Are indentical incoming links penalized?

[djtaverner]

Hello,

I was going to write a script that provided a potential linker with the <a></a> code, so that I could ensure the anchor text was relevant to the particular subpage on my site.

But...

I have heard that google may penalize if it finds multiple pages pointing to me that have the same link text.

True?

Cheers

Dave

[pageoneresults]

I have heard that google may penalize if it finds multiple pages pointing to me that have the same link text. True?

I believe there have been some rumblings around here to that effect (web designers) although I've not seen any issues in the industries I watch.

I usually suggest that the link text be specific to the page that is being targeted. I think it is a good idea to get a well rounded list of inbound links that kind of spread the wealth if you know what I mean.

I personally wouldn't want the same inbound text links on all sites pointing to me. I'd rather have some diversity in that anchor text.

[rogerd]

Djtaverner, you could provide a several scripts or sample links to add some diversity. My experience is that under normal circumstances, no matter how hard you try to get people to link a certain way many will do something different.

Hence, you'll almost certainly end up with fairly natural linkage if your links are, indeed, natural. The risks (this is just my opinion) are greater if you use less natural techniques - link farms, friendly networks of sites, etc.

Trying to get independent webmasters to link to you the same way is on a par with herding cats. ;)