Odd place for links - inside WebsiteOptimization's website

[Conor Treacy]

I think I'm in the right category - but if not, please move me

I was doing some speed tests today and using all the various ones, including one that I've used for several years (although no longer the best).

When I looked on their Services Page however, I see they now offer Website Optimization Services, but I was surprised to see them using their page's influence to possibly boost their clients? Check it out here: Web Site Optimization Services - speed optimization and internet marketing services for improved credibility, traffic, and sales

From there, you'll see links for "Dental" under the sections near the top of the page. This I guess leads to their Market Place, and from there links out to client sites.

I couldn't find any other links to their Market Place to see if maybe this was a directory listing of their own.

Is it just me, or does it appear a little shady?

 

[Eric Rohrback]

I don't know whether this is necessarily shady if they're using case studies based on those clients. It's also not like they're using exact match anchor text; they're using the URL as the link anchor. I really don't see anything wrong with doing this from a link quality perspective.

Is it kind of dumb from a client retention point of view? Sure, I could agree to that. This gives anyone a road-map to look at a sample size of the company's book, analyze each site and compare. From there you could get a pretty good understanding what the company does for each client, and have enough evidence to poke holes in their strategy to support a better one you create

What's the difference between a SEO company doing this and a SaaS company using client logos on their homepage to showcase who's using their product? Seems like a pretty similar scenario to try and build trust and show they work with solid clients.

 

[JoyHawkins]

I think posting case studies of clients is a great way to get them a link and also show off your work. I think the links are valid but obviously a "marketing" link isn't as good as one coming from a business in that city or someone else related to dental.

 

[James Watt]

The graphic design and color scheme on the site is pretty atrocious, but I don't think there's a problem with the link-outs, since someone might actually want to follow those links. I agree though, that if you're going to make your client list public you'd better be on your client-retention A game. I doubt those links are hugely valuable anyway, as Joy pointed out.