Fused Nation – UK SEO Blog

It bugs me.  I know that Toolbar PageRank doesn’t mean anything in the grand scheme of things.  I know this.  I know this.  But yet, it’s the first thing I look at when I visit a new site.  I still get a feeling relief and achievement when the quarterly Toolbar PR update takes place.  So despite my years of experience in SEO and logical thinking, why do I, like many, still obsess about Google PR?

Well, not really obsess…more just pay it more attention than it really warrants.

Clearly some people still put a great deal of weight in Google PR – although it still a Google ranking factor, it is pitched in many link request emails as more of a selling point.  “I’m a PR6 – your life will change when I link to you!”.

Maybe it’s just a stat thing.  A case of virtual dick length that easily differentiates one site from another, without having to delve too deeply into insignificant factors like quality…

Like the appeal of RPG games.  Grind the experience through dull, reptitive tasks (link building) and be rewarded with a higher level (PageRank).  And like RPG games, the reward and benefit is usually only part of the battle, requiring continuing comittment to win the war.

I still do like PR though – it adds an extra angle to using Google as a tool when researching a site.  It can be a signal to a potential ban.  Low homepage PR can show that a site needs some serious link building work (useful for quickly analysing client sites). PR0 on internal pages can be an indication of their age (ie, that they are new) or that there is an indexing issue.

I just don’t think this is the view that most SEO’s take when referring to PR.  Well, I say “SEO’s” – I refer to the masses just entering the industry who simply regurgitate what they read on forums – not the seasoned professionals who know to form their own opinions!  I just get the feeling that a lot of newbies think that PR is the pinnacle of SEO – the holy grail.  This leads to many opening questions, “How do I get high PR links?”, “How do I increase my PR?”…talk about barking up the wrong tree!  Obsessing about a juicy PR9 link for a 10 page site…sure…while you’re at it, could you ask the nice folks over at The Times to write a front page feature about my work from home envelope stuffing business too please?

But newbies I can appreciate – they don’t know any better and are just basing their actions on some ill-informed comments from forums, etc.

What really bites my ass are newbies posing as experts.  Like those link request emails who simply announce, “I have a homepage PR6″.  Oh sorry…wait one second…I just need to open fanfaire.wav…..

I do appreciate the lecture they go on to give about how links increase Google PR and this means good rankings!  Some even claim Google PR helps rankings on other search engines.  The funniest was a large hosting company emailing all their customers claiming that if I linked to them, then my rankings would improve!

PageRank – I love it and I hate it.  I love having it there, even if it’s just for my own obsessive need to have my success quantified in any way.  I hate it for what it’s done to the SEO industry, creating a whole subculture of self righteous newbies who think that because they managed to get their crappy site to PR5 that they are suddenly an SEO expert.

I’m gonna set up my autoresponder to point to this post – I get like 20-30 link requests a day and some of those folks really need an education.

MG

FusedNation is now a PR3.  I clearly suck.