Dofollow vs Nofollow Links: What Guest Posters Should Know
'Dofollow' is industry shorthand for a normal link without a nofollow-style rel attribute. Publishers can also mark links with rel="nofollow" or rel="sponsored". Google documents sponsored as an appropriate value for advertisements or paid placements.
Normal links
A standard HTML link does not need a special 'dofollow' attribute.
Nofollow
rel="nofollow" tells search engines that the publisher does not want to associate the link in the usual way.
Sponsored
rel="sponsored" is designed to identify links created as part of advertisements, sponsorships, or other compensation agreements.
Why it matters
Paid guest posts sit in a policy-sensitive area. Understand the publisher's link treatment and Google's current guidance instead of assuming every purchased placement should pass ranking signals.
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