Google’s John Mueller was asked if “unlinked brand mentions” matter in Google’s algorithm. It’s clear from John’s response that “brand mentions” may not be real in Google’s algorithm, but he also said that site visitors who encounter them may have value.
brand mention
There’s a long-standing idea in the SEO community that Google uses site mentions as a form of linking.
A version of this idea is that if someone posts a URL like this, https://www.example.com But if you don’t make it a link, Google may treat it as a link. This is the idea of an unlinked URL, that is, a published URL can be used as a link to Google.
The idea of unlinked URLs then evolved into the idea that if one site mentions another site’s brand name, Google will also consider it a link. This is the idea of ”brand mentions”.
But it wasn’t until around 2012 that Google announced a project called Ranked search results.
The patent is several pages long and buried deep within it mentions that “implicit links” are used as a type of link, as opposed to “quick links” which are described as traditional hyperlinks.
The phrase “implied link” appears only a few times in this paragraph.
Google’s John Mueller discusses unlinked brand mentions
The two main ranking factors discussed in patents
understand what the author has to say Implied link You have to scroll up the page to the section labeled “Background” where the author explains what all the patents are about.
These are the two most important factors discussed in the patent:
- The authors explain that they are using independent Link to a website as part of the ranking process. They called websites linked to “target resources”.
- The authors also say they rank search results by using search queries that include references to websites, which they again refer to as “target resources.”
The patent explains unequivocally that the second type of link is a search query using a brand name, which the SEO industry calls Branded Search Queries.
If the patent refers to “resource group,” which refers to a set of web pages.
A resource is a web page or website.
A set of resources is a set of web pages or websites.
again:
When the patent mentions “resource” It refers to a web page or website.
The patent states:
“A query can be classified as referencing a specific resource if it contains terms that the system recognizes as referring to a specific resource.
For example, a term referring to a resource may be all or part of a resource identifier, such as the resource’s URL.
For example, the term “example.com” may be a term identified as referring to the home page of the domain, eg, a resource whose URL is “http://www.example.com”.
Thus, a search query that includes the term “example.com” can be classified as referencing that home page.
As another example, if the system has data that users typically use the terms “example sf” and “esf” to refer to a resource with the URL “http://www.sf.example.com”, the query contains the term “example sf” ” or “esf”, such as the queries “example sf news” and “esf restaurant reviews”, can be counted as reference queries for groups containing resources with the URL “http://www”.sf.example.com. ” “
The above explanation defines what the authors call a “reference query”.
The reference query is what the SEO community refers to Branded Search Queries.
A branded search query is a search someone performs on Google using a keyword plus a brand name, website domain or even a URL, which is what the patent defines as a reference query.
What the algorithm described in the patent does to these “reference queries” (branded search queries) is to use them like links.
The algorithm generates so-called “modification factors,” which modify (reorder) search results based on this additional data.
The additional data is:
1. Recalculate inbound links using only “standalone” links (links not related to the site being ranked).
2. Reference queries (branded search queries) are used as a type of link.
Here’s what’s in the patent:
“The system generates a modification factor for the set of resources based on the number of independent links and reference queries…”
What the patent does is filter out some hyperlinks so that only stand-alone links are used, and use branded search queries as another type of link, which can be defined as an implied link.
How the idea for a brand mention was born
Some in the SEO community take this out of context to build their “brand mentions” philosophy.
The paragraph begins by discussing the use of independent links to rank search results, as described in the patent background section.
“The system determines the independent link count for the group (step 302).
A link to a group of resources is an incoming link to a resource in the group, that is, a link that targets a resource in the group. “
The above statement is exactly what the entire patent talks about, independently linked.
The next section is about the “Implicit Links” section that has baffled the search industry over the past decade.
To make it easier to understand what is written, there are two things to note:
- The “source resource” is the source of the link, i.e. the page from which it is linked.
- “Targeted resources” are content to link to (and rank for).
The patent says this:
“The set of links may include explicit links, implicit links, or both.
A quick link, such as a hyperlink, is a link contained in a source resource that a user can follow to navigate to a target resource.
An implicit link is a reference to a target resource, such as a reference to a target resource, that is included in the source resource, but is not an explicit link to the target resource.
Therefore, a resource in a group can be the target of an implicit link to which a user cannot navigate by following an implicit link. “
The key to the first mention of the term “implicit linking” is implicit linking.
This is my focus again:
“The implied link is refer to to the target resource…”
Obviously, using “refer to” is the second part of what the patent talks about, Reference query.
Reference queries (aka branded search queries) are discussed throughout the patent.
In retrospect, it would have been wrong for some in the SEO industry to build a whole theory of brand mentions from a single paragraph removed from the context of an entire patent.
It’s clear that “implied links” have nothing to do with brand mentions.
But that’s background information on how popular “brand mentions” are.
John Mueller on Unlinked Brand Mentions and the Google Algorithm
Questions about unlinked brand mentions
There is a lot of background information to unravel about the brand mentions. So thanks for sticking with this, knowing it helps to understand the question and John Mueller’s answer.
Here is the question being asked:
“In some articles, I’ve seen people talking about unrelated brand mentions.
I would like to know your opinion in this situation.
Do you think it matters for algorithmic, unlinked brand mentions too? “
Are brand mentions important to Google’s algorithm?
“brand mention“John Mueller seems unclear.
So Mueller asked a follow-up question:
“What do you mean,” the brand mentions?
The person who asked the question elaborated on what he meant:
“It’s like another site and article talking about my site branding, but it’s not linking to me.”
John Mueller replied:
“I have no idea.
I think it’s a little tricky because we don’t really know what the context is there.
I mean, I don’t think it’s a bad thing, just for the user.
Because if they can find your site through mentions, that’s always a good thing.
But I don’t think there are some… I don’t know… SEO factors trying to figure out where someone mentions your site name. “
Brand Mentions Are Not an SEO Factor
John Mueller confirms that brand mentions are not an SEO factor.
Given that the “brand mentions” idea is based on a patent paragraph taken out of context, I hope the SEO community will establish the idea that “brand mentions” are a factor in SEO.
Mueller did say that brand mentions help users understand a site. I agree it’s a great way to think of brand mentions as a way to promote your website.
But brand mentions are not an SEO factor.
Just because it’s in a patent doesn’t mean it’s in use
One final note on patents that mention “reference queries”.
It’s important to understand that something doesn’t necessarily get used by Google just because it appears in a patent or research paper.
Google may or may not use it. Another consideration is that this is an older patent and Google’s search algorithm is constantly changing.
Citation
Watch Google’s John Mueller answer on brand mentions
Watch at 12:01 minutes:
