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All Time Most Effective Way to get Backlinks to your Website
There have been so much fuss about how to get the best links back to your site. A lot suggested that reciprocal linking is the way to go and yet you get this reminders that not necessarily all backlinks are credited by search engine specially...
Anatomy of a Search Engine
For some unfortunate souls SEO is simply the learning of tricks and techniques that, according to their understanding, should propel their site into the top rankings on the major search engines. This understanding of the way SEO works can be...
Dick and Jane Revisited
Former British Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher is known to have said; “If you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done, ask a woman.” Who Gets It Women get it. They’ve always gotten it. In a long ago century (1800s) Harriet...
Search the Web More Efficiently: Tips, Techniques and Strategies (Part II)
Search the Web More Efficiently: Tips, Techniques and Strategies (Part II) By Daniel Bazac - November 6, 2003 Copyright © 2003. All Rights Reserved. Which Search Tool Should You Choose? * If you're looking for specific information use search ...
The Secret To Promoting Sites With Articles
Publishing articles on the Internet is a tremendous way to increase the number of inbound links to your site. As articles are assimilated into search engine indexes, they also begin to act as landing pages generating traffic for your site. Whenever...
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Links! Links! Links!
Website owners: do you know how many links are out there on the Internet, pointing back to your site? If you’re interested in getting free search engine placement for your site, you ought to know. An easy way to find out is to download the Alexa toolbar from http://www.alexa.com. One of its many useful features is that it shows you how many links are pointing to the site. High quality links are one of the most crucial aspects of good search engine optimization. When you think about it, this makes sense. After all, this is the Internet, the World Wide Web, we’re talking about. And in a web, everything is... right, everything is LINKED.
Links have always been a priority in search engine optimization. Search engines have long used link popularity as an indicator of a site’s “importance,” and this in turn affects the site’s performance in the search engines. Until recently, many different schemes existed that allowed a website owner to garner dozens, or even hundreds of links, simply by using specialized tools, reciprocal programs, and the like. Then came the Google “update” of November, 2003.
In that now legendary update, Google penalized tens of thousands of websites by dropping their placement in the index or eliminating them entirely. While Google isn’t talking about what happened, it is very likely that “undeserved” links, or links that do not have anything to do with quality content, played a role in this episode. Most website owners now seem to agree that while links are as important as ever, they have to be added the old-fashioned way – they have to be earned.
What does this mean? Simply put, it means that a link between two pages on the Internet should have some valid reason for its existence besides the desire of the website owners to hit page 1 on Google. So if Joe’s Auto Shop and Cindy’s Interior Design trade links, in order to boost their rankings, the link only exists for that reason, and it may well lead to lower search engine rankings for both Joe and Cindy. On the other hand, if Bud’s Cabinetry Shop, on its page describing different types of woods, is linked to the National Association of Wood Products, this is very likely to be viewed as a “quality” link by the search engine, and may help rankings.
How does one build these kind of quality links? There are at least four well-known methods, and creative website owners can come up with more. First, you can ask for them. At conventions, conferences, meetings, anyplace where the business of your website may be discussed, ask for quality links. If someone has a site you respect, and it relates to your product, simply ask them to link to your site. It’s good old networking at its finest. Second, you can write articles that promote your website, or your product or service, include a link back to your home page, and offer it for publication on the Internet. There are numerous forums for doing just this – try Googling some search terms to come up with them. Third, get on the Internet and find directories that relate to your product or service, and ask for a link to be placed. This is an easy step that most website owners can take themselves. Finally, and perhaps the best way – build a great site! Put up great content, and other sites will link to you. Because, in the end, that is what the Internet is all about – disseminating information. Add valuable content, in terms of information, to your site, keep adding it over time, and gradually, people will link to you. If you build it, they will come.
About the Author
Neil Street is co-founder of Small Business Online, based in Wilton, CT., a website design, management, and promotion company dedicated to the Internet needs of the small business. His website is at http://www.smallbusinessonline.net Send email to neil@smallbusinessonline.net He can also be reached at (203)761-7992
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