SEO Tip #28: Does anchor text carry through 301 redirects?
Matt Cutts: Typically anchor text does flow through 301 redirects, but we don’t promise that that will always happen. So the question is does it carry through all? Not necessarily. We reserve the right to score not only in links and how we determine the weights and the trusts for links and also the trust we have for redirects.
I can tell you that if your sole method of link building is trying to get 301 redirects that’s going to be pretty conspicuous, because we log all the redirects that we see just like we log all the links that we see. So if all your incoming anchor texts is through 301 redirects that’s going to appear pretty strange, especially because whenever we go looking through our tools that would be a pretty abnormal thing to do.
So my advice is make a great site that attracts links naturally because it’s a fantastic resource and don’t worry about whether or not you can try to get PageRank or anchor text in some way that search engines may not be able to catch, or that other people might not be able to follow.
If you get that organic, long term sort of links, the links that are given freely because you have a great resource, those are the links that typically last the best and have the most impact.
About the Author
Andy Johnson has been on the Internet since the its dawn(ie his first computer program was recorded on cassette tape) and his first hard drive cost about as much his current MacBook. His first byline was in 1993 for a local newspaper rag he eventually helmed, and his last “real job” was at a computer start up which ended when it ended. Throughout it all he’s freelanced and blogged. Now he is mesmerized by Search Engine Optimization forever trying to “rise to the top” for the right reasons. He’s been married to his wife Julia for as long as he can remember and has two lovely, wonderful children. He looks forward to sharing the latest in the technical best for all the online entrepreneurs.