What Can I Do to Increase My Link Popularity?
By Yelena Shapiro
Why should I worry about link popularity?
An increasing number of search engines use link popularity as part
of their ranking algorithm. Google
uses it as the most important factor in ranking sites, and others are
joining. Hotbot, Altavista,
MSN, Lycos,
Northern Light,
Inktomi, Excite
and others are also using link popularity in their formulas.
The logic behind this is that if other sites think that you are worthy
of being linked to, then your site must have strong content. Eventually,
every major engine will use link popularity, so its development and maintenance
are essential in your search engine placement process.
Link popularity can do a lot for your site. Not only will you
place better with search engines, but links from other sites can mean
more traffic.
Remember that your link popularity is search engine specific.
Though you may have 100,000 links in Altavista's database, you won't score
any higher with Google, where you have only 100. Each engine's database
is unique; in order for your link popularity score to be high, all sites
linking to you must be indexed by that engine.
Developing links
- FFA sites - "Free-for-All" sites. These are sites
created to capture your e-mail address and offer you a link in return.
You can choose a category for your link. Most of the tools that submit
to FFA sites, such as urlsubmitter.com,
submit to more than one, thus creating many links, and increasing your
link popularity.
The downside is that these sites will only house your links temporarily.
These sites receive new links and when they have enough to fill a whole
page after your link, it will be removed. If you plan on using FFA sites,
it is best to resubmit often - daily, if possible. Consider submitting
the URL of the FFA site with your link to a search engine, so that the
new link is indexed.
FFA links are of poor quality. Most engines use sophisticated
formulas for evaluating links to your site, which focus on more than
just the number. For an overview of factors that determine link popularity,
click here.
Another problem is that your e-mail box will have hundreds of e-mails
within hours of submitting to an FFA site. Most of them send confirmations
while some go as far as spamming for a while after you submit. If this
is a price you're willing to pay, go ahead and create a new e-mail box.
This way, you can delete the contents every morning without having to
sort through all the junk.
- Exchange programs - These are groups of webmasters who agree
to participate in a program where other users link to them in return
for a link to these users.
These programs contain pages of links that you will be asked to upload
to your server. About once a week, or so, you will receive new pages
with links of new users.
The downside is that you are obligated to place a link on you site so
visitors can find these pages. Many of the programs will request
a link from your home page. This link can be either text or graphic,
but in either case, it can make your site look less professional.
If you enter one of these programs, pick one that categorizes.
This means that a program has categories for which you can sign up,
and thus improve your link
quality. The more specific the category, the better. Pick the one
that most closely relates to your site's content.
If you don't want a link in the middle of your home page, look for a
way to hide it. Create an invisible link by using the same color for
the link and the rest of the text, or link an a one pixel image. For
specifications, refer to your program's guidelines. Linkstoyou.com
and Buddy
Links are some of the exchange programs.
- Webmasters seeking link popularity - Many webmasters choose
to develop high-quality
links by simple arrangements with each other. If you know of a company
that is related to your business, contact its webmaster with an offer
for a reciprocal link.
Important: For a great way to find people who may be willing
to link to you, check your competition's link popularity through a search
engine. You can do this by typing:
link:/www.yoursite.com or through an online tool such as linkpopularity.com.
Then visit each site, find webmaster's e-mail, and ask them to link
to your site.
Point out articles, tips or other educational material that a
reader can benefit from. Always conclude by asking the webmaster to
contact you, even if he or she decides not to link to your site. If
you get a negative response, try to offer a reciprocal link, perhaps
it could change their mind.
Don't expect every webmaster to link to your site. Be prepared to contact
many webmasters before you have a sufficient amount of links.
Which method should I use?
We suggest using all of the described methods because they are not penalized
by search engines. Increasing your link popularity is extremely important,
and will become even more important as search engines evolve. Developing
permanent, quality links
is a great investment in the future.
Avoid the use of spam
Search engines do not penalize sites that use FFA links or exchange programs.
However, these links are, for most engines, less important than links
that relate to the site's content.
An Overview
Increasing Link popularity
- Pick programs or FFA sites with categories
- Suggest keywords in link's description
- Check who links to your competition and contact them
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