Did the new cart generate product pages that were differently optimized than the old cart?  (if cart-generated product pages were used)

Allows high ranking sites to show users who the provider is, potentially creating a new client, and a followed incoming link on anchor text you can choose.

My answer on this has nothing to do with SEO.

It has to do with where I believe the role of a service provider is supposed to begin and end.

I personally think that SEOs linking back to their own sites from a client site is low form.  The SEO is supposed to be helping the client not siphoning his power.   You could accomplish that visibility by simply having your name on the site in unlinked text.  Adding a link is unnecessary and greedy.

When I see those links on other sites, I do find it to be useful information.  I know who I would not hire.

Honestly, if an SEO or designer or hosting provider wanted to put a link on my site I would tell him "no" nicely.  If they  argued or pressed for it my consideration of his company would be concluded.  The link is not necessary for attribution.

If an SEO or hosting company wanted to have their name at the bottom of my site without the link I would tell them how much it would cost to advertise there.  The value of that advertising would probably exceed the value of the service that they provided.

If you go to a big brand site such as CNN, WSJ, Today, ESPN, you don't see links to SEOs, hosting or designers.  They are not being billboards for their service providers.

My displeasure on this is extremely strong against SEOs  and hosting providers.   For designers I can understand why they ask.  For a designer, if I am exceedingly pleased with what they have done I might list them on the "about us" page, where I mention a few people who have contributed to the content of the site.  Why the designer?  Because they improved what people see and that includes matching the design to my content or complimenting it.

I have different views when it comes to photographs, graphics, videos.  I always name the creator of those content assets and often link to their website in the caption.   Why?  Because they are a content source and my visitors might want to see more of their work.  It is similar to a reference link on a Wikipedia article.  Those links are useful to the visitors.   Even if I paid them a license fee, I  mention them and usually link to them (the only exception is with a thumbnail, but that thumbnail always links to an article where their photo is prominent and with attribution and usually a link).   I give them attribution because I want to help them.  They usually have sites that are less visible than mine.  And I want them to feel that the got back more than they gave.

My site is not about SEO or about hosting or design.  So a link to those sites is not useful to my visitor, so it really should not be there.

Awesome information, Matt.

Thank you.

I would like to give that to you but it is on a site that I don't share in forums.  Sorry.

I assigned rel=canonical to my PDFs using htaccess.

Then, if anyone links to the PDFs the linkvalue gets passed to the webpage.

Would you rather attack the US Navy with a battle ship or ten potato guns?