In light of penguin - what are your thoughts on widget based link-building?

[A_Q]

Hi all,

I thought it would be interesting to see if people's perceptions of widget based link building have changed.

By that I mean - Do you think it's ok to give somebody a tool to use oon their website with a reference to the creator of that tool or will that count as 'manipulative or unnatural' link building?

I'll start the discussion off by saying...

I think this type of link building is ok and legitimate as you are merely referencing the creator of the tool whose widget you are using on your website. My only caveat would be to ensure that the anchor text is not manipulative but relevant.

Looking forward to hearing what you all think about this as I'm sure many people maybe put off by doing this.

[My-Favourite-Holiday-Cottages]

If you are going to do it, I would only do it with the link as your url or perhaps brand name. If it causes a massive exact match link profile you risk flagging as manipulaitive.

[Maximise]

I would agree 100%. I can't see it being a problem if you are using your brand, you should be able to get credit (and traffic) for your work.