Disavowing 1,400 spam links: zero ranking change in 90 days

Disavowing 1,400 spam links: zero ranking change in 90 days

Client inherited a toxic-looking profile from a prior agency, n=1,400 links disavowed, tracked 90 days on 50 keywords.

Result:
— Average position before disavow: 11.3
— After 90 days: 11.1
— No measurable lift, no drop

The links were low-DR directory and comment spam — exactly the type the search engine already discounts algorithmically. Disavowing them changed nothing because they were already weighted near zero.

We'd have gotten more from the 12 hours spent compiling the file by acquiring 2-3 real links instead.

Exception: sites with an actual manual action do need disavow. This client had none.

Don't disavow algorithmically-ignored spam — it's busywork unless you have a manual penalty in Search Console.