SEO Tips: Link Building

This post is a follow-up to a previous post I wrote about On-Page Optimization. On-Page optimization enables each of your web pages to make the most out of the mojo that they have -- but you need inbound links to create that mojo.

I use the term "mojo" as a generic descriptor for the importance given to a web page or a web site based upon inbound links. Similar terms include page rank, site rank, trust rank, and authority. Those terms tend to carry too much linguistic baggage, so I simply use the term "mojo" unless another term is specifically required.

Mojo is created by getting inbound links to your web site and to your web pages.

Getting inbound links is one of the most important, and time consuming, tasks involved in SEO.

Here are a few tips to generate inbound links. Each of these tips are appropriate for some web sites, but none are appropriate for all web sites. Select the link building strategies which are most appropriate for your specific web site.

Submit to Web Directories

Start with big slow directories like the Yahoo Directory and the DMOZ Open Directory Project, but don't stop there.

Search out the small directories which are dedicated to topics relevant to your web site.

For more suggestions on finding directories to submit to, read How can I find web directories?

Reciprocal Linking

Write individual e-mails to specific webmasters whose web pages compliment your own and tell them that you would like to trade links with them.

Make sure to personalize each e-mail, or your e-mails will be quickly deleted as spam.

To achieve the best results from your e-mail, include the following in your initial e-mail:

• Mention two positive items about their web site, so that they know that your e-mail is not a generic spam.
• Include directions to the specific web page where you have added the link to their web site.
• Mention the Page Rank of the page where you have added a link to their web site.

These web sites exist to help you search for reciprocal link partners in the same market niche' as your web site:

• Find Link Partners
• Link Partner Finder
• Themes Reciprocal Link Finder

Write Articles for Other Web Sites

One method for getting inbound links is to write quality articles and submit them to other web sites for publication.

Each article should include a link back to your web site.

These links are better than links from link pages, because there tend to be very few outbound links on the article page.

Write a brief article on some topic related to the topic of your web site. Do not write an article about your web site, but write an article that would be interesting to people who would also be interested in your web site.

Send this article to webmasters who maintain web sites on topics similar to the topic of your article. Explain to them that they can post your article for free on their web sites, in return for a link to your web site.

To find web sites to submit articles for publication, visit Where can I submit an article for publication?

Create and Submit Press Releases

Write press releases about your web site and submit them to press release distribution services.

To find places to submit press releases for publication, visit Where can I submit my press release?

Join a Reciprocal Link Program

Reciprocal linking programs exist to help webmasters share links with similar web sites.

Some of the reciprocal link programs are:

• Link Market
• Info Wizards
• LinkExchanged
• Link Partners
• Links-Pal
• Linkateer
• Webmaster Link Exchange
• GoTop Link Exchange ($19.95 fee to join)
• LinkLeads
• Link Traders
• LinkExchangeIt
• SiteSell
• 123ExchangeLinks
• Ads4Links
• Spocka
• Links For You

If you have a blog, try blogLinker, the automatic link swapper for blogs.

These link networks can generate a lot of e-mail. You will probably want to create a new e-mail account just for these networks.

Join the DigitalPoint Ad Network

The DigitalPoint Coop Advertising Network enables you to automatically trade links with thousands of web sites across the Internet.

Join a Reciprocal Linking Forum

Several web forums exist for the purpose of sharing and trading reciprocal links. These linking forums include:

LinkRequests
Link Trade Forum

Start a Reciprocal Linking Program on Your Web Site

You can also setup a reciprocal linking program on your own web site.

For more information on setting up a reciprocal linking program on your site, read How can I add a reciprocal link manager to my web site?

Start or Join a Web Ring

You can use an existing web ring service such as WebRing, or you can create your own web ring using the PHP-Ring webring script.

Join or Create a Top Site List

Search for top site lists which are relevant to your web site.

Add yourself to the existing lists. If no relevant top site lists exist, create one.

Provide a Useful Service

Create dynamic content on your web site which other web masters can include on their web sites by linking to it.

Every webmaster who uses your content automatically adds a link to your site.

Firearm News is an excellent example of this. If you add a small bit of JavaScript to your web page, your users will receive up-to-date news on firearms.

Of course, you will also have to contact other webmasters to let them know about your service -- perhaps even with a press release.

Buy Links

If all else fails, you can always buy links to your web site.

 

Very informative article. Standard info but at one place
Good manual for beginners.

Respect to you! great work.

 

Good info. Just adding multi-way linking to the discussion.

some folks may believe reciprocal links may be a "thing of the past" soon, as multi-way linking may be an emerging method to explore. I hope this info on 4-way link exchange will help.

 

Excellent source, should be sticked

 

Great advice

One other tip from me is when i begun no one wanted to exchange with my poor PR3 site with pr1 links pages. So i brought a couple of PR7 links which about for about $50.00 a month for 6 months for the two this upped my pr to a pr5. Then like a virgin every one wanted to exchange with me.
You then work your socks off for 6 months building natural links and phase out the paid links.
Good time for the impatient

 

no kidding, a lot of info. People could make a checklist out of that!

 

This a great thread. Very informative simple and direct. Thanks man.
Good luck to you

 

Good info. Thanks

 

Really valuable post.

One more 'hot' link building technique to add: link bait (probably it is mentioned in the post, but i did not notice that). Much talk about it, but it is quite hard to implement. The idea is to offer some great info or service that will tempt site owners to place one way links to your site.

 

great article Will!

Now, seriously, are these reciprocal link programs worth anything?
Do you recommend joining any?

 

You forgot to write about forum-sig-promotion

 

Will has his own opinion about that.

 

If you ever read googles guidelines, then you would know that a webring and link exhanges hurt your sites ranking..

 

In the whole, a good article and I learnt one thing from this.. to spell urls two-words.htm instead of two_words.htm

 

Have you read googles guidelines?

Please point out to me where it mentions anything about webrings:

http://www.google.com/webmasters/guidelines.html

And read here about link exchanges, or webrings for that matter:

http://www.google.com/webmasters/facts.html

Webrings look bad on a business site, but it won't hurt your ranking, or improve it.

 

Nice one! thankz...

 

This is a great article but I'm not certain about the dashs vs underscore issue. Take a look at the results in this Google search for Liption Iced Tea.

Here's a Yahoo search for the same term

It looks to me that the SEs drop any punctuation and spaces so either - or _ will work equally wells as does +

 

very good article.

 

sorry I misunderstanded this.. anyway.. I don't think Shawn is going to like this:

Fiction: Automated "rank checking" programs are a good way for webmasters to save time and measure their online presence.

Fact: Automated rank checking programs violate Google's Terms of Service. They use server resources that should be spent on answering user requests. We strongly request that you not use rank checking programs to check your position on Google.

 

thank god, you saved me a lot of work..