In this article I offer my very best top ten linking ideas.
The arguments rage on, search engines no longer both about links when ranking sites, why bother with link popularity any more, it no longer helps; what's the point in linking, where is the truth? As the owner of many sites I am not so concerned with the arguments, but more the practicality of owning a web site and promoting what is after all a commercial enterprise, so that it makes money for me. And if you own a web site you should also have the promotion of your site as your primary concern.
Before I get into listing my top ten linking ideas, I want to make two quite obvious but bold statements.
The first is this; consider that everyone who visits your site must also leave it. Think about that for a moment and what that means. Think also about when the visitor leaves your site onto what sort of other site would you like him/her to go.
The second is this; imagine you are someone else the owner of a different site and you have the problem I mentioned above and further that you are looking for a good site to send your leaving visitor.
I think most people will see what I am saying, there are many webmasters out there who understand that by listing or linking to good and relevant sites their own sites importance is confirmed if not enhanced. Your departing visitors have to go somewhere, so why not send them to a relevant and good site, one that enhances the site the visitor is leaving.
When you accept the above, you will have your own answer to the linking popularity arguments which rage, without having had to take part in the argument.
You as a site owner should be looking for good and relevant sites.
So let's list my top ten linking idea. 1.Contact a webmaster and offer to exchange links. As we have said look for a site which is relevant and has good content, stress the importance of your own site's content and relevance.
2.Link to an authority site. Ever been ignored by an authority site, when you asked to exchange links. You are much more likely to get noticed when your lowly Google page rank 1 site requests a link to PR 2 site, if you offer something else as well. So write an article and about a good authority site you are interested in exchanging links with. You are much more likely to get a favorable response if you offer more.
3.Check your competitors and make a special attempt to exchange links with sites who exchange links with your competitors.
4.In this day and age many of us have forgotten the good old fashioned telephone. Obtain the telephone number of the webmaster who runs a good site you have eyed for link exchange and simply dial his number. Explain the situation, make a contact, you are much more likely to break the ice and get your site listed using this method rather than an email which comes out of the blue.
5.Use the search engines to help you find suitable link partners. Take your target keywords; type them into Google and contact the sites who rank well for your keywords.
6.Even if you get knocked back by a good authority site - the answer you receive is no - still link to that authority site anyway. Like we said, consider your visitor first he is your client and customer, offer him a good onward trip to a site which is relevant and one which confirms or enhances your own sites status.
7.Create the links on your own site first before contacting another webmaster and make sure you send the precise page where their link appears. Check before you set up the link if they have provided linking text in the form of html which you can cut and paset off their site on to your own. Please check for this as there is nothing worse for a webmaster when he sees a half hearted attempt to dscribe his own site ) which he loves very much - with flowery or inaccurate language. Link as he likes not as you like.
8.Set up your own page with html which prospective linkers to your site can cut and paste, when you have done this you will be surprised how many offers to link you receive.
9.Do it manually, automated software may sound fine, but hand picked and selected sites are better.
10.When you email people add your phone number so that they can call you up and tell them you are for real not some robot which is firing off hundreds of mails.
Follow the above top ten tips and you will definitely get more good sites linking to you. You'll know that when your visitors leave they'll be going somewhere good.
Paul Langham
About the Author
Paul Langham runs http://www.easyresponders.com who offer FREE auto responder facilities to internet marketeers and list builders.
