Be Safe from ‘Unnatural Link Penalty’ by Avoiding These Link Building Techniques

February 10, 2026    tips   

Google has very clear instructions on what it considers unnatural links. They are, links that attempt to 'manipulate' page rank, links that are bought or sold (in cash or kind including offers of free products to get a review and a link), 'excessive' link exchanges or creating partner pages solely to cross link.

Google also warns against 'large scale' guest post or article marketing anchor texts (keyword rich ones) and using automated methods to create links. While it's a pretty exhaustive list, the best approach is to take the White Hat route instead.

"Unnatural" refers to links that are either created by you, or ones that are irrelevant to your niche. A small percentage is perfectly alright, but too much of that would be unnatural.

Here's the lowdown on what to avoid if you wish to never hear the words 'unnatural link penalty' in your lifetime:

1. Buying Links

Never pay for links. Forget about those .edu and .org site/blog lists you used to receive. Think relevance, think audience. The only instance where you could be paying for links ought to be similar to the PPC scenario: where people click your link with genuine interest in your content. Mindlessly buying links by the dozen must be avoided completely.

2. Having Excessive Profile Links

This includes author bios in guest posts, forum signatures, social media, and social bookmarking links created through automated software. While you can have these links, they must be in moderation.

• Keep anchor text natural (not too keyword-optimized).
• Avoid having too many self-created links in your profile.
• Focus on major social platforms where you can actually engage with a real audience.

Real engagement leads to "natural backlinks" from followers who genuinely endorse your site.

3. Going Private (PBNs)

Private blog networks (PBNs) — where multiple blogs are created with different hosting to form a network — used to work, but not any longer. Google identifies these 'apparently unrelated' sites and penalizes them heavily. Avoid any offer that promises rankings through any kind of "network".

4. Footer Links

Common with free WordPress themes or plugins, these links are often found in the page footer. This strategy is now outdated. If you are a web designer and want to leave a credit link on a client's site:

1. Use no-follow for links that are not in your niche.
2. Retain only a few links on sites closely related to your niche.
3. Always use variations in your anchor text.