Removing poor domain authority backlinks worth it?

[ColeLusby]

Hey Moz,

I am working with a client on more advanced SEO tactics. This client has a reputable domain authority of 67 and 50,000+ backlinks.

We're wanting to continue SEO efforts and stay on top of any bad backlinks that may arise.

Would it be worth asking websites (below 20 domain authority) to remove our links? Then, use the disavow tool if they do not respond.

Is this a common SEO practice for continued advanced efforts? Also, what would your domain authority benchmark be? I used 20 just as an example.

Thanks so much for your help.

Cole

[Travis_Bailey]

Setting a DA cut-off from the outset is a bit too arbitrary. What if it's a link from a site with low DA and a low PA now, but later the site becomes the next New York Times? You don't want to disavow the next New York Times, but that's what an arbitrary number would have you do.

Further, DA and PA can be gamed to a certain extent. I'm sure Rap Genius has a pretty solid DA, but they were penalized all the same. So it would appear that using DA as a cut-off would be less than ideal.

There's no real easy way to do a disavow. You have to think about characteristics, context and intent. If you have links that pass juice, but were obviously paid - that may be a candidate. If there's a vast preponderance of links from seemingly low quality directories with exact match anchor text - those would be candidates for closer scrutiny as well. Dead giveaways are usually 'sponsored' links that pass juice.

Low quality directories usually let everyone in. You will know them by their viagra and casino anchor text. They're usually a pretty safe disavow candidate.

Does the site have a lot of links from spam blog comments from sites that are obviously unrelated? Has there been some guest blogging on free for all blogs? Those links would require some review as well.

Definitely prioritize your exact match anchor text links for review.

I would suggest you start with gathering link data from numerous sources:

• Google Webmaster Tools
• Bing Webmaster Tools
• Ahrefs
• Majestic SEO
• Etc.

Then filter the duplicates via spreadsheet voodoo. After that, drop it into a service like Link Detox. But be careful, it still throws false positives and false negatives. So again, there's no real way of getting out of a manual review. But Link Detox will speed up the process.

Are there plenty of disavow services out there? Sure, but I've never used them. I'm far too paranoid. A disavow is a delicate and lengthy process.

Are there some great disavow pros/individuals out there? Definitely. I would be far more likely to trust them. In fact, a couple will likely chime in here. Though they may be a little bit outside the budget. I don't know.

One final, important, point: A disavow is not a panacea. They take as long as they take. Though it is good that you appear to be proactive. You never know when the next Penguin filter will land. The site may be right with The Googles now, but it might not be later.

[ColeLusby]

Excellent, quality response. Thanks so much.

I would love to hear from any disavow experts, maybe even costs of them (of course, I don't want to break any Moz rules that may be applicable).

Cole

[Travis_Bailey]

Happy to be contrary. Another good thing about Link Detox is that the service has been trained - mostly for the good - by users manually reviewing the quality of their links. If easylinkseodirectory4u.com has been flagged enough, it's more likely to get caught by the machine.

Once you have uploaded your list and reviewed the links, you will get a pretty accurate risk rating. It scales from shades of low to high. I don't think Link Detox has ever given me a false Toxic rating on individual links either.

I'm not a client scalper, so if you would like to PM the domain name, I can take a look.

[DanielFreedman]

Big picture: What a good "problem" to have!

Without taking a close look at your specific URL...

...my first instinct is that the answer to your question is almost certainly a giant...

**No.

DO THE HARD THING: NOTHING!!!!** There is a real danger of overthinking this stuff and neglecting the fundamentals.

I faced the same issue with a DA72 site for a leading SME In his field who had 450,000+ backlinks....some from major media outlets and universities, but most from "nobodies" in the field. This is good!

What you want in a classic Inverted U-shaped curve in terms of DA.

• 10 % crappy links

• 80 % middling links

• 10% super high quality links

You mess with this at your peril!!!! Beware. "Bad" links are not necessarily bad in the grand scheme of universe. Every credible and authoritative site should have some. They are part of a natural link profile.

Getting rid of the <20 DA authority links could hurt...badly.

Focusing excessively on tweaking or sculpting the middling 80% of your links is probably a mistake. You could shoot yourself in the foot.

Less is more.

It might be better to just keep doing what you're doing.

This is hard...and requires great discipline!

[Travis_Bailey]

Let's say someone reads this and decides to get their first 10% in the crappy category. That would not be good for them. Further, there aren't any specific percentages that I'm aware of.

Yes, The Googles does have to pick the best of the worst. I'm not in doubt of that.

Yes, sometimes you inherit a mess but it seems to work. Manual reviews happen.

[DanielFreedman]

That would be bad.

You should follow the rough 10-80-10 rule, whether you are building 10 links or 10,000 links. And you should always do it slowly.

I agree there are no specific percentages. You have to look at the big picture over a long period of time.

[Travis_Bailey]

I updated my response while you were writing yours.

I don't doubt your insight. But The Googles doesn't sleep.

When you're doing a local campaign, with strictly above the board links, you should move as fast as possible.

[ColeLusby]

Awesome responses guys. Anyone else have any other insight?