OK really now. I got this email from Maulana T of Authority Link Network, a competitor to BMR and a place where I’d syndicate some links (and yes I mentioned them in CJ Tactics but now the jury’s out again)…the email is as follows:
Hi,
Due to the recent google de-indexing problem,
we have made some changes in ALN 2.0 to help
lowering the current de-indexing rate, however
it was not enough.We have come to another solution, which is to
close the new member registration and to close
down all ALN user’s accounts which have been
registered in the last 3 months.We will refund every single transaction for the
users which got affected by this change, here’s
how to get your refund:- submit a ticket here: http://www.impowerhouse.com/
support/ - use the subject: [ALN REFUND]
- send us your paypal email address, your ALN username
and your current active ALN payment plan- send us your ALN last charge date
- we will send this pro-rated refund as a paypal “mass payment”
- it will take 7 to 14 days to process these refunds,
so we ask for your patience and understanding as we work
through this processNote: we won’t process any refunds if you didn’t follow
the instruction above.Please also note that all service provider MUST NOT
mention ALN in their sales page, you must change it
to your own “private blog network” or something
like that.Failing to do so will result in immediate suspension
of your ALN account.We regret that things turned out this way but please
understand that we made these changes for the better
of the network.Let us know if you have some question regarding this
new change by submitting a ticket to our help desk.Thanks for being part of the ALN network.
Best regards,
Maulana T
So what’s the big news? Well, I already mentioned how BMR was closing down, now ALN seems to be feeling the pinch. The verdict is pretty simple from my perspective: you can stop using BMR clones for now.
For good, maybe – but for now, definitely. That goes for SEO Cobra, Free Blog Network, yadda yadda yakkety schmack.
If this news is distressing to you, I have a bit of advice:
Start building assets and not simply spammy websites that don’t earn any links…and for the love of Pete: try actually building a presence online already.
Using SEO as just a way to game Google doesn’t end well, especially if you’re starting off on the wrong foot.
What’s the wrong foot?
Mistaking chum for content for one thing…and hoisting up your rankings by relying on dime-a-dozen links…
Start from scratch with a new paradigm called quality, from marketing to content.
Build assets.
Learn what people (vs. an algorithm) want to find at your site(s) and all of a sudden this “problem” isn’t so big and hefty. You won’t find me crying a river over Google deindexing BMR or any other resource for links.
Frankly, this shouldn’t be a big deal if you’re starting off right to begin with.
I used BMR but didn’t depend on them…they’re just one resource for links…
What Trumps a Google Hissy Fit?
Oh, I dunno – maybe you’ve heard me say it before – how about a quality website where you connect with your market?
How about writing about stuff you really care about?
Stuff that makes a difference?
And yes, you can make a themed product review site outshine competitors in a niche.
Somehow people think that “money sites” are out: but it’s really quality sites that stick and draw attention. Fresh content, a unique perspective, an actual presence and voice in a niche…
Actual expertise in a field vs. the fool’s gold you were told was good enough…
Faking it until you make it, hoping your readers are stupid but willing to pay and buy from you – that’s not a business model. It’s a joke.
Simple stuff like that.
Stop Building Empires of Sand Castles
What’s an empire of sand castles got to do with anything? Besides wanting to exercise some poetic prose, I wanted the mental image to stick.
Imagine being an emperor over the transient empire of sand castles. Beautifully built sand castles never had their equal…
But dude. They’re like…sand and stuff. One wave will topple them, erase your hard work and send you reeling.
Then you come out complaining the ocean was unfair, that the beach was yours to command and that you have sand in places where friction isn’t welcome.
Really now…?
I guess I could rally a group of you to say, “Google isn’t fair to do this to us – those selfish pig dogs!” (I forget the German for pig-dog, but I hear it’s a doozy in Germany.)
Anyway: who cares already?
Who cares if BMR or SEO Cobra or Authority Link Network never work again? (I have no idea if SEO Cobra works or not, it was too much money for me to find out.)
The point is: if you’re building your empire out of sand, don’t complain about the waves knocking them over. It happens, what did you expect?
So What Now?
Well, build something worthwhile. Stop buying WSO’s and courses that promise you riches with “curated content” or autoblogging already.
If it’s simply a matter of “drip fed blogs” that feed you automatically generated content, let me tell you what you need to know:
This business is not a good fit for you.
If you didn’t come here to work and build something worthwhile, and if your entire network relies on spammed links that Google isn’t going to respect for the long-haul: then you’re in for a rude surprise.
But it’s not all doom and gloom.
For example, I sold $20,000 worth of an ebook recently. Tell you more about that later. SEO had nothing to do with it, though…
Let’s say you’re one of the many who don’t want to write a book and build a brand – what then?
Will niche sites still work?
Yes, they will still work – but you’d better make sure they’re quality sites to begin with.
Now that that’s off my chest, I wanted to share with you what I’m doing now.
Taking my own advice.
Not building empires out of sand castles. What’s that look like? Well, it’s sent me to my thinking chair on which niches I want to tackle and be a part of: what do I want to write about?
What do I enjoy talking about?
What can I see myself actually having an expert opinion in where I can make a living?
By the way: I don’t make a living in the SEO or internet marketing and “how to make money online” niches. Honestly.
I probably make more than anyone on my street in those niches – but that ain’t saying much.
So for me, I’m thinking which niches to tackle…and I might just end up doing a few more product review sites on things I own and enjoy.
Nothing really fancy, but I’m aiming at genuine and transparent sites with actual content I’d show my wife and kids and mom and guinea pigs.
Maybe even my brothers, but we’ll see. :)
So that’s what’s on my mind – but still in the thinking phase.
And since I’m almost done painting my home’s interior (taking my sweet time and playing lots of XBox here – I overdosed on a chill pill), I’ll keep you posted on what changes I make if they’re worth even mentioning.
But really, at this point, I’m not changing anything because some engineer at Google had bad gas and decided to do their job at fighting link spam.
I really don’t have anything to worry about – so much may not change to be honest. It’s more a matter of wanting to do something I enjoy, rather than building another successful site that I don’t want to keep working on, despite it’s profitability.
For me, it’s a question of what I want to build, what I want to do – and where I’d like to spend my time…
…but heck: having sites where I can set and forget and keep collecting the paycheck?
Yeah. That hasn’t gotten old yet…
Don’t Let Google’s Bad Gas Scare You
Google can’t and won’t keep you down if you’re actually building something worthwhile. Don’t just rely on SEO for traffic, mind you – but by all means, ask yourself if what you’re building is going to last.
Does it deserve to stand the test of time?
That’s a question only you can answer. If you build sites that matter and SEO them properly, Google doesn’t seem like such a bully and bad guy.
(Especially if you get tons of traffic from places other than search. Just sayin’.)
Chin up, peeps. Google doesn’t own the internet.
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Yes… exactly my thoughts from this last time around. Build assets.
P.S. linked is the (Lacto) Paleo Nutella :)
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James Hussey recently posted..Blog Networks Drop Like Flies and Building Empires of Sand Castles
I do understand the same situation, I check all the ALN links because they are deindexed all the time. I got ALN but the worth of it is getting lost.
Sad to hear. I have some experimentation to do with linking strategies, until I have something with results to report I’ll keep my recommendations to myself.
Hard to say what’s going to work vs. what doesn’t, and the way they’re changing at Google, it’s not worth the risk of doling out bad advice.
James Hussey recently posted..The Closing of BuildMyRank and Link-Building News
Don’t Let Google’s Bad Gas Scare You
That right there is gold, people. Don’t poo-poo that advice.
:)
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Smells like a winner to me.
James Hussey recently posted..The Best Backlink Method
At the beginning I wrote my own content and ‘try’ to experiment with auto stuff. Feel good now when I see my old site still stand up and auto things goes down. Still fighting for CJ now :-)
“Don’t Let Google’s Bad Gas Scare You”. Too funny james! I agree though. If you view your websites as investment property or a 401K then you might do activities that promote growth and longevity. That’s how I view mine.
Good point – treat an asset like you want more profit. Mostly people treat their websites (from what I read in various “how to” guides) like spaghetti noodles flung against the wall, hoping some will stick and produce…crossing fingers…
That’s not quite a business.
James Hussey recently posted..Blog Networks Drop Like Flies and Building Empires of Sand Castles
Great advice right there, specially now that Google is becoming more aggressive and closing down sites. I agree that quality content and building relationships with other bloggers as well as contributing to the community are still the best ways to gain traffic. Interacting and genuine interest in your followers also wouldn’t hurt.
- Cristina
Having a network isn’t what people want to hear, but it’s still an incredibly good way to make traffic appear out of nowhere so to speak.
James Hussey recently posted..Blog Networks Drop Like Flies and Building Empires of Sand Castles
Hey James, great advice. I spent 2.5 years doing things the way you suggest and got a good amount of backlinks form it. Then recently I discovered BMR and wrote about 30 articles. I saw amazing results. And lucky for me that because I only had 30 out of my 4000 backlinks on their blog network I wasn’t really slapped. I just went back to where I was before BMR which is a few spots back.
So, I’m going back to building links naturally.
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It’s frustrating to see the work going down the drain…but I’ve had some friends telling me their BMR posts published elsewhere seemed to do the trick.
I didn’t bother getting my BMR posts, but it’s a thought.
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LOL, harsh words but very true. For those who built ‘an empire of sandcastles’ merely to game the algorithms, there comes a time when it will come crumbling down. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depends on your perspective), SE’s are pushing hard to reward good content at the expense of those who have been using black-hat methods. Great post.
Providing quality output is the only consistent metric in succeeding in an online endeavor. And since the internet is ever changing and very dynamic the ability to adapt to changes will determine if you will survive or otherwise.
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It’s irresponsible to lump SEO Cobra in with the rest of the group since you admit you don’t know anything about it. Just like you are pushing for high quality sites, high quality networks will have their place in this industry if they are made up of high quality sites. If you are really going to move into the “review” area maybe avoid trashing products that by your own admission you can’t afford but don’t use.
There’s nothing irresponsible about a qualified opinion on the matter of private blog networks: I wouldn’t recommend SEO Cobra. I think BMR and Authority Link Network (and all the others) are sending a pretty clear message that blog networks are a stupid idea at the moment.
As to “not affording” SEO Cobra: not what I said, either. I can afford SEO Cobra, but why pay a silly amount of money when I can just buy my own domains at that price? Makes much more sense to invest in content or in creating my own network than investing in yet another blog network – this one overpriced to boot.
It’s not a qualified opinion in that you attack “BMR clones” and later go on to say state “I have no idea if SEO Cobra works or not” well for the record it is not a BMR clone so you might as well as have lumped “guest posting” as not working either. If you are going to call something a “clone” you should at least know what “IT” is… I think that’s only fair.
Paul -
I’m being honest when I say that I haven’t tried SEO Cobra, and at the same time advise against it. I don’t need to waste my readers’ time or money on yet another private blog network when clearly they’re in Google’s sites to take down.
Living in denial of that fact is going to cost a lot of money for anyone foolish enough to keep going with it – the exception being either semi-private networks with NO footprint, or those networks that are so small (read: privately owned and not rented out) that they don’t seem to register at Google.
I have a close friend named Lis Sowerbutts who’s all about SEO Cobra. Her reviews tell it all like it is – have you read them?
http://lissowerbutts.com
I bring her up because she’s incredibly informed on SEO Cobra, she still supports them last I checked, and I have no questions left on what SEO Cobra is all about. I don’t need to waste my time or money in finding out, either – Google’s clearly sending a message and covering our ears won’t make it go away.
There’s nothing whatsoever unique about SEO Cobra other than it’s not BMR – the fact remains that Google is clearly attacking any private networks worth its salt, period – unless you want to deny that fact this is a meaningless conversation.
Granted, they claim they’re built better than BMR, yadda yadda (and there are differences no doubt but it’s all the same when you boil it down: a blog network renting links: nothing new under the sun) – but it’s only a matter of time before it goes the way of the Dodo – and that’s my opinion.
Your defensiveness suggests you’re either getting affiliate commissions from SEO Cobra or you’re somehow tied to them, either way you’re simply kidding yourself if you think it’s not going to get infiltrated like the rest.
Clock’s ticking and money’s being wasted if you’re subscribed to it, that’s (again) my opinion.
If you want to spend money on anything like it, I’d strongly suggest building your own private network and keeping it private.
Otherwise I’d recommend a public/semi-private network like ArticleRanks or UAW, but even then it’s a risk.
SEO Cobra and anything like them are simply no longer worth it to me.
Living in denial of the facts is costing you, not me, money.
James Hussey recently posted..Blog Networks Drop Like Flies and Building Empires of Sand Castles
The one think that baffles me the most is, that this comes as a surprise for many.
Seriously how the f… can it be a surprise, you tried to pull a fast one on Google and got burned.
However, I am not one of those affected in the bad sense, one of my closest competitors on one of my sites were hit hard. Which meant that my website now gets 3 times as many visitors per day, and this number is increasing every day.!
Regarding you answer to Susan about BMR posts being republished elsewhere, isn’t that making a somewhat big neon sign saying look at me.?
Even though that the posts has been de-indexed, I would think that Google is watching new indexed posts/pages for these.
And btw pig dog in German is “Schweinehund” and if you want to take it up a notch then it’s “verdammte schweinehund”
Thanks for the German lesson! And you’re right, it shouldn’t be a surprise: it’s a calculated risk and that’s that: sometimes things like this happen coloring outside the lines.
I’m still ranking fine for my terms, but I have lost some rankings – things have been in a flux up and down this past month, dust hasn’t settled – but that happens time to time (actually yearly around this time for me). So not sure what to make of it all yet.
“Chin up, peeps. Google doesn’t own the internet.” <- I agree. Few years before, maybe Google almost own the internet, but now, social media and other internet marketing strategies are joining the battlefield. Thanks for sharing your experience, opinions and suggestions.
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