Linking for Fun & Profit

Reciprocal Linking the RIGHT Way!

Well actually, linking isn't fun at all. In fact, it's quite tedious. Seeking link partners, responding to requests and adding links takes time and effort. But, if you're not actively building links the right way you are going to be left behind. In other words, your site will become "Lost in Cyberspace".

The plain fact is Google and other important search engines reward sites with links from relevant and authoritive pages.

If you want your site to receive lots of targeted search engine traffic (and who doesn't?) there are two equally important factors:

1) lots of keyword-rich, frequently-updated content
2) lots of relevant, incoming links from the right sources

For real success you need to cover both of these strategies. Don't concentrate on one and not the other.

There are many ways to build inbound links to your site (see my article on search engines) for some tips, but this article looks specifically at reciprocal linking.

Finding Link Partners

So, how do you go about finding link partners and building your links? It's not rocket science, but as I said, it does take time and effort. From my own experiences, here's what you should do:

1) Download and install the Google Toolbar:

http://toolbar.google.com/

This will show you the PageRank of the page you are viewing. PageRank is a measure, rated from 1 to 10, of the "importance" that Google gives to that page. There has been a lot written about PageRank and it's always the subject of much debate. You certainly don't need to become obsessed with it (some people advise you ignore it altogether) but it remains a key indicator of how "well linked" a particular site is.

But, don't use PageRank as your ONLY criteria for judging the value of a potential link partner. The relevance and reputation of the page that links to you is far more important. Ideally you want links from high PR, topically related pages (your keywords in the page title) with a minimum number of outbound links.

In other words, if your site is about web design, then you want links from pages that are also about web design, as indicated by the page title, headings, meta tags and other outbound links on that page. The page should be tightly focused on web design and not have links to totally unrelated sites.

2) Establish a resource or links directory for your site.

This lets potential link partners see that you are willing to exchange links. Make your directory accessible from your home page, not buried several layers deep in your site structure. You should make it clear on your links pages what your linking policy is i.e. under what conditions you will agree to exchange links.

3) Aim to build a resource directory that is relevant to your business.

Don't try to build a mini Yahoo with umpteen different categories. Keep your directory tightly focused on your site theme. When you first start out you will be inclined to link to anybody in exchange for a link from anybody. This is a mistake. Be patient and choose your link partners carefully.

Keep in mind as well that when you add a link to your directory you are in effect endorsing that site. Always consider your visitors and don't just build links to improve search engine results. Is the site you are linking to a helpful, useful and relevant resource for your visitor?

4) Before requesting a link from another site, add that site to your directory.

Contact the webmaster and tell them you added their link because you believe their site would be of interest to your visitors (and so it should). Give the URL where your link is located and ask for a return link, along with instructions on how you would like your link worded. NEVER demand by saying things like "if you do not link to us we will remove your link". Nobody likes ultimatums!

I think it's rather hypocritical to say to another webmaster "I like your site because of it's great content and have linked to it. But, if you don't link back I'll remove your link".

I am constantly receiving exchange requests where my link has been placed on a page which is irrelevant, has hundreds of outbound links, is in Google's supplemental results (practically worthless) or even not indexed at all (totally worthless). And then when I ignore their request they send a follow-up which says my link has been removed. As if I care.

5) If you have not received a reply after 2 - 3 weeks send a polite follow up.

Again, don't demand. No one is under any obligation to link to you. If you do not receive a reply to your second request it means that the webmaster does not want to link to you, or they are simply too busy to respond. In that case, leave it and move on.

I receive dozens of link requests a day. Sometimes it takes me many weeks to get around to responding. You'll go mad worrying about links that have not been reciprocated. Your time is better spent. If it's a good quality site you've linked to, and it would benefit your visitors, then just leave it. Linking to the right sites is just as important as links from the right sites.

6) When you receive a link request visit the site and check that it meets with your requirements as set down on your link pages.

Is it a quality site with good, related content, or is the site just a bunch of links and not much else? If it doesn't meet your requirements don't link to it. Be very selective.

The webmaster SHOULD have already linked to your site but be prepared to overlook that breech of linking protocol if it's from a good quality, theme-related, high PR site.

7) Beware of webmasters who add your site to their "directory" which turns out to be nothing but a link farm.

These sites have no useful content, only links. The webmaster then asks you to link to an entirely different site, one that HAS good content. These webmasters are playing you for a sucker. The benefit is all theirs.

8) Seek out high PR linking partners but keep in mind it is the PR of the actual page your link is on that matters, NOT the PR of the home page.

In other words if the home page PR is 5, but the page your link is on is several layers deep in the directory, it will probably have a PR of 0 and be of little benefit to you. Check the PR of the actual page your link is on, or is going to be on, before agreeing to exchange links.

Each page on your links directory should be no more than two clicks away from your home page, and your linking partner's site should be the same. If your link is placed on a page which is structured something like this:

Home page/directory/category/subcategory/subcategory-with-your-link

- it is likely you will derive very little value from that link. In fact, the page probably won't even be indexed by Google, which means, to Google, it doesn't even exist! You can easily check if a page is indexed by just just pasting the url into a Google search. If it returns "no information found..." it's not indexed.

Keep in mind as well that people, not just search engines, visit link pages and follow the outbound links if they find them relevant. So link pages are a source of traffic in themselves and will benefit both linking partners as long as they are not made impossible to find by your visitors.

Whether or not you choose to link with competitors is your decision. Your potential customers will probably find them anyway. I have plenty of links to and from direct competitors and find the positives outweigh the negatives, but if you're not comfortable with this just link with complimentary but non-competing sites.

9) Be prepared to negotiate your links.

Savvy webmasters understand the value of links from high PR, relevant and trustworthy pages. If you add a link to a PR-0 page with hundreds of other unrelated links don't expect your link partner to put your link on a high value, relevant, PR-5 page, and your link partner shouldn't expect the same from you. Exchange value for like value.

When you first start out your site may not have any PR due to a lack of incoming links. This reduces your bargaining power. However, you can overcome this by getting your site listed in as many large business directories as possible. Some of these you will have to pay, such as Yahoo and Microsoft's Business Directory, but many others are free. Brad Callen's Directory Submitter is a very useful tool for submitting to hundreds of free directories. What's more, it's free!

10) Be specific about how you want your link partner to link to you.

One of the biggest advantages of reciprocal linking is you can control how you are linked to. It is important that the link to you contain your targeted keywords in the anchor (linked) text.

Important: You don't want to to have 100% of your incoming links use the same anchor text. Google will likely apply a penalty that causes your ranking to plummet on those keywords when it detects "over optimisation" or un-natural linking patterns. I've seen this happen many times. So, mix them up. Get your main targeted keywords into many of your links but add other related keywords to some of your links. Wordtracker's Keyword Universe tool is great for finding related keywords.

You should also have a large percentage of inbound links where the anchor text is just your domain name. Why? Again, it all comes down to natural linking patterns. It is natural and expected that many sites will link to you using just your domain name.

This is an example of a domain only link:

http://www.stevepronger.com

This is an example of link containing keywords in the anchor text:

How to create a small business website

11) Analyse the linking strategy of your competitors.

You don't really have to understand Google's complex ranking algorithm. Just look at the site you want to out-rank on a particular keyword and learn why they out-rank you. Armed with that information you can set out to beat them at their own game!

How do you get that information? You could do it manually, but you don't want to. I use a software package called SEO Elite. This program will give you the following information on your competitor's website:

• the url's of every page linking to that site
• the title of those pages
• the anchor text
• the number of outbound links
• the PageRank
• contact details of the webmaster
• and much, much more

Analyse your competitor's linking strategy and then simply do what they do. However, don't rely entirely on linking factors. There are many factors at play.

12) Be creative in your link exchanges.

Many webmasters are experimenting with exchanging complete articles. This makes a lot of sense. Both sites benefit by growing their content and providing relevant links which will please both visitors and the search engines. But, try not to use previously published articles. Make your articles unique and they will be much more effective for both link partners.

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Update: Some More Thoughts on Google PageRank

I've seen it written many times in forums and blogs that PageRank, as displayed in the Google toolbar, is worthless. They say things like the real PageRank that Google actually uses in its ranking algorithm is a measure between 0 and 1 with increments far greater than just 10, that the Toolbar PageRank is only updated several times a year, that it can be manipulated, that it only exists for "entertainment" purposes etc, etc.

Here is my take on this...

None of those things really matter to me. The Toolbar Pagerank is simply an indicator that Google themselves provide of the "importance" of that particular page, so why not take notice of it? Who cares that the real measure of PR is between 0 and 1? No one outside of Google knows what that is. Why would Google provide a tool that has no value to anyone other than "entertainment". Surely they have better things to do with their time.

As I said at the top of this article you shouldn't obsess about PR or use it as your only criteria for finding linking partners. I don't advocate declining a link exchange simply of the basis of PR. What really matters to me is relevance. PageRank, as displayed in the Google toolbar, is simply a measure, and as long as Google provide it I'll take notice of it along with any other indicators that are available to me. To dismiss it as "worthless" is just plain dumb in my view.

Bottom line when assessing your potential link partners is to use common sense. Use the tools that are available but more importantly your own powers of observation and good judgment to select link partners. Seek links that will be of value to your visitors first and foremost. This strategy has worked for me in the past, works now, and will likely continue to work in the future.

Even if the search engines devalue a particular link it will still be of value to humans as long as you have adopted the right strategy in building your links. This provides targeted traffic to both linking partners.

Some More Thoughts on Reciprocal Linking in General

Lately I've been reading many articles and forum posts which loudly proclaim "reciprocal linking is dead". Why? These commentators apparently hold the view that Google is "penalising" sites which exchange links. Problem is, they rarely provide any factual data to support this claim.

Here's my take on this...

Many people confuse appropriate, ethical, link exchanging with the practice of simply amassing as many links as possible from any website willing to exchange with you. This type of inappropriate linking has been dead for some time, and so it should be.

However, that does not mean that just because you link to a particular site, and they link back to you, that the value of those links is "nullified". If anyone believes this to not be the case, and can show me some statistical data to support this, I'll be happy to change my view. But I'm yet to see it. Simply repeating what someone wrote in a forum or spoke at a conference is not sufficient I'm afraid.

From my observations link exchanging is still effective, provided:

• you carefully select link exchange partners
• you only exchange with related, authortitive, good quality sites & dismiss requests from non-related or low quality sites
• you explore and encourage new ways to link with your partners e.g. article or other relevant content exchange
• you use link exchange as part of your link development strategy and not your entire strategy
• you build your links progressively and in a natural manner
• you don't build massive directories

Matt Cutts, a Google employee and spokesman, has stated publicly that excessive reciprocal linking can get your site penalised. What is excessive? Obviously, it's a subjective description, but penalties usually occur when a human examines your site and determines that you are artificially attempting to boost your link popularity, or engaging in linking schemes.

So, look at your site subjectively as if a Google employee were looking at it. Do you have anything to hide? Is your link directory there for the benefit of your visitors, or is it there to game the search engines? Is it appropriate? Yes, these are subjective measures, but a human being will be using their judgment to determine if your ranking, as determined by the Google algorithm, is deserved.

After all, a certain amount of link exchanging is "natural". If you run a car hire business in a tourist area it makes sense to exchange links with a tour operator or accommodation provider in that area. This type of "exchange" has worked for years in the offline world. Have you ever seen a brochure from a complimentary business displayed on the counter of a local business? And, online link exchanging existed long before Google came on the scene.

Bottom line?

Keep you link exchange efforts relevant, focused and real. Develop an SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) strategy where link exchange is just part of the equation. Spend less time chasing links and more time creating new content. For many search expressions you will be able to obtain top rankings without exchanging a single link.

And above all, do what works for you. Don't dismiss any strategy that makes sense to you, and delivers results, just because some expert says so.

Read this article by link building expert Eric Ward.

Special note: If you intend to start a link exchange campaign but just don't have the time, my mate Dirk Johnson over at LinkStrategy.com is a real expert on link exchange and may be able to help. Tell him I sent you!

Social Power Linking

Reciprocal linking is just one way to generate links and traffic to your site. When done correctly it is still an effective strategy and has existed well before search engines came on the scene. However if you're ready to explore some new and exciting ways of generating links and traffic then using "Web 2.0" and social marketing has become an extremely effective strategy. And unlike other methods of generating links, it's actually quite fun to do!

Social Power Linking is a membership site giving you a ton of resources on social marketing. I'm a member, and you should be too. For a complete rundown of Social Power Linking read my review here.

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