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3. Get incoming links
from authoritative sites – obtain
links from sites that have a large number of links
pointing
to them and already get a lot of web traffic. These sites
should be related to the same topic as your site.
4. Research competitors' sites – do a search on your
most
popular keyword in Google to find out which sites rank the
highest. These are your competitors that probably have
many
links pointing to their site.
You can find out who is linking to them by inserting:
link:www.domainname.com in Google’s search box. This
should
return the number of sites that link to your competitors.
By visiting each of these links you may be able to pick up
a good number of quality sites that can also link to
yours.
Alternative methods - go to Alexa.com to find out
the how
much traffic your competitor’s site gets.
-Visit marketleap.com to determine the link popularity of
your site.
-Download the Google toolbar to determine the PR (page
rank)
of a site. A high PR indicates the site has many links
pointing to it.
5. Use the same URL format – search engines don’t
see all
URLs the same. Here are some different ways to write your
URL ie
http://domainname.com
http://domainname.com/
http://domainname/index.html
http://www.domainname.com
http://www.domainname.com/
http://www.domainname.com/index.html
These are all different URLS even though though they all
point to the same web page. If sites that link to you use
all different URLS, it will decrease your web page
relevancy.
Try to stick to one format ie http://www.yourdomain.com to
gain maximum page rankings.
6. Referring page should have few links - the
referring
page means the web page of the site that is giving you the
incoming link. Don't get a link from a web page that
contains hundreds of links. This will only dilute the
effectiveness of your link popularity. Visitors that visit
that page probably won't see your link and avoid clicking
on it.
It's preferable to only have the link of your site on that
page and it's better if it's on the same topic.
7. Submit to major directories - the major
directories to
submit your site to include:
Yahoo Directory
(http://dir.yahoo.com) - powers search
results for top portals such as Yahoo!, AltaVista, and
AlltheWeb. You can list your business web site with Yahoo
for a recurring annual fee of $299.00
If you have a
non-business site, you can submit to Yahoo
without paying
at: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/suggest/
Open Directory Project
(http://www.dmoz.org/) - this
directory is still free. Getting listed here will give you
good incoming links as it feeds some of the major search
engines. Don't hold your breath though as it can take
months or even years to get listed. Navigate to your
category then choose "suggest URL" and be sure to read the
submission guidelines.
Other major directories to consider are:
http://www.joeant.com/
http://www.zeal.com/
http://www.goguides.org/
http://www.gimpsy.com/
http://search.looksmart.com/
8. Submit to specialty directories
(http://www.isedb.com/html/Web_Directories/Specialty_Directories/)
ie if your site specializes in aviation or sports then
submit it to that specific directory.
Many of the specialized directories are indexed by the
major search engines such as Google, AltaVista and
AllTheWeb, therefore a link from those directories will
improve your link popularity.
9. Use RSS Feeds - RSS or Really Simple Syndication
allows
you to share your headlines and other web site content
with
other sites. When another web site uses your RSS feed to
display headlines it will automatically place a link to
your site. The more web sites that subscribe to your RSS
Feed, the more links you receive that point back to your
site thus increasing your link popularity.
For more information read:
How
to Create an RSS Feed for Your Web Site
10. Submit to online forums - contribute useful
tips to
others at online discussion forums. You can include a link
back to your site at the end of your post.
11. Create an ebook - write a report or ebook that
contains
links to specific web pages on your site where visitors
can
obtain more information or buy your product. Make this
ebook available on the Net for free (people always like
freebies). Submit it to ebook directories so many people
will download it. This will provide a viral marketing
system
that will provide ongoing traffic to your web site.
12. Write a testimonial - if you have bought a
product or
received a service from someone (ie web design), offer to
write a quality testimonial for their product or service.
Include a link to your site at the bottom of your text.
Often the owner is very happy to receive an unsolicited
testimonial.
The most important aspect of generating incoming links is
to have such valuable content on your site that it
attracts
other site owners to naturally want to link to you.
If you generate incoming links on a consistent basis you
stand a good chance of getting top search engine rankings.
=====================================================
Herman Drost is a Certified Internet Webmaster (CIW)
and owner of iSiteBuild.com
Web Site Design, Web
Hosting, Web Site Promotion
Author of “Marketing Tips” newsletter. To subscribe, enter
your information at:
http://www.isitebuild.com/articles |
