Link review
The Ledger Desk, 'How to Close Your Books in 5 Days'. Payment: "the author's company paid $300 for publication." Google asks that paid placements be qualified: Google says to mark "advertisements or paid placements" with rel="sponsored". The input does not name the author's company, so the rel column for closewise.example links is conditional on Closewise being the payer (question 1).
| Link | Anchor | URL | Paid | rel | Flag |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| K1 | best accounting software for small business | https://closewise.example/pricing | Yes, if Closewise is the payer | sponsored, if Closewise is the payer | Keyword rich commercial anchor to a pricing page |
| K2 | month-end checklist | https://closewise.example/blog/checklist | Yes, if Closewise is the payer | sponsored, if Closewise is the payer | Descriptive anchor, none |
| K3 | IRS guidance | https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed | No (not the payer's site) | none needed | Descriptive anchor to a government page, none |
| K4 | try Closewise free | https://closewise.example/signup?ref=ledgerdesk | Yes, if Closewise is the payer | sponsored, if Closewise is the payer | Call to action to a signup page with a ref parameter |
K1 is a link spam risk: Google lists "optimized anchor text in articles, guest posts" as an example of link spam. Suggested edit: a descriptive anchor such as 'Closewise pricing', or remove the link.
Claims to source
| Claim | Text | Problem | Edit |
|---|---|---|---|
| C1 | '72% of small businesses close their books late.' | No source link | Ask the author for the source URL |
'The IRS requires records to be kept.' links to K3, an irs.gov page, so it is not flagged.
Guideline check
| Rule | Rule text | Status | Evidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| G1 | 1,200 to 2,000 words | Met | Author's count is 1,450 words ('1,450 words (author's count)'); not recounted, only a summary was pasted |
| G2 | At most 2 links to the author's own site | Cannot tell | 3 links go to closewise.example (K1, K2, K4), but the input does not say Closewise is the author's site. If it is, 3 is over the limit of 2 |
| G3 | Every statistic links to its source | Not met | '72% of small businesses close their books late.' has no link |
| G4 | No affiliate links | Cannot tell | K4 carries ?ref=ledgerdesk; the input does not say whether that is an affiliate code |
Counts
Counted by script from the tables above.
| Count | Value | Items |
|---|---|---|
| Links reviewed | 4 | K1, K2, K3, K4 |
| Links to closewise.example | 3 | K1, K2, K4 |
| Anchor flags | 1 | K1 |
| Claims flagged | 1 | C1 |
| Rules not met | 1 | G3 |
| Rules cannot tell | 2 | G2, G4 |
| Payment stated | $300 | your input |
Recommendation
Revise. Reasons, from the Counts table: 1 rule not met (G3, the unsourced 72% claim), 1 keyword rich anchor (K1), and paid placement that needs rel="sponsored" on the payer's links. G2 and G4 depend on your answers below; if Closewise is the author's site, G2 is also not met and the rel="sponsored" column applies to all 3 closewise.example links.
Author email draft (held)
HELD: not sent; waits for your approval.
Subject: Edits for 'How to Close Your Books in 5 Days'
Hi [ADD: author name],
Thanks for the draft. Before we can publish it on The Ledger Desk, we need these edits:
- Add a source link for '72% of small businesses close their books late.' (our rule G3).
- Change the anchor 'best accounting software for small business' (K1) to a descriptive one, such as 'Closewise pricing', or remove the link.
- Because this is a paid placement, links to your site will carry rel="sponsored".
- [ADD: G2 link limit edit, if Closewise is your site: keep at most 2 links to it]
Thanks, [ADD: your name]
Questions for you
- Is Closewise (closewise.example) the author's company that paid the $300? This decides G2 and which links get rel="sponsored".
- Is ?ref=ledgerdesk on K4 an affiliate or referral code? This decides G4.
- Who is the author, by name, for the email?
Needs your decision
- Approve the author email before it is sent (HELD).
- Placeholders to fill: [ADD: author name], [ADD: your name], [ADD: G2 link limit edit].