You've spent the last few months optimizing your web site.
You did your homework and learned all about optimizing techniques for your web
page. Your relevant keywords are prominently placed in all the right places on
your pages. Yet your site still isn't ranking the way you want. What do you do?
It's time to improve
you link popularity!
Why bother with link building? Link popularity and link
quality are very important because every major search engine now considers them
as a part of their ranking algorithms. If you don't have links, you won't rank
well for competitive keywords.
If your page includes all the important on-the-page criteria
and scores well with Page Primer, it's time to focus on your links. Good
inbound links can move your page up the ranking ladder and act as new entry
points to your site. But how does your site get those coveted inbound links we
hear so much about?
First off, let's make sure we understand the basics. Link
popularity is the measure of inbound links to your web site. Link analysis
evaluates which sites are linking to you and the link text itself.
Fortunately, there are a lot of ways to improve your link
quality and popularity, which will give you a boost in the rankings. Here are
some guidelines to help you set up your own linking campaign:
1. Prepare your site
first
Before you start your link building campaign, take time to
get your site in shape. Make sure your site looks professional, has good
content and is easy to navigate. Validate your HTML code and check your links with
a tool like HTML Toolbox. If a potential linker goes to your site and finds
broken pages, they are not going to want to link to you.
In addition, directories have gone on record saying they may
exclude sites with broken links and page errors. Directories want only
professional looking sites in their databases, so do your homework on your site
before you start promoting it and your linking campaign will be more effective.
2. Budget time for
link building
Don't expect to grow your link popularity overnight. Budget
time every week to work on link building. If you force yourself to spend a
couple hours a week on link building, it will become part of your routine. Pick
one day a week and set aside time as your "link building time." If
you don't make it a priority, it won't get done.
Link building is an incremental activity. Over time these
one or two new links start adding up until they are hundreds or even thousands
of links.
3. Establish
realistic link goals
Don't expect to see instant results. Link building is
difficult, frustrating and time intensive. Convincing another web site to link
to you can be exasperating. If you get one good quality link a month you're
doing better than the majority of sites out there.
Patience and creativity are key to link building. Track your
progress so you know who you've asked already. It could be embarrassing to ask
a site for a link if they've already given you one.
If a company initially declines your link request, wait a
while and then ask again. Their company focus may change over time. A
"no" today may change into a "yes" 6 - 9 months later.
4. Develop internal
management support
If you're link building in-house, build support from your
company's internal management for your link building. This usually means
educating management about the benefits of link building.
Link popularity is unique to the search engine industry -
it's not taught in graduate schools (not yet, anyway). Sit down with your
management and explain the concept behind link building - don't assume they
understand it or have even heard of the term. In fact, most won't have a clue
what you're talking about.
Explain link building in terms they will understand and in
ways that will get their attention, such as describing the relationship of link
building and increased revenue. Talking about making more money usually gets
management's attention.
Why worry about management support? You will need it to
provide the time and money you need to get into search engines or directories.
5. Link popularity is
all about quality
Be selective about the sites from which you request links.
Search engines use sophisticated rules when judging the importance of a link,
and the popularity of the site linking to you is a key criteria. One link from
CNet is worth far more than a link from a personal web site.
And don't even think of using a link farm! Link farms are
sites that exist solely to link to other web sites. Link farms are a blatant
attempt to inflate your link popularity, and search engines take a dim view of
them. Google in particular has been known to ban sites found using a link farm.
Try to identify non-competitive sites in the same field as
your site. Links from sites that are related to your area carry more weight
than sites from Aunt Sue's favorite horse site. That doesn't mean you should
refuse a link from Aunt Sue, just be aware it won't help you much in link
quality terms. On the other hand, links from sites within your industry are
strong endorsements for your site.
6. Develop a
relationship with a site
Before you ask for the link, get to know the web site.
Establish yourself as a real human first. That way, when you ask for a link,
it's harder for them to say no.
Impersonal broadcast emails asking for links are spam. Sure,
it's easier, but it will only result in making another company mad at you. Spam
link requests do not work and waste everyone's time. Don't do it!
7. Provide the
linking code
Make it easy for other sites to link to you. Send the
prospective linker the exact HTML code you want in the link and suggest which
page you want the link from. This ensures the right words are used in the link
and reduces the burden in setting up the link. Everybody on the Internet is
pressed for time and if you don't make it "drop-in simple" by giving
them the exact HTML, you've made their job too hard. Make it easy and your
success rate will go up.
8. Get directory
listings
Jumpstart your link campaign by getting directory links
first. This is especially important if you have a new site or a site with no
inbound links. A shortage of inbound links puts your site at a severe
disadvantage because link analysis is an important part of every search engine's
ranking algorithm.
The way to overcome this disadvantage is to get a few
quality links. A good way to start is to get listed in as many directories as
you can. There are many directories out there, and the more you can get into
the better.
A few to target include:
-> Open Directory
-> Yahoo
-> LookSmart
-> Zeal.com
-> Joeant.com
-> Business.com
Be aware that most of these directories require you to pay
for a listing. It's worth the expense.
9. Consider bartering
for links
It's a good idea to have something to offer in return for a
link. Many sites won't link to you unless you link back to them or otherwise
make it worth their while. Create a Resources or Partner page that allows you
to have a place from which you can easily link to them.
You might also offer to work a barter arrangement with them.
If you have a popular site with their target market, they might consider free
advertisements in exchange for a link. If the link is of great value to you, be
prepared to give something back.
10. Link building
alternatives
If time constraints keep you from link building, consider
outsourcing your link popularity work. Link building is undoubtedly the most
time consuming part of search engine optimization. You may find it is not cost
effective to do it in house. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do it, it just
means you hire someone else to do it for you.
Many top SEO firms have turned to outsourcing this function.
For example: Jill Whalen of highrankings.com uses Debra O'Neil-Mastaler's link
building firm.
Outsourcing to a reputable link building firm ensures good
links and could be a more efficient model for you if you are already time
limited.
One word of caution if you do chose to hire a company
specializing in link building: make sure any firm you hire follows good link
building practices. Ask them to describe the process they use to request links
Make sure they follow a personalized approach, and don't simply spam sites with
requests for links.
If they refuse to discuss their link building methods you can
assume they use impersonal widespread email drops or link farms - that's spam.
They may call it a fancy name, but if the process involves sending out large
numbers of form emails, it's still spam and will only set your campaign
backwards and injure your company's professional reputation. Go find a
different company or develop your links in house.
Just do it!
Link popularity is important and the link building process
needs to be given high priority. Link analysis is only going to get more
important to search engines, not less. Search engines have found it highly
resistant to manipulation and a legitimate way to measure the importance of a
site. Since link building takes time, the sooner you start the better.
So think of link building as a long-term investment in your
site. Put in a little time now to improve your linking today to insure a good
search engine ranking in the future.
__________________________________________________
By-
SEO Analyst (Expert in off Page Optimization)
Mobile No - +918401804840
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