Search Engines are constantly trying to detect “Paid Links”, or Links which are trying to manipulate the Search Engine’s Link Flow® algorithms. SEO Engine™ has a built-in “Purchased Link” Detector™, which can alert the customer to whenever a particular Link is considered to be not given on an editorial basis. The SEO Engine™, like other Search Engines, weights the Link far less than if it were editorially given (not paid).
Non-Editorial Links are Links which are not given on an editorial basis. An "editorial basis" means that it was mentioned in the context of writing about a particular subject matter that was of importance to the Webpage being linked to. Non-Editorial Links do not "flow" the entire amount of Link Flow® that an Editorial Link would. In addition, too many Non-Editorial External Outgoing Links will often trigger an overall penalty on the Website level, which can cause the rest of the External Outgoing Links in that Website to "flow" very little of the Link Flow® it potentially could. Bad Neighborhood Alerts™ can often be a symptom of this problem.
Search engines designate a link as being paid or artificial if it is not editorially given (contained within the text or content of the webpage). This includes images and links that are side by side or stacked. Eliminate this penalty by placing links within your text (maintaining at least three unlinked words on either side of the link) or add a "nofollow" tag to the link. Note: "nofollow" tags will eliminate this type of penalty, but will cause the Link to not pass any Link Flow® at all, and because this Link Flow® will not be diverted to other Links, it will create a "Dangling Link". Therefore, it is recommended to make these Links editorial, and only if it is an External Outgoing Link should you think about placing a "nofollow" tag on that Link.
You may not be paying for a Link that was provided naturally, however in an effort to expose "paid linking", Search Engines do penalize Incoming Links that are not editorially given. You may be able to contact the provider of these Links and request they place your Link within the content of their Webpage with at least a few unlinked words on either side of your Link. This will eliminate the penalty for them and for your Webpage at the same time.
