Reciprocal linking penalty?

[BenFox]

Is it going to take longer to clean the site up than to start a new one?

If so, I'd bite the bullet and start a new one.

[Adam.Whittles]

Yes if I were in your position I would contact all the sites that you created reciprocal links with and have them remove your link from their sites. It is not enough to just remove their links from your site. Once you have done this you can then concentrate on gaining good quality links to replace the links you've had removed.

Finally, you can prepare you reconsideration request to Google. Check this link for tips from Google on how to prepare your request:

Tips on requesting reconsideration

Adam

[melusine]

Thanks, I'm thinking about it, but this site is almost 14 years old and has a number of  good links from libraries and universities...

I'm totally willing to try and contact all the sites I exchanged links with - but is that a dumb idea?

[Adam.Whittles]

I agree, starting from scratch would be a quicker and easier option. However, by doing this the authority and value that has been built up on the domain will be lost. Ultimately I think it would be better in the long run to clean up the current site.

[melusine]

Okay. Thank you for the advice!

[bronxpad]

You might want to consider doing both at the same time. Rehab your main site while you simultaneously build a new site. My thinking is hypothetical here but I believe it is worth a shot. What happens if you keep your main site and try to rehab but nothing ever fixes it because so much damage has been done? Or what happens if you dump that site to start a new one and it takes you years to get to where you once were, or possibly you could lose so much ground to others that you might never catch up. Now by doing a simultaneous site campaign you can give yourself 6 months to a year of hard work on both to see which one has the best results and then reassess your situation. Now this only works by not interlinking your sites. Google will think you are trying to game them instead of your real goal of having a clean link profile with a legit site. Once the test is done and you've determined which site is the strongest you can then 301 redirect one to the other. Just a thought.

[melusine]

Thank you for your ideas - the only thing that worries me is 301ing a penalized domain to a new site.

Is it possible that the penalty could transfer you think? I've heard both that it does and doesn't.

[bronxpad]

My thinking is that during this time you would have rehabbed the main site enough that it might not be penalized but also might not be as strong as your new site with a squeaky clean profile. So my thinking is that it wouldn't hurt. Now if you didn't rehab the main site and did a 301 then I do think it might hurt your new site. I hope this helps in your decision. Good luck and keep me posted on how it goes.

[melusine]

Oh good ideas, thank you so much!

[bronxpad]

No problem, Hope it turns out well for you.