We 3x'd the link pace AND fixed anchors. Only one of those mattered.

We 3x'd the link pace AND fixed anchors. Only one of those mattered.

Client stalled. We tested: kept the slow pace but cut exact-match anchors from 40% to 8%. Rankings recovered.

Then we TRIPLED velocity with the new clean anchor ratio. Rankings kept climbing — no dip.

The original "velocity penalty" was an over-optimized anchor penalty wearing a costume.

Everyone audits pace. Almost nobody audits the thing that actually triggers algorithmic suspicion: your anchor distribution.

When did you last check your anchors instead of your calendar? 👇