog will look less lively, but the few comments that will be there will be given from people who really care, despite the lack of google-friendly backlink.
Mind you, I am not going to remove CommentLuv, just the DoFollow plugin, if I decide to take this step, that is.
I realize that by asking people’s opinion in a blog post I will most likely get a reply from people interested in keeping DoFollow in place, but it’s a risk I am willing to take, I think I can learn something from all this anyway, and others’ opinion matter to me even if they are biased.
I am going to implement a poll as well just for the sake of it.
Please, read the two posts I linked before casting a vote or commenting here, so that you will know everything there is to know about a choice like this. I didn’t cite it on here so that you will be able to read the original, it’s only fair towards Suresh.
Let’s see where this will lead this blog.
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Twitter: technicallyeasy
says:
When I started my blog I never thought about comments being nofollow. It wasn’t until I moved to WordPress (I was on Blogger first) that I decided to look into removing nofollow from my comments. While I knew about spam, I decided to install a plugin that gave a dofollow link to their site to those that wrote at least 10 comments. I have since removed the plugin.
Right now I am nofollow, and haven’t thought about changing it. I figure that real people that enjoyed the post, will leave a well thought out comment regardless of the attribute of their link – as you pointed out. I’d rather have 3 comments on a post than 20 spammy comments. I feel that spam comments really bring down the value of a blog.
Paul Salmon@Technically Easy recently posted..5 Biggest Internet Marketing Scams
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
It’s not just about spammy comments but about comments left, even if “ok”, with the only purpose to leave a backlink. Do I care about them? That’s the main question I have to answer myself.
Twitter: rj_c
says:
I really have very little knowledge of DoFollow will be checking up on it and will come and comment later.
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
I’ll be waiting
Twitter: huntingtonlive
says:
For me it’s like deciding an Open Group or a Close Group.
But as a commentator.. I would really Love your blog to remain on a DoFollow.
It might be true that some of the commentators are just spammers — I was one of them when I first visited your site. Not until I became interested in your posts and at the same time I’m able to grasp and absorb most of what you’re saying.
Well, the fact that you’re sharing us your ideas, experience, as well as your funny non-niche posts is very helpful for me. Because we learn from it. Even though you can consider some of are just commenting for the sake of backlinks, We learn from time to time we do comments on your posts – and we slowly become a part of your world.
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
I see your point, you are interested in what I say and you like to come back and comment on it. Will this change if my blog becomes NoFollow? ’cause if your interest disappears after that change, you see maybe the reasons for your comments lie elsewhere. Of course take this as a provocation, but see my point?
Twitter: huntingtonlive
says:
Of course yes. Definitely I would still be interested. I’ve even Joined your FB page hoping to learn more from you guys thou I it’s hard for me to understand it cause it’s written in Italian.
I’ll respect your decision whatever it is, but I’d still do hope you’d go for dofollow.
Just curious.. Is your blog already in a NoFollow?
John, why do you care?? From what need does your ‘curiosity’ stem?
Twitter: huntingtonlive
says:
Because I’m new to this kind of stuffs.. I’ve been reading some blogs about SEO stuffs specially in seomoz and can hardly understand what they are talking about.. I want to learn specially about dofollow and nofollow since this is basic seo.. and joining to conversations like this is very important for me.. Driving traffic, yes it is also useful for me but learning is my priority. Just like Chinese Proverb says Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.
Twitter: huntingtonlive
says:
And BTW, I already found out how to Identify if a Blog or Anchor text is NoFollow or DoFollow.. I don’t why you don’t want me to learn this. I just saw your post below, gee thanks.
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
In that case I thank you for that.
I don’t see a reason not to answer you, so yes for the time being I am still DoFollow of course, this post was meant to establish a discussion around this “doubt”, it’d be kind of disrespectful to take a decision before I have a chance to hear as many people’s opinion as possible.
Twitter: huntingtonlive
says:
Gab, I must be the one thanking you.. I’ve already learned a lot since you started posting this blog.
If you don’t mind, can I ask some few questions about DoFollow and NoFollow.. Just 3 or 4 questions.. That is if it’s okay..
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
Just ask, I am sure if me or other people can answer, they will.
It seems you like the rest of us have fallen victim to the technicalities of the web that blind us to how things are supposed to be.
Let us say for example that you and I sit down for a coffee and a good chat. You tell me your opinion on something and I then turn to you and say, ‘Gabriele, I would love to respond, but I’ll only do so if you promise to tell other people what I am telling you’. How does this qualify as reasonable human interaction? It obviously does not. Maybe you will share it, maybe you won’t, but my conversation with you is had for the sake of having it. Any other motive removes from the purity of it.
Technology was meant to be an extension of humanity, but it is instead reshaping humanity. We need to remember how we are as people first, and then extend our use of technology accordingly. The same goes for social media. I comment religiously on good blogs because it feels like having a good coffee and a chat about something I love. This is the essence of my, and your humanity. Make your decisions in line with this.
Needless to say, NoFollow.
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
That’s a very interesting thought Toma, but actually it’s a bit different. It’s like you tell me “I would love to respond, but I will do so only if you promise me you’ll tell other people what I do for a living and you send them to take a look at my stuff”.
I agree with you completely, and you summarized the exact reason why I wrote this post in first place. I am liking this discussion already
Twitter: paulcastain
says:
Couldn’t have said it any better myself Toma!
I never really thought about these sentiments before this post so thank you Gabriele and to you as well Toma!
Respectfully,
Paul Castain
Paul Castain recently posted..Value Overestimated & Underestimated!
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
Thanks Paul, I felt like I had to clear up my mind on this, and what better way to ask to the people I am writing for in first place?
Twitter: The3DRenderer
says:
Hi, Gabriele.
I found your blog on the posting schedule of Nitty Griddy shared to me by a friend and I can say I’m glad that I came to visit because I have been thinking about the nofollow and dofollow issue as well. I am new in the blogosphere and am still taking small steps in shaping my blog, finding my voice and joining the blogging community, so I am trying to soak in as much information as I can. But, because I read that having a dofollow blog is good, I had that implemented in my own blog. I don’t have commenters yet, so I don’t have any problems about spam…But, will I have to worry about that in the future? I am kind of worried.
Care to help me and ease my mind? I’d really appreciate it.
Kim Davies@The Rendering Company recently posted..What are the Advantages of 3D Architectural Renderings
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
Well I am still weighting it out myself, I suggest you read Toma’s comment up there ’cause it’s very deep and sheds a new light on the whole matter. I am still not sure about what will I do, but it’s not much about spam per se, rather about the real motivations behind someone’s comments and what are you really looking for.
I am glad you like my blog and I hope to keep seeing you around here
Twitter: The3DRenderer
says:
I get what you mean about the motivation behind someone’s comment, Gabriele. I admit, I visited your site out of purely selfish reasons. I wanted to reach out and build a community of my own since I am new to the blogosphere. I hope you don’t mind though.
And, you will be seeing more of me.
Kim Davies @The Rendering Company recently posted..What are the Advantages of 3D Architectural Renderings
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
Of course I don’t mind, I don’t actually mind anyone’s reasons ’cause I have done the same in the past. I just started this discussion to decide wether I will “close my eyes” or become a bit more aware about certain things and practices
I personally never pay attention to if a blog is follow or no follow. If I like the article and have something to share, I commentl if not, I move on. It is an interesting point though as how many are looking for that SEO boost? If someone is going to take the time to comment for a link, then if they do not do it here, they will do it elsewhere. And, if they are making a good comment that adds to the post, losing them might not spark as much convo. They are taking the time to read and comment so is it a really big deal that they are getting a link? Then again do we have to work/live in this reward system?
I keep mine follow as again, I never really give it much thought when I am commenting.
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
Well it’s not just about getting a link, it’s more about saying “ok this link’s worth it, my visitors, go check it out”, which is kind of what DoFollow is all about. In that light, I would very much prefer MANUALLY selecting the links to “DoFollow” after I have seen what they are about. Does it make sense?
Ha! Your example is much better, and I’m happy that you understand my point.
Nice work not answering John’s question by the way. Please don’t.
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
I don’t see why I shouldn’t, it’s not a secret and it’s something anyone can find pretty quickly. Besides, as I just answered him, this post will help me decide wether to switch to NoFollow or not, if I switch it already “secretly” it’s sort of unfair for people involved no?
Twitter: jezza101
says:
I don’t use commentluv or have followed links yet still get a tonne of spam.
The problem I have is attracting people who don’t really read your posts but just want to get the link, I guess good old fashioned human moderation can clear useless posts out!
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
Spam isn’t a problem really, even if a comment is legit, it’s the reasons that lead to that comment which bother me.
Twitter: PakistanHotline
says:
Hello Gabriele,
I have voted for DoFollow in your poll as I think that the people who made valuable comments on your posts must be rewarded by DoFollow links. However you can implement more strict policy to moderate comments to avoid spam.
nazimwarriach recently posted..Webcom Promo Code
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
I am not talking about spam, and I don’t really feel I have to reward anyone like that. A comment is a good way to start a conversation, and I do it very often on other blogs (and I don’t really take notice which is DoFollow or NoFollow, I never researched on that). Does it mean I should endorse any link at all, giving it green light to all my readers and search engines just because someone left a comment? That’s the question I am trying to answer.
It shouldn’t keep you up at night! I vote do-follow, but I feel like most blogs these days are it. And since it seems EVERYONE is on the internet today, it’s almost like you can’t afford not to. Think about the website traffic!
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
To be honest, that’s exactly the kind of mentality that disturbs me. If I have to keep DoFollow up just because of all the website traffic, and that’s the only reason people really come here to comment, turning it NoFollow will actually have the result of getting rid of people not interested in what I say.
Twitter: bivori
says:
First of all, thank you for continuing the discussion on what I am always confused. The SEO topic is always controversial and the best way is to learn through other’s experience.
I wish Google wipe off the NOFOLLOW attribute as its crawlers are already smart enough to analyze and determine the relevance of links in any page. That way the unnecessary favor of ‘dofollow’ dies for ever.
As I started my SEO MMO Tips with NOFOLLOW from very beginning, and declared it will remain nofollow for ever, I am in a clearer side always. There are two equally false statements on blogging world:
1. You will not get enough comments if you have nofollow
2. Google does not count the links if they are nofollow
Both are false but a group of people love to believe the blooms in dofollow.
If you blog for passion and as a hobby, there is nothing to think about all these stuff. But on the other corner of heart, if you are blogging for money and trying to build up your career as a blogger you’ll certainly think about traffic and monetization options. Dofollow or nofollow – one helps for traffic and the other for monetization.
Hope you’ll make a better decision and will help your blog to grow.
Suresh Khanal@SEOMMOTips recently posted..Why you don’t love KeywordLuv
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
Thanks a lot Suresh, I was hoping you’d join in the conversation because after all it was initiated by your posts on the subject. Always more than glad to get feedback from someone knowing a lot more then me on this
Twitter: thecostofivf
says:
i use no-follow and i am getting so much spam so i guess it does not matter much
now, i would say, if you have a product that you want to sell via your blog….you might be interested in getting quite high in Google and traffic is going to help you i guess. so probably from that point of view, you would decide to keep the do-follow. does it make sense?
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
It makes sense but not so much for me. I am not selling through this blog and traffic does matter but there are certain boundaries I am not comfortable in crossing, so to say.
Twitter: rfcamat
says:
By all means, make this blog do-follow forever
The poll result speaks by itself. GASP is always there to fight spam.
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
I reached a decision in the matter and will publish a new post about it in a couple of hours.
Wow, I’m glad to finally get here to have my say on this subject.
If you remember a post I wrote back in February regarding how people leave horrible comments on online newspapers and how much I hated them, I said that I believed newspapers should remove them, yet also said that I know they don’t endorse all the comments people make. It’s illogical for anyone to assume that because someone posted a comment on your blog and it pulls up a post that has nothing to do with your site that you’re endorsing that post, dofollow or nofollow.
Frankly, back in 2008 when I added dofollow to my blog, it didn’t drastically increase comments on my blog. The same can be said of CommentLuv when I added that. What I felt, though, is that both offered those people who did comment a free benefit that they may not get on other sites. To me, that was important enough to install the plugin and leave it on.
Of course, it won’t affect what I do in other places in any fashion, since I’m not someone who goes around looking for dofollow or nofollow or even CommentLuv. I comment on sites I’m interested in as long as they don’t make the commenting process complicated. I’m way more concerned about that than whether or not a blog is “do” or “no”.
Mitch Mitchell recently posted..Blogging Responsibly Part Two
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
You definitely have the right mind-set Mitch, but I feel like some people are truly pushed in commenting just by the DoFollow-ness of a blog, and that feels just wrong. And it feels wrong to grant ANY link a DoFollow tag, no matter what it’s about. Would you recommend someone you don’t even know in your line of business? I feel like DoFollow is sort of like that, but I think I finally reached a decision and will post about it in a couple of hours. Thanks for your comment!
Twitter: kpfingaz
says:
I understand your dilemma.
I’m gonna be honest with you. I found your blog because I was looking for links. But any blog I comment on I read the posts and try to add something to the discussion. I rarely comment on blogs that aren’t related to mines.
I can’t say everyone follows the same principles that I do which is why we’re even talking about this.
Here’s what I want to ask you. Have you considered the other side of things?
Dofollow is like saying you are casting a vote of trust right? What about Nofollow? That’s like saying, you do not trust any of the links you’re linking to? Why would a blog link to sites they don’t trust?
It’s your decision. I just wanted to give you something else to think about while making that decision.
Honest Jay recently posted..Go Click Cash Review
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
NoFollow doesn’t prevent people from actually clicking it, which is the huge point you seem to be missing. NoFollow simply blocks search engines from automatically believe the link has any relevance to the context it’s linked from. Which is exactly what I want to achieve.
Twitter: kpfingaz
says:
Gabriele, I had to re-read my comment twice to see where I said or implied that no-follow meant you cant click on the link. I understand fully how SEO works so I’m not missng any points at all. I was merely contributing something for you to think about – the other side of the coin which you seem to ignore in your reply to me.
I read your follow up post and I think you made a great decision. It tackles the problem well from both sides.
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
I am sorry if that came out wrong, I just meant that NoFollow isn’t like blocking a link or anything like that. I didn’t ignore your reply, I do think NoFollow has a reason to exist. An explicit link inside a post is made by the post author and obviously has a reason to be there. An automatic link to a commenter’s name is there because the commenting system allows it. The alternatives are: eliminating links completely, automatically vouching for them and telling Google “sure, this is good stuff, go on”, or putting a NoFollow policy in place. The solution I chose – which I am glad you approve – allows me to decide what I want to do on a per-case basis. Arbitrarily putting a NoFollow policy in place or removing links from comments have never been options I truly considered in first place.
While my reply to you was probably too direct, I never had any intention to offend you.
It is a toss up. I guess it just comes down to what you want ranking-wise. How have you been doing on Google? Have you tested out your results with and without dofollow? Traffic is great, but I guess it comes down to what is more important to you. Loyal readers, or loyal commentors? (Or could those be the same? lol)
Twitter: maidoesimple
says:
Yes I agree with you, it’s a matter of what you want to achieve. I didn’t notice any particular drop in traffic since my blog is NoFollow (with DoFollow on selected people), so I guess from that point of view it wasn’t a bad choice at all. Plus, it’s a lot more ethical this way.