Hi There is talk about value of buying links and whether it is all just hype. What does Google consider more valuable- Links from top site/directory OR signature posting in forum like this? Are links in links directory more permanent compared to forum postings? Thanks
The links from the directory are more important. Why? Number of outgoing links PER PAGE determines the quality of the link to you. If you see the directories in my sig, you'll see they have as few as 0-10 links on almost every page. Compare that to a sig link in a thread. The thread will have 100s of outgoing links, diminishing the value you get.
Why don't yu build links for your site ? Siggy links are not a determining factor for back links. It'll not help you in any mean in serp. Yes number of out going links is a factor. 80-100 outgoing links is fare enough. Not to mention less out going links is always better.
Buying links has its benefits. But you need to buy from relevant sites to gain more weight with Google. You also need to build your pr a little before you start buying links. Dont buy links from a pr6 for example if you are a pr0, its not good practice imo. Try to buy links from sites that are 1pr higher than you, it looks like a more genuine link imo. For example why would a pr6 link to a 0 unless they were being paid to do so. Just my opinion.
Posting links in a forum is mainly used to establish yourself as an authority in your niche. They wouldn't bring you any benefit in the SERP, but they could help with index problems if you link to inner pages. If you want to buy links, try to buy them from related authority websites. There are a few good paid directories as well like: Joeant, Goguides, Yahoo Dir, etc...
Why directories ? They are useless now a days. How cna you define well edited ? Joe ant just delay intentionally it doesn't mean they are reviewing your link very cautiously. And with so much categories most sites get buried under 50 level deep. I have listing in joeant and I got confirmation from them 1 year back, No search engines have crawled that link yet !! I know they'll never crawl it ever.
Perhaps a press release? Your story could be picked up by hundreds of sites. There are so many factors why a PR6 would link to a PR0. 1- You have something worth reading 2-You're having a contest 3-You're well respected in the field you are in. 4-You offer a unique product The list can go on and on but I think you get the idea.
Jesus, some of you guys spout a load of rubbish about signature links! They can and do carry weight. They do help serps. They do count as back links. Here is a little rant i did last month when so called experts started spouting rubbish again....... http://www.monetising.co.uk/blog/2006/10/15/signature-links-and-seo-they-work/
Signature link is great for pagerank too. My experience tell it. I have a pr2 site . I never got a backlinks for that. pr2 owned all by forum signatures.