If you're serious about getting great ranking on Google you
need to be serious about linking. Of course there are lots
of ways to get links so we'll focus on just the methods
that are fast, low cost or free and get the best results.
Here are three that can put you on top of Google in no time
flat!
First let's start with getting inbound links from
directories. A link from a directory gets a lot of weight
from Google because they value it as a form of endorsement.
You've probably used some directories yourself, like Yahoo.
Or maybe you've used some without even knowing it, like The
Open Directory Project (DMOZ.org) that powers many of the
most popular search engines, including Google!
Each directory is different and offers different options
for obtaining links to your site. Here's a rundown of how
different directories will link to your site...
1.) Free Submission: Just like it sounds. No charges for
inclusion. DMOZ.org is the best one and powers Google, AOL
and even Yahoo Search (not Yahoo directory.) Just be sure
to follow their submission guidelines and pick the most
appropriate sub category possible for inclusion. This is
extremely important.
2.) Paid Submissions: They charge a fee to review the
submitted link and possibly list the page. You might pay a
few dollars one time, a recurring annual fee or as much as
the $300 that Yahoo charges for commercial site review.
3.) Reciprocal Link: These usually require you to link to
the directory before they will even consider linking back.
4.) Featured Link: Your link gets a premium spot that you
pay for.
5.) Featured Homepage Link: This is a featured link on the
homepage. As you've probably guessed, this can get real
expensive.
Yahoo is easily the most popular (and most expensive) but
it's not the best. It's been my experience that a free
listing with DMOZ.org is worth more than a paid listing
with Yahoo. Even though Yahoo is more popular as a
directory that people actually visit, DMOZ is much more
popular with search engines and carries a lot of weight. A
"vote" from DMOZ is a big deal indeed.
Here are the five top directories offering free listings.
Some even offer inexpensive expedited listing services or
featured listings:
1.) dmoz.com
2.) directoryvault.com
3.) domaining.in
4.) getlistedrightnow.com
5.) visitalink.com
There's a site that keeps an updated list of directories,
but not all are free. You have to visit each to see if
there is any cost. Go to
http://www.topwebsitetips.com/FreeLinks-Directories.aspx
and scroll down to the drop down box at the bottom of the
page. Select your desired Google PR and search. If you want
to avoid getting niche directories in the results, check
the "General Directories Only" box after your first return
set and rerun the search.
As a second option, you can also consider paying a
submission service to get your site listed in the major
directories. There are plenty that will do it for a
reasonable fee. Just be sure they do the following three
things:
1.) Manual submission only
2.) Verify that your site is not already listed
3.) Provide proof of submission (usually screen captures)
Just search Google for "directory submission service" and
you'll get plenty of options. I've used
http://www.seonext.com/directory-submission.html in the
past with good success. They offer a "slow submission"
service that makes your link building appear more natural
to Google and other top search engines.
And finally, there is no better way to get quality links
than from a traditional reciprocal link campaign. This can
be a time consuming step without automated software, but is
very important.
Here are 10 steps to a successful reciprocal linking
campaign:
1.) List the keywords you want to be found for.
2.) Draft a standard letter you can use to easily customize
for each site (customization tips at the end.)
3.) Run a search on Google for each keyword and jot down
the URL for each match returned (not just the homepage but
the URL for the actual page you want the link from, which
is the one that came up in the search.)
4.) Remove any direct competitors from the list.
5.) Go back through your list and find the contact info for
each site. Record this information.
6.) Create a link to each page you want to get a link from.
This should be from the most appropriate page on your site,
not the homepage. Do not exceed 10 outbound links per page
at most. The fewer, the better.
7.) Send the customized email with the considerations
outlined below.
8.) Verify their backlinks.
9.) Remove any outbound links that do not reciprocate
within a month or so.
10.) Check your inbound links every couple of weeks. Make
sure you are still getting the links you earned and that
the people linking to you have not moved you to a less
desirable page.
Reciprocal Link Email Tips:
A.) Address the email to a person by name if possible.
B.) Start with a complimentary statement about what you
like on their site.
C.) Introduce yourself and your site.
D.) Lead into why you feel your site is a good, non
competing match (list benefits for them and their visitors.)
E.) Mention that you have already linked to their site and
hope they feel a reciprocal link will be beneficial.
Provide the URL to the page you linked from.
F.) Explain why you linked from the page you did and the
anchor text you used to show you understand link strategy.
G.) Request that if they link back they use one of your
anchor text suggestions along with the exact URL you want
them to link to.
H.) Offer to change the link anchor text of their URL if
they wish.
I.) Thank them genuinely for the time and sign with your
first name to make it more personal and natural.
You can do all of this manually or invest in a good piece
of software to do the difficult and time consuming work for
you. Many SEO professionals (myself included) use SEO Elite
(http://www.SEOeliteWeb.com) because it finds the best link
partners, automatically gets their contact info and even
manages entire campaigns. It's also a link verification
system and search engine rank checker so it covers all of
my SEO needs nicely ($167.)
So whether you do the work by hand or invest in a time
saving "instant gratification" SEO tool, the information in
this article can help you to the top of Google in record
time. Good luck!
----------------------------------------------------
Mike Small has been an SEO specialist since 1998 working
with clients from start up to the Fortune 500. He has
authored five SEO books and is the founder of popular SEO
blog http://www.SEOpartner.com .
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