Link Building Guide - Drive Quality Links to your website

Points to be consider while doing link exchange

2008-06-26T01:28:00.000-07:00

Link Building is a process of getting quality websites link to your website, in order to improve your link popularity or the page rank. Also term as back links.As every seo/webmaster know that the getting more links from other sites pointed to your website, it will help you to get higher rankings in search engines such as Google - but not all links are created equal.

Before giving links to the other website or doing link exchange, you should consider the few points

Relevancy : Link Exchange with the website who is similar to your business. Eg if you have mobile related website, link exchange with the website offering mobile accessories, mobile phone, mobile ring tone etc.
Page Rank : Check the page rank of the website, home page and the page where your link is added.
Cached : Check whether the page where your link is place is cached or not.
Cached Date : Check the date when google has crowled the web page.
Cached Text : If the page is cached, check the cached text and compare with the present visible text. Do this step to know is google is caching text or not.
No of links : Count how many links are already present in the given web page where your link is added. If the web page have more that 25 - 30 links dont reciprocate with that website.
Containing Relevant Link : Check the linke page consisting of relevant links. If it containg different subject link, dont reciprocate.
Two Clicks Away : The page where you r getting links should not be 2 click away from the home page.
Linked from home page : The page should be linked from home page. It should not be an orphan page.
Do Not Reciprocate with the banned website : Check website is it banned by google or not.
Relevant Category : Check your link is present in the relevant category in the resouce page.
Do Not have linked with the spam website : While doing 3 way link exchage other webmaster give links from the website which is used only for link exchange and contains only link not giving the services. Dont link exchange with these website.
Link Exchange with the website which is offering Services.

If you follow above points you will get quality of links. I know that it is very difficult to analyse but if you follow your site will be on the top of every search engine.

Tips on How to Check the Progress of Your Link Building Campaign

2008-04-11T05:32:00.000-07:00

There are many tools that can be used to check the progress of a link building campaign. The most popular ones used by webmasters and SEO experts across the world are Google and Yahoo. Along with these two, there are other web sites also that provide tools to check the number of back links that a particular site has got. The process of checking this is quite simple. However, much as simple it is, yet many people do not use these tools properly or to the full potential of the tools.

A common mistake that people usually make is that they use only Google and Yahoo tools to check the progress of their back links. They go to Google or Yahoo! and type in “link:YourURLhere”. But by doing this, they don’t see all the results in either of the domains and remain under a false impression. The best way to check the progress of your link building campaigns is by not restricting to only Google and Yahoo! but also use other websites for checking back-links. However care must be taken that you use Google’s Webmaster Tools as well as Yahoo’s SiteExplorer tools as two of the different sites you use to check the performance of your link building campaign.

15 Tips of Blogging so that Bloggers Write About You: Part 3

2008-04-04T02:07:00.000-07:00

Find the last 5 points out of the 15 points about blogging so that bloggers write about you.
Now without much beating about the bush, let us just get down to the main point or rather points:

Don’t worry about people directly linking to your images and not to the page that contains the image. If you have your URL in your images, you can simply have traffic being driven back to your site. Such an inlined image is quite inexpensive than a Google Ad and it also brings relevant traffic.
You can have high-res images in your site. Having a large image can let other cut and choose a relevant part from your image to put in their posts.
Do you have a JavaScript that keeps popping up each time when some one tries to save your images? Does the JavaScript keeps conveying some copyright messages? It is always advisable to remove any such features so that your blog can get popular.
Do not be rigid about copyright issues. What you write in your blog gets copyrighted immediately as you publish your post. Having rigid copyright issues might make people write about someone else’s site and you can wish a tearful goodbye to your chances to the hall of fame.
It always pays to have a byline and URL to any part or image on your site. This is your way of letting bloggers know how you would like to be recognized.

I hope these points were useful to you. However, if you have further suggestions or queries, do keep me updated with your comments.

15 Tips of Blogging so that Bloggers Write About You: Part 2

2008-03-20T05:05:00.000-07:00

Ok, now you know the first 5 secrets to have a blog that will stimulate people to express their opinion. What are the next 5? This is exactly what we will discuss over here - So, I was talking about certain tips about blogging.

Just to remind you, my first 5 points were…

Try to be linkable.
Have a permanent front page.
Do not overcrowd one page.
Always use real links.
Avoid using resized popup generating JavaScript.

Read the 15 Tips of Blogging so that Bloggers Write About You: Part 1

So, guys. Here comes the next set. Hold your breath, sit tight and read onnnnnnnnnnnnnnn…………………………………..

Here’s presenting part 2 of my 15 point system of blogging!

Avoid giant flash sites: If it is a blog site it should have internal links, e-mail space for writing comments and internal page links. Otherwise it would become invisible to a number of bloggers. Your blog should not be like a giant flash presentation.
Avoid using PDF flies: This is really a hug turn-off if your blog site is made up of PDF files. It is really difficult to copy and paste from PDG pages. It kills the essence of a blog. It should be simple.
Never and never use DRM: Digital rights management stops people from seeing your audio and video files. Then for what purpose is it there? Your blog should be easily reachable so make your audio and video down loadable.
Never ashamed of using URL in blog: If any part of blog is worth attraction, like your images, then must stick your URL at the bottom of it and believe me everyone would like it and it is not a show-off.
Loose restrictions on your website: Never write terms and conditions or linking policies in your blog. It restricts people who want to link to your Website. Any threatening text about linking to you is a big no no. Freedom of speech is the mark of a blog so be generous.

So, I believe that the above points would benefit you for making your blog worth comment. Next time I will conclude this subject with my next and last 5 points and till then keep writing.

15 Tips of Blogging so that Bloggers Write About You: Part 1

2008-03-15T05:30:00.000-07:00

Let me start with a question. Why do we write blogs and why do we not write articles to express our opinion? The answer may be because we want more readers to read it and rather we want more readers to respond to it too, and keep everything easily available, which is not so easy when it comes to print media.

We are writing blogs because we want more interactions and also keep a record of it which is viewable the instant someone wishes to see them.

This blog is all about how to bring in more people, get them interested and turn your blog into the talk of the town. My blog will be divided in three parts. In fact, this is a 15 point system divided into three parts of 5 points each.

Lo and Behold, here comes the first 5 :

Try to be linkable: Yes, simply by putting your home video in it doesn’t make your blog linkable. If you want any interesting video to put in your blog then put it on the Internet somewhere first. The video may be that of your graduation party, a nice music piece or anything that you want. And yes it should be unobjectionable.
Have a permanent front page: A permanent link is required and you should not change your front page frequently. Try to put up a separate and permanently linkable page for everything you want to get blogged.
Do not overcrowd one page: Never keep 20 items on a single page but give a link and separate those items. Because in an overcrowded page a user may not find the referenced item.
Always use real links: Don't have links with expiring session-keys. It can become unfruitful if someone revisits the URL later. Avoid the gobbledygook URLs, they stink.
Avoid using resized popup generating JavaScript: Any page that resizes the user’s window, auto-plays sound or remodels the user's environment to suit your taste should be avoided.

So Long, I will be back shortly with 5 more gems from my treasure island.

Blog Promotion is Easy: Apply the Fifteen Point System: Part 2

2008-03-14T02:18:00.000-07:00

In my Previous post Blog Promotion is Easy: Apply the Fifteen Point System: Part 1, I have discussed with you the 7 points of blog promotion. Now, I am presenting the next eight points.

Time is money: Patience always pays. So be patient and give time to the readers. It takes time to build readership.
Advertise: Advertising is good for brand promotion and at the same time blog promotion also. You can advertise your blog in the attempt to find new readers. You can advertise on a few sites using BlogAds.
Make it infectious: Make your blog viral so that it can pass on from one person to another. For instance you can add links on your posts that allow readers to bookmark the post in social bookmarking sites like digg.
Offline Techniques: Generally we ignore offline techniques which can be very helpful. You can put your URL on business cards, letterheads etc.
Active participation in other web forums: Do visit other discussion forums that explore similar ideas and interests.
Be yourself: Don’t copy content of other blogs, it never helps. Be yourself and have fun with new styles of writing.
Promote your site on Portals, Blog Indexes, Directories and Search Engines: Never be satisfied with your content and never believe that somebody will find you. Always be ready for online promotions.
Sign on your emails: Many bloggers do this and it works. Add the domain name to your outgoing email and this will be your email signature. Most email programs will allow you to do this automatically via a signature option.

So, these are the 15 points for blog promotion. Read it and apply it also and be a happy blogger.

Blog Promotion is Easy: Apply the Fifteen Point System: Part 1

2008-03-13T04:42:00.000-07:00

Your blogging purpose might be more than one. You might be blogging for money, for business, for networking, for fame or just for fun. Really, blog is a powerful tool for any of the mentioned purposes.
But the question is how your blog would experience more clicks and generate more traffic. There are certain points which should be taken care of while blogging. You can promote your blog in flowing ways.

Content is king: Make sure you are writing fresh content, something which can raise the interest in a particular subject.
Link to others: Getting the attention of other participants is necessary. You are advised to participate in the linking to other blogs. Also, while linking be selective and link to quality content that is relevant to your topic.
Get links from other bloggers: Yes, I understand it is difficult but there are certain ways if you are gentle and polite enough.
Start interacting with your readers: If a reader writes a comment for you or if he/she is emailed you, then do interact with them. And believe me it works!
Updating is must: Frequent posting is required and search engines also like it.
RSS feed promotion: You must promote your RSS feed. Put your RSS button in a more prominent position.
Be participative: To get promoted, sometimes participate is other blogger’s projects also. If others invite your participation then do contribute in some way.

The above points are needed to be remembered and I will return with my next blog with the next eight big points for blog promotion part 2.

Use Blog and Get Online Customers who listen

2008-03-07T04:01:00.001-08:00

Personal thoughts result in big business decisions. One concept of writing in the massive internet world is based on this statement. That particular piece of writing is known as a blog, which has derived from term web log.

Generally saying, a blog is a personal diary which can take any shape or size and there are no real rules of writing them. It can be a collection of links, a political thought, a breaking news outlet, some private thought about any subject or sometimes just an incident. There are many escribitionists all over the world. Now, who are these escribitionists? An escribitionist is a man or women who keeps a diary or journal by using electronic means and publishes their entries on the World Wide Web. We may also call them bloggers.

According to Google information, as of December 2007, a famous blog search engine Technorati was tracking more than 112 million blogs. The number of bloggers or diarists is increasing day by day and they are becoming great sources of valuable information.

Nowadays, a blog is working as a strong Internet marketing tool. Any website can use this weapon for enhancing more traffic and for link building. A question may arise as why a website should use a blog for the sake of online marketing. Following may be the reasons…

First, a blog is a simple and cost-effective way to create a professional online presence, which is the first prerequisite for online marketing. Second, it can create a conversation between you and the people who matter to you, i.e., your prospective online customers. Third, it is a tremendous way to boost your search engine rankings. And fourth, it allows you to take control of what you publish in your website.

Furthermore, a blog is a valuable business tool for collecting customer feedback and it creates a historical record of your content also. So start using this tool and see the difference in the traffic generation.

The right way to enhance Business Sales

2008-02-12T04:16:00.000-08:00

Link Building refers to a complete process of creation of inbound links to self-owned website, with a predefined aim to maximise sales and eventually profits. It is a common way to enhance the popularity level of a website besides bringing more business for it.

There are many organizations and individuals in the present day Iinternet world who with an aim to increase sales, start the process of link building. The result-oriented process then helps them to bring more and more traffic from relevant websites. It also helps in creation of website's credibility, awareness as well as visibility on the World Wide Web.

Link Building also helps the linked websites to get indexed by search engines such as Google and YAHOO to name a few. And, if the website has effective content with smart keywords, further refined by SEO techniques, the website is bound to appear in the top pages of these search engines, meaning more business for the organization.

As soon as two or more webmasters agree to share their links with each other on their respective websites, the attention of the prospective customers can be felt. This adds to more business sales and popularity of link(s) that eventually enhances the page rankings to considerable levels.

For example - A website owner dealing in cars can be approached by another website owner dealing in car accessories. Both these owners consent to place each other's links in their respective websites.

What will be the result? A prospective car buyer will have access to the car accessories' website when he pays a visit to the car dealer's website and vice-versa. This brings more business for both of these owners and as long as they bring business for each other, they will continue this process of link building. Thus, both are equal beneficiaries in their individual race for higher page rankings without hurting each other’s individual business as the businesses of these webmasters is complementary and not competitive.

So it can be rightly concluded that Link building can benefit all kinds of business if an effective link building strategy is planned and followed in an effective manner.

The five commandments to promote your website

2008-02-12T04:10:00.000-08:00

Search engine experts sometimes go blindly after projects and get derailed before reaching their final destination. There is little for a website owner given the tragic end that even experts face. But there are some areas on which you can work upon and hence lay a solid foundation for your online project. The five commandments, which every expert and publisher must keep in mind while making or promoting website, are:

Content is the King: Whatever appears on your website has a definite value. If your content is an average type, meaning that there are language and communication errors, few resources, unorganised presentation, there is little an optimising expert can do. On the contrary he may suggest you for a total reformation in the content. Spend some time as it is the business you are in.

Allocating the time: Everything happens in particular time frame. To tell you the truth there is no escaping, at least not in this case. Therefore, you must be able to devote your time everything right from the beginning of the project. You have to fragment the time frame to meet the requirements like stuffing of keywords, meta tags, submission of website, building links, doing promotion on social platforms, optimising the content, regular reviewing of performance, and more.

Tools and Techniques: You must be aware of all the tools and techniques that can help you in your promotion campaign. Just two or three search engine optimisation techniques won’t work. Also, the web is ever evolving and you have to keep an open eye as how to incorporate new techniques in your campaign. The list will include your organic optimisation, paid optimisation, advertising and exchange of links and banners, participating in forum discussions, article submissions, etc.

Monitoring: What happened on your website yesterday must be recorded, not remembered. It helps in an overall analysis of the website and in what way your techniques are helping.

Planning: Things work better when you have a plan. But make a plan based on the above descriptions. You sure will succeed.

Ruling The Web With Google Rules: Page Ranks And Backlinks

2008-02-12T04:04:00.000-08:00

Page Rank or PR is vital for everyone in the online business. It is one of the most essential aspects that are given high priority while designing the web sites. Google is known worldwide for its page rank algorithm. It uses a complex algorithm to scrutinize web pages. Based on the outcome, it decides the page ranks. The rule or formula of this algorithm is a well-kept secret.

However, what is known to everyone is that it takes into consideration the number of backlinks. Some websites get their backlinks by buying them for others and some through a link broker. Google does not appreciate this type of practice as it wants to give more importance to naturally stimulated page ranking and a fair one at that.

Views are divided on this issue as some agree wholeheartedly with it whereas there are others who think of this as an arrogant and manipulative move on Google’s part. Page Rank score is crucial, since it can designate one page as being more prestigious than others (and hence generate more traffic by figuring higher on Google's search results). You can say that Page Rank score and traffic are directly proportional to each other.

Reciprocal link does not impress Google's algorithm inasmuch as award of Page Rank is concerned, so it is (now) considered a big waste of time. Google appreciates one-way links when it comes to Search Engine Optimization.

The main problem faced by most of the online marketers is how to find valuable and suitable links for their websites. There are 2 ways to go about it. They are

· Do it yourself

· Outsourcing

The do-it-yourself method is challenging and time consuming. It means taking the time to build and maintain good relationships with other websites (or webmasters). It will assist in increasing the organic page rank.

Outsourcing involves using an assortment of agencies that specialize in this technique. This allows you to get backlinks from a range of other web sites. However, when it comes to outsourcing your link building, it is best to be cautious.

Social networking, on the other hand is taking over the traditional techniques for acquiring one-way links to your website. It is however, in an experimental stage but showing considerable success and quickly improving the page rank.

The main factor that Google considers while ranking a page is the quality and number of backlinks. Online marketers should pay special attention to this fact especially in web design. If you play by the Google rules, there is every chance of your hitting high page ranking!

Quality Links are important. How can you get them?

2008-02-12T04:00:00.000-08:00

To make a website popular in the internet and to enhance its web presence it is essential to promote it in the right method. As part of the online marketing and promotions technique, link exchange plays an essential role in promoting a website. It is easy to link with a number of websites that are easily available, but acquiring a quality link is a tough game which every webmaster wishes to crack.

Inbound links are essential in bringing any website to a higher rank in the search engines. To rank well in the search engines the website does not only require links from any website, but from sites that have an equivalent high page rank. These high ranking links are called quality links that carry a higher weightage than the numerous low graded pages that they are linked with.

The first criteria of any web page linking should be the relevancy factor. Acquiring links for un-related websites does not help the site in anyway apart from gather n-number of links. They do not add any value to the sites. Therefore, it is important to acquire links from related websites. Promotion campaigns carried out on authority sites carry a lot of value and add quality to your website.

Directory submissions and article postings too is a very effective and essential way of earning in-bound links to your website. The advantage of article posting and web directory submissions is that they are always one-way traffic that increases your web visibility to a much greater extent than any other technique.

Getting listed with other related business partners is also an effective method of acquiring quality in-bound links. Other places where you can post your website URL and address in order to achieve one-way inbound links are the Yellow pages and other such online directories and by posting promotional content in other sites that generally carry classified advertisements.

Though there are several methods in which we can promote our websites by acquiring quality links, the most important factor that needs to be kept in mind always is that the content or postings that are being added anywhere in the internet carry an essence of the website in concern. Meaning, they should be related and relevant.

Paid links and your stagnant business

2008-02-12T03:58:00.001-08:00

In case you happen to have interest in Search Engine Optimization or Search Engine Marketing, I have a got a few things to share with you. So, I will try to be as forthcoming as these few words would allow me.

Search engine optimizing means customizing the contents of your website in order to be visible in the search engine. There are various techniques that are employed and also several components that come under Search engine optimization and marketing. Website links that exist in the form of back links are one among the primary components that determine how good a site is. A very good website which has a good page rank in several search engines will have good number of back links.

Website links constituted one of the many external parameters on which the importance of the website was determined by the search engines. This very fact was exploited by the webmasters and they actually started buying links from other websites. A website having a better page rank normally does not give a back link to the one with lower rank. But when money comes in the picture it is all possible. So that is how we got the concept of paid links.

However the people responsible for giving us such prototypes as Google search engine itself must never be undermined. Over the years the search engines have modified their ranking parameter and paid links are losing again. So, the fair practice and the importance of good links is still maintained.

Other than paid links, there is one more thing called sponsored links. One must not confuse the paid links with that of sponsored links. The sponsored links are those who are bought from the search engines to display the advertisement or promotional message. The two are quite different. Now that you have an idea of links, paid links and website links, you can go ahead and search for more details.

5 Tips on Building Links with Popular Websites

2008-02-12T03:55:00.000-08:00

I have always stressed on the importance of link building. Paid links are an easier option if you are new to the internet business. Free links are hard to come by and if they are with popular services and web sites, they may be even harder to get.

But that should not be the cause of worry for you since there are a number of ways in which to get free links. I am going to share 5 great tips with all the webmasters who appreciate the value of links. I will be focusing on building links with popular services and web sites.

* Ask and answer questions on Yahoo! Answers and put links in related articles on your site. It is one of the easier ways of building links pointed to your site.

* You can submit your offers on Craiglist depending on the kind of website you have. It's a free place to promote your offers on internet!

* If you believe your website or blog is fairly reputable, you can easily mention it on Wikipedia.

* For a short time you can create a website which deals with topics that are dealt by Squidoo. You can create some link backs to your web site.

* You can also create Digg submission that links to your site article. Creating digg batches on your website is an effective way to link building.

6 TIPS FOR BUYING LINKS

2008-02-07T03:19:00.000-08:00

In an earlier post, losing significance of paid links, I had talked about paid links losing their credibility and being on the downward spiral. However, buying text links can increase the web presence and in turn generate more traffic for the website in short time also also helpful in building link popularity.

From my point of view, you can go for paid links when your website is new. In case you are opting to buy links, there are few points to be remember, they are:

Purpose of buying links : The first thing to be kept in mind is to determine the motive or purpose of buying the links. If you are aiming at increased traffic and better results of search engines, choose the text links that are relevant and related to your web page.
One way links : The next thing is to make sure that the bought links are directed towards your own website only.
Opt for longer subscription : While buying text links, you should opt for longer subscription. The time-gap projected for search engines' picking up the link is generally very high. Therefore, weekly and monthly subscriptions may not always work.
Prior knowledge : Get prior information on the text links that you are planning to buy. Many links on the web are bogus ones. The site of the age also plays an important role as Google gives such sites more credibility.
Variations in anchor text :Buy variations in the anchor text. This will give you an advantage of covering broad categories on your site. It is a sensible strategy, especially when visitors desire different things.
Well visited site : Buy links from a well known and popular site which boosts of lot of visitors. There is no point of buying links from a site which doesn’t generate much traffic.

The fact of the matter is that sometimes the only way to compete in a cut throat market may be to buy links. I would suggest that you invest in buying links if you are new to the business. After you have established yourself, you can switch to free link sharing and link exchange. I believe that if these 6-things are kept in mind, you can buy links that may turn out to be beneficial in the long run.

Losing significance of paid links

2008-02-05T20:40:00.000-08:00

In the present day world of online marketing people want fast results and do not find it worth to go for natural optimisation techniques. To stand in the competition, and want quick result to stand their, people think for short method link paid optimization. Whether such a move helps can be debated.

From my point of you, if I am handling a business or website I would rather go for natural optimisation like to come with hundreds of keywords and on the first pages of the search engines. That would be an ideal situation, one we can only try to achieve. To reach to such a level or gain a very good search engine page rank, some website publishers often go crazy and about anything. No sooner did they realize that links were giving better results in terms of ranking, all of them started massive campaigns to get as many links as can be got. Sometimes buying, some times begging, the owners or promoters have just broken all limits.

We would start from a very basic question – Does paid link really help and if so to what extent? In the heydays of online promotions the masters of the web could see the impact of the number of back links on the page rank. Popular search engines including Google, provided more than simple analysis of the sites based on algorithms.

Links were and still are considered as important resources that any website is linked to. But when the habit of buying links became popular the search engines also redefined the priorities. All this has led to a verification of the kind of links a website is using. In case of links that are found as being bought rather than being shared or wishfully granted, the search engines are not much convinced. With the result the importance or significance of paid links has been observing a decline.

The best practice is not the buying of a website link but earning one. For that your own product must be outstanding in quality as well as the practices you are engaged must be genuine. Google knows it, in fact it knows everything.

For more visit Online Marketing information

Tips For Successful link baiting

2008-02-05T04:08:00.000-08:00

When it is time to hook some good sites for links, caution is advised. Webmasters are aware of the value that a link has. You are not going to get it that easy and it is more difficult once the potential link-givers know that you want a link. Therefore, if something has to be taken; some bait has to be used.

If the web is the pool or lake where you go link baiting, then networking is your angling rod. It is because of networking that we are connected to a large number of people. One amusing story or a comment that is put across such a network will spread like anything. But does it happen always? The simple answer is: No. It is because the bait itself has to be tempting enough to woo the audience and the website owners. There is no hard and fast rule to what can be used as bait or how it is to be spread. But there are some common practices and patterns observed by professionals everywhere. Here are some steps to help you in your link baiting campaign:

Make bait that can spread like a virus: Your bait can have such characteristics as being humorous, controversial, informative, novel, patronizing or anything that will grab the attention. The bait has to be made keeping into consideration the audience behavior.
Find the appropriate channel or community where it can be inserted: Think of various social media and community sites wherein you can put the bait. There are many portals that some people have been utilizing.
Your bait must be timely: Once you have prepared bait, its deployment must be timely. For instance an event is coming up and more people are supposed to be online or searching for something. Your bait in that case has to have some relevance with the event.

Six things to look for in a good web directory

2008-02-01T23:17:00.000-08:00

Web directory is a platform where a number of resource websites are enlisted. These online directories are specific and contain any one kind of websites. Website directories are very useful and help in the search engine promotion of the websites. A website that is listed in a good web directory is given a preference by the search engines. Therefore you can use these directories in enhancing your page rank and traffic on the website.

Don’t just run off and start doing it. Good things come to those who wait and watch more closely. The seven best features to look for, before you go hunting for an appropriate web directory are:

Relevancy: Search for a directory that has relevant websites. If you have a news website then you must go for a news directory only. I am sure you won’t like your website to be a misfit.

Popular Directories: Do not experiment with the directories and try only the popular ones. There are directories that contain all but trash. At the same time you have some popular directories in which many authoritative and quality websites are listed.

Unique Design and Presentation: The directory must not be like some copied version of any other popular version. There are directories that have very innovative and unique design and presentation. Go for them.

Go for old ones: Yes, go for the old ones that have been serving for many years.

Search Engine Ranking: The web directory must have a good page rank. A good page rank for the directory is considered important by the search engines.

Pages must be crawled by search engine spiders: The directories whose pages are not crawled by the spiders are of no use. Such directories have NOFOLLOW tags provided.

These are the features of good web directories and try looking for them and then only submit.

Useful Guidelines for Natural Link Building

2008-01-31T23:45:00.000-08:00

There are many ways to promote your website and to increase your presence in the web. As the Search Engine is the main source of your web traffic. While doing link building you have to keep in mind some points so that you will get good quality of link.

As our Main motive for getting links on other website is that search engine spiders -

Find your website.

Crawl your site more frequently.

Crawl your site more deeply.

As link building plays a very crucial role in seo. So backlines you acquire should have:

Anchor Text: While doing link exchange, target your keywords but used varied anchor text.
Relevancy : Links from related pages carry more weightege than high PR webpage.
Location : Get links from different place of the page i.e. top of the page, inside the body text, navigation, footer etc.
Gradually increase the links for the new website. Do not place hundred or thousand of links in the first day of promotion. Placing more links in first day, get the website this Google banned the website. As one quality of link is more useful than 100 of bad links.
Page Rank : Get the links from different pr. Try to get links from high pr also.
Neighborhood: Don't link with adult, pharmacy, and poker site.
IP : Get links from different IP's
Age of domain :Try to get the links from old website or domain. Getting links with both old and new domain is also good.
Deep Link :Target your inner page also with home page.
Age of Lin :Always try to get permanent link not temporary, as Google give more weightege to the age of your back links.
Paid Link : Don’t go majority for paid links, as Google dislikes it.
Avoid Bad Neighbor :Do not place your links on pages that contains bad neighbors.

Blogging - An overview

2008-01-28T21:37:00.000-08:00

One of the ways to build one way quality content link for your website is the blog.
A blog is a web page consists of usually short, frequently latest and updated content that are arranged like a page. People use blog for various reason. Blog can contain different types of content and the purpose of the blog varies greatly. Blog content are like instant messages to the web.

Sometimes blogs are written to give vent to ones personal feelings; sometimes it is written by experts to give their views of certain topics so that others can read them and get benefited. As they are written from first hand experience, as they are informative and work as a good promotional tool.

It is because of this quality of blogs, SEOs, webmasters and online marketing experts can use them for getting quick and effective end-result.

Blogs are categories in varies types and each differs in the way content is written. Blog comprising of videos called “vlog”, comprising links called “linkblog”, comprising photos called “photoblog”, written by a mobile device called “moblog” and if a blog is mainly about politics, it can be called as “ political blog”.

There are many blog publishing services available online which are free for the user. Some of them are blogger, wordpress, typepad, blog.co.uk etc

Steps to Create Blog

1) Select the blog publishing services. Assume you have selected www.Blogger.com

2) If you have your personal gmail id, login with the gmail id. or Create new by clicking "CREATE YOUR BLOG NOW.

3) Fill the form correctly and then click on the continue.

4) Fill the name of the blog. Place the Blog title and the url which you want to create

. Name and the title should be relevant to the content you will publish.

5) Check the availability of the blog name. when you find the blog url name then click on continue.

6) Select the template of the blog.

7) After selecting the template you can start posting the posts.

These are the elementary points to create a blog. A detail process of blog promotion and development will be explained in our next post.

Useful Guidelines For Directory Submission

2008-01-28T02:15:00.000-08:00

Getting one way links to the website or to improve your SERP, you need good quality incoming links from other website. Directory submission is the one of the best ways to build links.

In the initial phases of the website, when your website is new and not well promoted. To increase link popularity of website or to generate some incoming links in the initial days, Directory submission s the best way. As there are many online directories which are giving free links to build the link popularity and helps website to be in SERP.

If you are so attentive to the details about quality links, you can get some great quality one way links fro free from niche directories. This help in to increase pages rank of the website, along with visitors. As there are many online directories and all directories many not be good for your website. Just select the good and the relevant directories from other millions of directories.

There are few criteria for proper directory submission to get quality of links from quality and seo friendly online directories. Find below some common criteria to keep in mind while doing directory submission, as good directories do not include these pages:

As most of the quality directories do not include site that are under construction. So first build the website completely before you go for directory submission.
Do not submit orphan pages or gateway pages, as many good directories do not include these pages.
Do not submit the link which contain the affiliate program or generate and sell leads to third party.
Some directories not allow deep linking i.e. links to internal pages. Submit main url here.
Submit your page under the most relevant category or the webmasters may decline your link.
Your link may be decline if your site has duplicate content issues or duplicate site structure alone or if you site is mirror site.
Most of the directories do not allow URLs that redirect to another website.
Some directories do not allow sites that have broken links.Submit the link with relevant anchor text.

Good directories always look for quality and most of the time they are edited by real human beings, who knows all the black hat technique.

Proper directory submission is often a time consuming and hectic job for webmasters. By following above rules you will get good response and build huge one way links.

You can know more about Directory Submission visit : Make Way for Directory Submissions
Why Directory Submissions?
Free Website Directory List Part - I
Free Website Directory List Part - II
How to Choose a Directory for Submission?

Quality Links are difficult to find than Quantity Links

2008-01-24T23:39:00.000-08:00

As per my previous post “Factors that give value to link - known as quality link”, I made a clear view of how you can differentiate quality links from the bulk of links. As quality links are helpful in adding value to your website and make a presence in search engine SERP.

Every webmaster knows that to be in top SERP, link building plays a very crucial role. So the webmaster’s are very eager on adding more links to their sites to increase their web presence. But what they usually forget is that making lots of links for the website is not enough. Links should have some quality so that search engine gives weightege and help the website to be in top. It’s a fact that one related and high quality link is equivalent to ten such non relevant quantity links.

There are many technique and criteria to build a quality link as discussed in my previous post “Factors that give value to link - known as quality link”. Getting quality links is time consuming but it helps the website to grow. While doing link exchange check the link in the quality parameter. You can’t find all factors satisfied in one link, but help to decide to select the good links from the rest. Making irrelevant link is easy but doest not helps you, but making a huge link list and Google can penalize your website.

It is suggested, that everyone who is wishing to work on the promotion and branding of the website must approach towards building quality links rather than its counterparts.

Factors that give value to link - known as quality link

2008-01-22T21:11:00.000-08:00

In every article corresponding to the link building, you will always read about "quality of link", "build quality links" etc . There you cant find the meaning and explanation of quality of link. The main question here is: How do you determine which of many links in best? How you recognise the quality link?

It is very difficult to define quality links, as what looks good to me may or may not look good to other person. Here i am trying to put the main broad aspect or factors which i might look for considering the quality of links. They are :

Links from the related website : When i search for links i would prefer the links from the site or web pages which is similar to my website or web page.
Links From Trusted & authority site : As search engine (google, msn, etc) give more important to the links which comes from the trusted site like .edu and .gov, rather than a link from a normal website.
Inbound Links (one way) : Search engines give more value on a link that is not reciprocated.
Links that crawled frequently.
Links with relevant anchor text.
Links that can send direct traffic.
Links from Higher Page Rank.
Links which is placed in the page which containing content rather than links.
Link placed in the page where outbound links are less.
Age of the domain and the age of the links
Robots.txt excluded page

As all the mentioned criteria are not fulfilled while doing link exchange. But it will help you to decide good links from the bulk link. These are the points which i look while doing link exchange.

Tips to promote deep links

2008-01-21T04:06:00.000-08:00

As deep links are very useful in our link building campaign, as already discussed about this in our previous post "Deep Linking – An Overview" , "Benefits of Deep Linking"

The ways of promoting internal pages are almost similar to the home page promotion, but there are some additional thing which are required to keep in mind :

Directory Submission : Submit the internal links in directories that allow deep links. While submitting the link, concentrate on the keyword which you will used in anchor text. Submit in Relevant category.
Article submission : You can promote internal links in Artilce submission. Add internal links in resource or author box.
Blogs
Link Building
Forum Signature
Comments
Social Bookmarketing
Pay Per Click
Google Adwords

Steps to follow while doing link exchange

2008-01-18T01:13:00.000-08:00

Link Exchange is the one of the important and popular process to increase the link popularity of the website. Getting good quality of link is very tough. There are many criteria to be understand and followed before agreeing for link exchange with the other website. They are:

Home page PR (pr should be equal or greater then your website)
Website should be relevant to your website
PR of the web page where our link will place should be equal to more than our resource page
Resource Page should have link from home page.
Resource page should not more than 2 clicks away from home page
Resource page contains relevant link related to your website or business.
Page should not contain more than 30 links.
Resource page where you link will be place should not contains adult, porker, health related links.
Resource page should be cached.
Cached Date of the resource page should be checked. (If page is not recently cached then don’t do linking with the website i.e. if the page is cached 2 to 3 month back from the current month).
Check the cached text of the resource page to know the content is crawled by search engine spider.
Check

META NAME="ROBOTS" CONTENT="NOINDEX, NOFOLLOW"
META NAME="GOOGLEBOT" CONTENT="NOINDEX, NOFOLLOW
META NAME="ROBOTS" CONTENT="NOFOLLOW"
META NAME="ROBOTS" CONTENT="NOIMAGEINDEX"

Robot.txt :

Disallow: /
Disallow: /private_directory/
Disallow: /private_file.html

To know more about robot txt visit http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?answer=40362&topic=8846 http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?answer=61050&topic=8846

Check whether the site is running properly or banned by the search engine.
Check the resource page is it visible in search engine.
Website should not be a Directory, it should be giving some business or selling products.

The Best Hooks for Link Baiting Success

2007-12-23T21:42:00.000-08:00

I have briefly discussed link baiting hooks in my last post. This post is just a continuation of the same. Listed below are some of the issues that can generate tremendous interest amongst web users:

News

It is the most effective means of growing your online community. Let people know about the latest happenings of the world. If you deliver the right kind of news at the right time, users will trust you to be a credible source and will look forward to more information from your end.

Contradiction

Write stuff that contradicts something said by someone else in your field. If that person is popular, you will get publicity by saying something contrary to his/her opinion. However, it is imperative here that you have a very strong justification for whatever you write.

Attack

Launch an 'attack' on your competition. This will entice users to read your stuff. However, there is a risk associated with maligning someone. You have to have good enough reasons for doing something like this. Plus, there are chances that your readers start sympathising with your competitors. Be very careful when you apply this tactic.

Apart from these, you can use humour, fear, resourcefulness, etc. as the baits to attract targeted visitors to your web feature.

What is Link Baiting?

2007-12-21T22:03:00.000-08:00

Akin to fishing, Link Baiting is the process of baiting online visitors to place links on an element within a website. The bait can be in the form of content or any other exciting feature that can attract web users.

Based on the principle of viral marketing, this link building technique has become exceedingly popular in recent times. Not only can it increase the number of links pointing to a web page, but also ensure they come from relevant, good quality sources.

The best way to go about link baiting is by devising a small publicity campaign around the feature that you want to be linked. You can make use of blogs, forums, online communities, et al, to spread word about the piece. If users find your piece impelling, they will, automatically, link to it. This means, you get effective back links without actually going around requesting for the same!

Listed below are some of the easiest link baiting techniques:

Provide information that your users may find useful. You can also guide them on how to go about a certain task.
Spread news about latest developments in your industry. People like to keep themselves updated about the world, and will be drawn to your bait.
Offer something humorous or controversial. In both cases, you will be able to catch the attention of a visitor. However, when you write something controversial, make sure you have strong justifications for the same.

Try these baits and you will be able to attract the 'big fish' – web traffic!

Benefits of Deep Linking

2007-12-20T04:39:00.000-08:00

Deep linking, as discussed in my previous post, is the process of linking to internal pages of a website and not the homepage. Although a few optimisers believe this activity should not be encouraged, the others think it can be quite advantageous for the prospects of a website.

First and foremost, deep links provide 'one click' navigation to web users. If a site directs users to the exact location of the item they searched for, they will take it to be a credible source. This is because they will have an effortless, hassle-free navigation through web pages. This navigational ease will, in all probability, increase the traffic inflow of your site – the ultimate aim of all marketing campaigns.

When it comes to optimisation benefits, deep linking can be quite useful, because they are natural links. Search engines always prefer sites that have a good mix of homepage and internal page links. They use smart techniques to identify unnatural or paid links. Therefore, if other sites deep link to your site, it'll foster the optimisation of your pages.

Deep Linking – An Overview

2007-12-19T04:16:00.000-08:00

In lay terms, deep links are links that point to a specific page on a website, instead of the site's homepage. Most of the links pointing to a website are directed to the homepage. However, if your site manages to have a sound deep-linking structure, it will have great prospects in search engine indexing.

Although search engines do not give extra importance to deep linked pages, such links always make your link building campaign appear 'natural'. As an optimiser, you should work on all your web pages, instead of focusing just on the homepage. In fact, the homepage should not be bombarded with keyword targeting.

When you allow deep linking on your site, keep the following points in mind:

Your visitors should know which page they have landed on. Make way for hassle-free internal navigation and help users proceed to other sections of your website.
Provide relevant links on every page and make sure each of your internal pages link back to the homepage. Use anchor texts smartly to impress search engine crawlers.
Do not assume the arrival source of your visitors. They might have no idea about your website when they land on an internal page. Therefore, you have to make each of your pages informative and relevant to your business. Provide good info on your main products and services and lure users to 'act'.

In my next post, I will discuss some other important aspects of deep linking and how it contributes to the success of your website.

Influential Link Building Factors

2007-12-18T04:30:00.000-08:00

This one's straight from the horse's mouth! I recently came across an online report that listed down the most influential factors of a link building campaign, as stated by SEO professionals themselves. Thought of sharing it with my readers. Read through this list and weigh these factors on your own importance scale.

Positive Factors
Anchor text
Age of the link
Type of link (image or text)
Quantity of links
Reciprocal links
Location of link on the web page
Location of link in the source code

Negative Factors
Links in a Robots.txt excluded web pages
Links in penalised pages
Redirected links
JavaScript links
Paid links
Links on NoIndex page

Every webmaster or optimiser has a different take on all these factors. But, by and large, the negative points mentioned here impacts almost every site.

Search engines cannot penalise you if the 'wrong' kind of sites point a link to your web pages. However, you risk being blacklisted if it is the other way round. When you strategise the link building campaign for your business, be very careful of who you link to.

Get Quality Links Driven to your Blog

2007-12-17T00:26:00.000-08:00

Blogging is quite a happening thing for web businesses. Most of them are using blogs to better their prospects in the online marketplace and reach out to like-minded people. Blogs can play a significant role in the process of search engine optimisation too. If you use correct techniques to drive quality links to your blog, you can make the desired impact.

It might take time; plus, there is no guarantee of results. Nonetheless, this effort will help you better your visibility on search engines. Try the following tips to promote your blog through link building:

Link to niche blogs
Comment on blogs that are relevant to your business
Outlink on a large scale, albeit carefully
Submit your blog to online blog directories.
Provide relevant, informative content.
Blog posts should be simple and comprehensible by lay users
Incorporate 'About Us' section to give a professional look to your blog
Write and submit articles and press releases if possible
Invite friends and peers to comment on your posts and give a link back to their site
Tag your blog in social bookmarking sites
Use a link as signature when you participate in forums

These points will help you cater to the right kind of people, who are associated with your business or industry in some way or the other. Strengthen your blog using link building strategies so as to promote your Internet business in a niche market.

Link Building Dos and Don'ts

2007-12-15T01:50:00.000-08:00

Search engine optimisation companies face numerous queries about what is right or wrong for the process of link building. Through this post, I'll try and dispel some common misconceptions about this service. Listed below are the dos and don'ts for webmasters indulging in link building:

Dos

Vary the anchor text of all your external links. Incorporate your main keywords in accordance with the landing page of the link.
All that you do for your link building campaign should be well documented for future use. Take time out from your schedule and make sure you have a written record of internal and external links of your site
Use news agency sites or RSS feeds to get links back to your web pages. Not only do they bring targeted traffic, but also strengthen your optimisation campaign.
If you can afford it, buy links from popular industry-related websites. This will add on to your popularity and also get you desired traffic.
Exchange links with sites that are relevant to your business. Do not waste your time in building links with websites that are not related to your industry at large.

Don'ts

Buy links for any other reason but advertising. Most search engines detest web pages that have 'paid for' links pointing at them. You will lose your credibility and rankings by doing so.
Get into negative techniques like spamming blogs, forums or user groups. Violating cyber laws can get you and your website into trouble.
Exchange links with link farms or websites offering special reciprocal link schemes. If caught, you can get penalised or blacklisted by search engines.
Keep these points in mind when you set about establishing the link building programme for your website.

Why do Web Businesses Buy Links?

2007-12-13T21:22:00.000-08:00

Link buying is fast emerging as the latest optimisation trend for online businesses. However, most of the SEOs are confused about the benefits or repercussions of the same. Forums have been discussing this issue for quite some now, and I, on my part, would like to provide some inputs on the subject.

First of all, let us look into the reasons that propel web businesses to buy links. They believe it is the only realistic way of getting good, relevant links to your web pages. They are willing to risk their search engine credibility to get better rankings in quicker time. Getting approval for quality links can be a slow, tiresome process. A number of optimisers get a feeling of instant gratification by buying links.

Then, there are people who have lost all hope with regard to their site's optimisation prospects. Out of hopelessness, they opt for this paid service – buy links and stay put in the competition. Above all, links determine the PageRank (PR) of web pages. Therefore, the more quality links you have, the better will be the PR of your site.

Article Submission and Website Optimisation

2007-12-11T23:13:00.000-08:00

Does article submission help in the optimisation of your website? The answer to this question can be both yes and no, depending on where your articles are posted. When you write an article and post it in article directories, make sure that you do not post the same write-up in your website. Once you submit something in a directory and the page gets cached by a search engine, it is considered to be the original source of the content.

If your website is crawled after the directory, and the search engine finds exactly the same content on your pages, it will consider it as duplicate. Therefore, it is always advisable to post content in your site first. Wait for your pages to get cached, and then submit the write-ups in directories. By doing so, you can ensure that your site's articles will be considered original.

Also, when you write articles for submission, pay attention to their titles and summary. The former should be appealing and should incorporate your main keyword. Whereas, the latter should be a gist of your article and should be able to lure readers on to going through the whole content.

When it comes to providing links in your article, you have two options – body of the write-up and resource section. Here, you should remember that one keyword should link to only one URL of your site. If you happen to target two keywords through an article, make sure that they link to different URLs.

These basic tips will help you formulate a well-targeted link building campaign for your site. Article submission can be extremely effective; but only when dealt with in the right manner.

What is a Good Article Directory?

2007-12-06T22:46:00.000-08:00

When we talk of article submission as a link building tool, it is very important to discuss web directories that allow submission of write-ups by optimisers. The online marketplace is strewn with directories – both paid and free – that offer this service. But, you need to choose the right ones in accordance with your requirements.

What is considered a good article directory?

One that moderates the submitted content. Even if you have edited an article at your end, it is the directory's job to check your write-ups for possible errors.
One that displays most recent articles on its homepage, categorised on the basis of topics.
One that displays articles with submission dates. This will help readers gauge the value of the articles chosen by them.
One that provides this service free of cost. There is no point in investing money in article submissions just for the sake of getting links back to your site.
One that gives URLs that are search-engine friendly. It helps in faster indexing of your articles.

When you decide to get into article submissions, judge directories on the basis of the aforementioned points. In my next post, I'll enlist some of the most popular article directories that can help you in strengthening your link building campaign.

Article Submission – The Basics

2007-12-05T22:43:00.000-08:00

A highly-effective off-page optimisation technique, article submission, unfortunately, still happens to be a highly under-utilised service too. Most online businesses believe there are much better ways of procuring links and therefore shy away from getting into this service.

However, article submission is not as simple as it sounds. To write an article, you do not need to be a subject matter expert, or a student of literature. But, you definitely need to be competent in presenting facts in a way that they intrigue readers. To be able to do this, you first need to understand a few basics about this service.

What is Article Submission?
It is an optimisation technique, wherein you can write impelling articles relevant to your business and submit them into article directories available online.

What do you write about?
You can write on any topic that interests you. However, it will help your business only when you write on subjects that are related to your product/service, business or industry at large.

What are links from supplemental pages?
These are links that come from pages that have been supplemented by a search engine.

Are links from supplemental pages worthless?
Not exactly. If you are looking for PR, they will be worthless for your campaign, because most of the supplemental pages have zero or very low PR. But otherwise, these pages do carry link value.

In my next post, I will discuss article directories as a source of link building. Questions like what is a good directory, which are the popular online article directories, etc. will be dealt with then.

Top Press Release Submission Websites - II

2007-12-04T00:46:00.000-08:00

Continuing from the last post, here is a list of other popular websites that accept Press Release submission from online businesses. Some of these sites provide this service for free, while the others charge a nominal amount for the same.

From the following list, pick the website(s) that best your business requirements:

www.directionsmag.com
www.media-press-release.com
www.malebits.com
www.newswiretoday.com
www.pr9.net
www.pressbox.co.uk
www.pressmethod.com
www.pressreleasespider.com
www.przoom.com
www.theopenpress.com
www.prfree.com
www.addpr.com
www.bizeurope.com
www.epressreleases.org
www.pocketpcwire.com
www.press411.com
www.pressblaster.net
www.prnuke.com
www.afly.com
www.geek.com
www.baygo.com
www.fastpitchnetworking.com
www.press-base.com
www.press-library.com
www.press-world.com

Submit your PR and get links back to your site. This link building strategy will stand your optimisation campaign in good stead.

Top Press Release Submission Websites

2007-12-01T03:23:00.000-08:00

My last post provided an insight into the art of writing press releases. Once you have written a well-defined PR, you need to submit it into various web directories that are meant for this purpose.

The following is a list of 20 popular websites that allow Press Release submission:

www.prndirect.prnewswire.com
www.i-newswire.com
www.betanews.com
www.npr.org
www.usnewswire.com
www.console.prweb.com
www.24-7pressrelease.com
www.clickpress.com
www.efytimes.com
www.free-news-release.com
www.freshnews.com
www.nanotech-now.com
www.openpr.com
www.powerhomebiz.com
www.programmersheaven.com
www.pr.com
www.prleap.com
www.express-press-release.com
www.1888pressrelease.com
www.downloadjunction.com

Submit your news or event-related PR and get a link back to your site. Not only will this strengthen your link building campaign, it will also get targeted traffic diverted to your pages.

How to Write a Press Release that can bring in Links

2007-11-29T04:27:00.000-08:00

As discussed in the previous post, Press Release submission can be an effective means of getting links back to your site. As a marketer, you should the basics of a PR so as to reach out to your target audiences. Press Releases can be of many types – news release, event release, product release, etc. However, most of them usually contain the same kind of features.

Some of the common elements of a PR are as follows:
Headline – A brief summary of the news item. It is meant to grab the readers' attention straightaway.

Dateline – Mentions the release date and name of the city where the news has originated.

Introduction – Based on the journalistic principle of five Ws and one H, the intro paragraph should answer the basic questions that readers might want to ask.

Body – Complete information on the news or event, including background and statistical data. It should comprise as many details as possible.

Boilerplate – This is the 'About Us' section, wherein you can give background info about the organisation or company releasing the news.

Close – It is just to indicate that the release is about to end. To be put before the media contact information, the close can be indicated by using universally-accepted signs like '###' or 'text ends', etc.

Media Contact Info – This will be the contact address, phone numbers or email ids of the person or organisation submitting the PR. This will help media persons in getting in touch with you if need be.

When you write a PR for your website, make sure incorporate the aforementioned elements. By doing so, you will be able to appeal your potential visitors. Also, the site wherein you submit the PR will give a link to your site, thus strengthening your link building campaign.

Press Release Submission can help in Link Building

2007-11-27T02:28:00.000-08:00

Having discussed directory submission in great detail, I would now like to talk about Press Release submission, another useful means of building links for your website. In lay terms, a Press Release, also known as News Release, is a written form of communication meant to announce something newsy through the news media.

In the world of search engine optimisation too, Press Releases (PR) can be of great help when it comes to relay of news. This news should ideally be related to your product/service, or business at large. For example, if your company has launched a new website, you can write a PR on the same and spread the word around.

The process is simple. Write a PR, and submit it to various online PR directories that actually accept such write-ups. By doing so, you not only relay info, but also get a link back to your site. This will strengthen your link building campaign as targeted traffic from these sites will be directed to your web pages.

More about Press Releases in the next post...

How to Choose a Directory for Submission?

2007-11-24T01:45:00.000-08:00

Having presented a list of popular directories, I would now like to talk about choosing the best directory for your site's submission services. Do not think too much about their PageRanks when taking your decision. Rally around these important selection factors instead:

Find out if the directory is indexed by the topmost search engines. If it has not been cached by search engines for a long period of time, there is definitely no point in submitting your links on it.
Established, popular directories can bring in traffic and also the kind of back links that'll actually foster your site's optimisation process.
When you submit your site into categories, make sure that the directory in question offers a unique category structure that helps in better organisation of info. This will help you in locating relevant information in quick time.
If a directory uses the 'rel=no follow' attribute for your link, search engines will actually never follow that link to your site. Therefore, such a directory will be of absolutely no help in your optimisation campaign. Even redirects are usually not considered for back links by search engines.
Always check the outbound links on the directory's pages. This will give you a good insight into how helpful such a submission would be for your site.

Tally these relevant points with the directories chosen by you, and you will have a clearer picture of what will or will not work for your web business.

Free Website Directory List Part - II

2007-11-22T22:12:00.000-08:00

Find more directories to increase your backlink.

http://www.dir.ajnin.com/
http://www.directory143.com/
http://directory.rankorama.de/
http://www.directorybin.com/
http://www.directorystorm.com/
http://directoryzeal.com/
http://www.directoryws.com/
http://www.dirsubmission.net/
http://www.egold-directory.com/
http://www.elitesitesdirectory.com/
http://search.ezilon.com/
http://www.f7w.net/
http://www.fastdir.info/
http://www.findwhatwhere.info/
http://www.freewebsitedirectory.com/
http://www.freekicktemple.com/directory/
http://www.freshtv.com/
http://www.catalog.fubix.com/
http://www.global-markings.com/
http://directory.gtsee.com/
http://www.go2directory.info/
http://www.greatwebdirectory.com/
http://www.hao221.com/
http://www.blong.info/
http://www.indexwebdirectory.com/
http://www.indexu.net/
http://www.information4u.net/
http://directory.inmeres.com/
http://www.inwebdirectory.com/
http://www.iwebinfo.com/
http://www.klik-klik.com/directory/
http://www.knil-link.com/
http://letsgetwealthyonline.com/
http://www.linedirectory.com/
http://www.linkcube.info/
http://links.w529.com/
http://www.linksweb.info/
http://www.linkwebdir.info/
http://www.londovor.com/
http://www.propr.info/
http://www.activedir.info/
http://dir.mymaldives.com/
http://www.matrixsolutnz.net/
http://miko67.com/business-directory/
http://www.mmorpgcrypt.com/links.asp
http://onebestlink.com/directory/
http://www.piseries.com/
http://www.earth-directory.info/
http://www.pr3plus.com/
http://www.programmingresources.net
http://www.properdirectory.com/
http://www.quickdirectory.biz/
http://www.registerlink.info/
http://www.riotnews.com/
http://www.seodirectorys.com/v2/
http://www.searchwiz.org/
http://webdir.addsite-submitfree.com/
http://www.sitelinked.com/
http://www.siteseek.net/
http://www.skypemedia.com/
http://www.submission4u.com/
http://www.suggestlink.co.in/
http://www.swick-a-licken.com/
http://www.indexunlimited.com/
http://www.yoofindit.com/
http://www.directoryworm.com/
http://www.bookwallet.org/
http://www.pegasusdirectory.com/
http://www.webmasters-cavern.com/dir/
http://www.ukwebmasterworld.com/directory/
http://www.httpbase.com/
http://www.addnewlink.net/
http://www.freelinkdir.com/
http://www.sitesdirectory.info/
http://www.links-directory.org/
http://www.freewd.org/
http://www.clarib.com/
http://www.directoryslick.com/
http://www.iyidizin.com/
http://www.profitbaron.com/directory/
http://www.freeurllink.com/
http://www.gwde.com/
http://www.clixa.com/
http://almadirectory.com/
http://www.zepteo.com/
http://postdir.com/
http://www.freee-web.com/
http://www.pdadirectory.eu/
http://www.2mq.org/
http://www.gatordirectory.com/
http://www.assets.cc/
http://www.pdadirectory.eu/
http://www.prolistings.net/
http://www.directory.owntruth.com/
http://www.final-fantasy.us/
http://www.tcpls.net/
http://www.pukt.com/
http://www.mygreencorner.com/
http://www.lii.org/
http://searchsight.com/

Free Website Directory List Part - I

Free Website Directory List Part - I

2007-11-21T20:31:00.000-08:00

If you have a new website or wish to promote your existing site to get one-way links, the following free directories which help you in building links and increase your link popularity -

Free Website Directory (100)

http://www.linknom.com/
http://www.textlinkdirectory.com/
http://www.r-fd.com/
http://directory.seo-poland.com/
http://www.slackalice.com/
http://www.gulqro.com/
http://www.savelook.com
http://www.zabalook.com
http://directory.lonelyway.com/
http://www.ourlifexp.com/directory/
http://www.1stw.com/
http://www.typodrome.com/
http://www.grafoff.com/
http://taterlinks.com
http://www.off-life.com/
http://www.stuffdaily.com/directory/
http://www.alistdirectory.com/
http://www.findtoplinks.com/
http://www.qos-team.com/
http://www.seocourt.com/
http://www.urlsubmitdirectory.com/
http://www.unlistedhomeopportunities.com/
http://www.pbsdirectory.01dir.com/
http://www.mm99.info/websitedirectory/
http://www.atinat.com/
http://www.resources.eu.com/
http://goodtimesdirectory.com/
http://www.weblinkindex.com/
http://www.spiderwebsdirectory.com/
http://www.tbwd.org/
http://www.getlistedrightnow.com/
http://www.link-directory.us/
http://www.ffdir.info/
http://www.mytopdirectory.info/
http://www.didugetthe.info/
http://directory.trybestsoft.com/
http://investingonweb.com/
http://www.directoryseofriendly.com/
http://www.nameproz.com/
http://www.humaneditedseofriendlywebdirectory.com/
http://dir.avissoftware.com/
http://www.businessmarketingagency.com/
http://www.vmoptions.com/
http://www.waikey.com/
http://www.nowseen.net/
http://www.madhavweb.com/
http://www.blfree.com
http://www.directorysuperb.com/
http://www.hellasdirectory.com/
http://www.abgwd.com/
http://www.link1directory.com/
http://www.seowebdirectory.com/
http://www.linkstreet.info/
http://www.another-directory.com/
http://www.belistednow.com/
http://www.jewana.com/
http://www.i-directories.org/
http://www.linkpedia.net/
http://www.vividwebindex.com/
http://www.rmsiu.com/
http://www.submitfree.org/
http://www.webglobaldirectory.com/
http://www.1abc.org/
http://directorweb.csarmy.com/
http://www.nwkk.com/
http://www.dir365.org/
http://www.directorylair.com/
http://www.submit-url.org/
http://www.ub51.com/
http://www.nudirectory.com/
http://www.articleszones.com/directory/
http://www.lowsterslinks.com/
http://www.webdezinz.com/
http://www.forumbase.org/Non-Forums_Related_Sites/
http://directory.seoexecutive.com/
http://www.upyg.com/
http://dequel.com/
http://www.go4websites.com/
http://www.12bmedia.com/directory/
http://www.a-free-directory.info/
http://www.a1dir.com/
http://www.addsitelink.com/
http://www.add2us.com/
http://www.agilelist.com/
http://www.allthelinks.net/
http://www.allthelist.com/
http://www.awedir.com/
http://www.the-web-directory.co.uk/
http://blogs.b2binternetmarketingagency.com/dir/
http://www.best-sites.co.uk/
http://www.bhdirectory.info/
http://www.blogsip.com/webdirectory/
http://www.brandsearch.org/
http://www.businesspowerusa.com/
http://www.bzzu.com/
http://www.cleverlinks.net/
http://www.commercedir.com/
http://www.crazylinks.org/
http://www.cyborginfo.com/
http://www.desilinkdirectory.com/

Find out about other popular directories in the next post.

Why Directory Submissions?

2007-11-19T22:54:00.000-08:00

In my last blog, I had talked about the importance of directory submissions, and the way of going about it. Before delving further into this topic, I would first like to discuss the advantages of this optimisation service. Why should a website be submitted into directories in the first place?

When we talk of new sites, this service can be extremely beneficial in getting one-way links for web pages that have zero PageRank. You can easily promote your site on search engines by simply submitting your pages in relevant categories of online directories.

More than anything else, you do not have to spend a single penny on this kind of promotion. Stay away from paid directory submissions and you can save a lot of time and resources, and get free promotion as a bargain. Not just that, you can also add up to your back links counter, which is a major determinant of your success with search engines.

Apart from pleasing search engines, these submissions can get you high-value traffic as per relevant categorisation. At the end of the day, your job is to make way for conversions so that you get desired sales figures.

Make Way for Directory Submissions

2007-11-17T02:23:00.000-08:00

Directory submission is, invariably, one of the most effective means of link building. Just place your URL in an online directory, and get a link back to your site. Not just a link, you also have the chance of driving targeted traffic to your website, thus bettering the prospects of your business. For new websites, this is actually the best way of establishing a link building campaign to generate traffic and also boost the optimisation process.

How to choose a directory for submission?
Conduct a search on directories for the keyword(s) that best describes your site. Enlist the first hundred or more directories on the basis of your requirements. It is imperative for you to find out if the directories chosen by you are banned or penalised on search engines. Because, submitting links on such directories will be nothing but a waste of time and resources at your end. One-way links from them will be of absolutely no use to your campaign.

Secondly, scrutinise the directory to find out if it is relevant to your business. Cater to as many free directories as possible, because search engines are becoming increasingly wary of link backs that are paid for. When you have listed down the directory names, try and find out few sites that also allow submission of internal web pages.

Then, decide on categories that best suit your site's requirements. Do not nest your pages too deep into a directory – they should not be more than two clicks away. Also, check the PageRank and outgoing links of such pages. Above all, if the page where you submit your URL is not cached, there is simply no point in getting a link back from it.

The subject of directory submission will be further touched upon in successive blogs.

Use Social Networking to your Advantage

2007-11-13T23:08:00.000-08:00

The idea of a 'global village' seems increasingly plausible in the present scenario, wherein more than half of the world's population is hooked to one common source of information and entertainment – the World Wide Web. It is but natural for concepts like social networking to have a terrific impact on the lives of web users.

Even the field of search engine optimisation has not been left unaffected by this so-called phenomenon. Optimisers are increasingly using online social networks as sources for link building. The following are some of the simplest ways of going about this task:

Visit blogs that are relevant to your business, and leave comments on them. Try to contribute something substantial and sensible to it. It does not have to be in technical parlance – keep it straight and simple.
Participate in forums related to your industry at large. Add your URL to your posts thereon, so that your link can be tracked back to your website.
Submit your site's URL to other important social bookmarking websites and get your business promoted free of cost!

These easy tactics can help you get links back to your site, thus strengthening your site's prospects of getting crawled and indexed at a faster rate.

Are Search Engines Scrutinising your Links?

2007-11-13T00:39:00.000-08:00

As optimisers, we often tend to underestimate search engines. We believe we can get away with all sorts of smart techniques without getting noticed. Unfortunately, this is not the case. Search engines have, in due course, devised algorithms that can easily track back your links to their source of origination.

Most SEOs practice article and directory submissions so as to get links back from various free and paid directories available online. Articles are ideally meant for web users' interests and benefits. You write on subjects related to your business so as to inform readers about your industry at large.

In the eyes of search engines, such means of link building are unacceptable. They can follow your link's anchor text and easily figure out if they are artificial. For them, links are original only if other websites willingly point towards your pages.

What does an optimiser do then? First of all, make sure that anchor text of all your links are as different as possible. By doing so, you'll be able to create an illusion of these links being original. Secondly, do not go begging for link backs from directories. Make your site so appealing that webmasters are lured to link to it. Let them consider you as a resourceful website that deserves to be linked to.

Try these simple tactics, and you can save your link building campaign from the intense scrutiny that search engines might subject it to.

Stay away from Mass Link Submissions

2007-11-12T03:44:00.000-08:00

I guess all of us have come across online ads screaming, 'Get your links submitted to 500 websites in one go!' or, 'We will submit your links into free directories', etc. These services are quick and seemingly profitable – just fill up a form, get your site listed in numerous directories and generate link backs for your web pages.

Luring as they might be, such claims are just that... claims! Do not be fooled by the so-called effectiveness of such optimisation tactics. Search engines have become quite strict nowadays. They do not allow optimisers to manipulate their algorithms as per their whims and fancies.

Services like link building have also come under the scanner. Each and every incoming link of a web page is scrutinised before being taken under consideration for search engine indexing. Sites or free directories 'selling' links to bidders are being blacklisted left, right and centre. Links submitted thereon, therefore, go for a toss, standing absolutely no chance of being crawled by search engine spiders.

What does an optimiser do in such a situation? The best solution is to take one link at a time. It might be a taxing and time-consuming process, but, it is any day better than getting your site blacklisted on search engines. Also, vary the anchor text of your links as much as possible. Keeping one text for all your links will get search engines take close notice of your site's operations, and you definitely do not want to invite trouble!

You will be surprised to find that a number of websites that do not follow these tips have been doing well over a period of time. But then, there are exceptions in every domain. Long-term SEO success beckons those who stand by the rulebook and do not stray into negative zones to procure high rankings.

'Give and Take' Links to Boost your Website's Ranking

2007-11-07T01:43:00.000-08:00

Extremely effective when it comes to boosting a website's link popularity, reciprocal linking works on the simple concept of 'give and take'. This not only helps in bettering traffic inflow, but also establishes your site as a one that everyone wants to be linked to.

The biggest challenge is to find a site that will be willing to reciprocate your link. Webmasters can scan the web for sites that are best related to their business and pick the ones that can be beneficial in their link building campaign. This relevance can be in terms of either content or links.

More than anything else, the site should have a target audience that is almost same as yours. If it fails to arouse your interest, in all likelihood, it'll be a flop with your visitors too. Be judicious enough to pick 'similar' sites that will not end up competing with you. Find out about web pages that have reciprocal links with your competitors' sites and then try and get them into an arrangement with you too.

When you decide to write an email for reciprocal linking, make sure that the site or web page in question does not have too many outbound links. This will affect your page's credibility as well the PageRank (if you use Google). These simple tips can be quite rewarding for search engine optimisers seeking high rankings through link exchange.

Bust Link Building Myths

2007-11-05T02:44:00.000-08:00

Optimisation experts have confusing viewpoints about the process of link building. There are a number of myths that actually influence their style of working. It is therefore important to have clarity in this regard.

Listed below are a few of the most common myths that often hinder the process of search engine optimisation:

Not all free directories are worthy of one-way linking. Apart from DMOZ (Open Directory Project), the others are actually not valuable enough. Search engines like Google use this directory because of its credentials and popularity amongst websites. You can also submit your site to certain free directories, but don't waste too much time on the 'incompetent' ones.
As far as paid directories are concerned, Yahoo is one of the most effectual ones. For a reasonable amount, it can bring in substantial linking value for your website. Instead of spending too much money on them, you should rather undertake research and go for the orthodox link request process.
A number of businesses consider link building as a simple process that can be carried on by in-house marketers. However, this is not the case. It is a complicated process that demands professionalism and an all-inclusive knowledge of the field of SEO. Therefore, it is best left t experts or service providers.

It is also wise to remember that link building is not the only or guaranteed means of high search engine rankings. It is just one of the many optimisation techniques that can bolster your prospects on SERPs. Therefore, you also need to put in a good amount of effort on the other on-page and off-page services

Link Exchange and its Types

2007-11-02T03:05:00.000-07:00

The process of link building heavily depends on external websites and their interest in linking to you. Your campaign can be successful only if you cater to sites that are relevant to your business or industry at large.

When we talk of link exchange, we essentially discuss the following three types of it:

a) One-way link exchange - Web pages are submitted in article directories that, in turn, provide backlinks to your pages. Links can be picked up from free directories that are game for one-way linking.

b) Two-way link exchange – Two websites mutually agree to give a link to each other's web pages so as to divert traffic. These sites are usually related to the same product, business or industry. In fact, link exchange will be successful only if you link up with sites that get visitors that also comprise your potential customer base.

c) Three-way link exchange – Suppose you own two websites, wherein one is an established one, and the other is relatively new. You can get into link exchange with a third prominent website – in the process, your established site will link to this third-party site, and it will, in turn, link to your new site. Fairly newer web pages can gain links on prominent websites using this programme.

Most webmasters prefer getting into one-way link exchange, because it does not demand too much time or money. You can simply submit your pages online and get link back to your site. However, each website has its own optimisation requirements and you should choose the technique that best suits your business.

Link Building – The Process

2007-10-29T04:41:00.001-07:00

An effectively linked website can do your online business a world of good, both in terms of revenues and traffic. Adopt the following approach to go about the process of link building for your optimisation campaign:

Run a search query for your most important keywords, and have a look at the top 20 sites that feature on SERPs. Most of these sites will be your competitors'. You can also pick and choose website submitted on online directories like DMOZ or Yahoo.
Scan the websites these top-ranked sites have linked to, and if you find them worthwhile, use them in your campaign as well. To do this, you can either use freely available web tools, or the backlink command provided for in directories.
Also check the sites that link to your competitors' sites. It'll be easy to get into link exchange with them, as you are part of the same industry as your rivals.
Have a look at every website that you have shortlisted. Identify the pros and cons of their web pages, and only then take the next step.
Send a link proposal through email, clearly stating the facts about your site and business. Write the email in an impelling manner so that the site's webmaster sees reason in linking to your site.

Once you have adhered to this step-by-step process, keep a track of which sites are actually replying back, and which of them are interested in getting into link exchange with you. Also monitor the incoming links of your site, so that you can do away with the ones that can be harmful for your site's prospects on search engines.

Rate Websites for Linking

2007-10-25T22:04:00.000-07:00

As optimisers, we come across plethora of options with regard to linking. However, we need to be judicious enough to understand the value of a link or the website it comes from.

The following points will help you decide if a link is worth pursuing:

The site should allow you to use anchor text as per your choice, so that you get to squeeze in your most important keywords therein.
Ensure that the link does not redirect to any other link. Avoid Javascript-based links as they are basically useless for optimisation purposes.
Check the Meta Robots Tag of the page. The page will not be indexed by search engines if this tag contains 'NOINDEX'. Such links will obviously not benefit your website.
Check the PageRank (PR) of the page you are linking to. Apart from that, also find out the number of backlinks the page has. All these factors are taken into consideration by search engines before determining PageRanks. Too many backlinks on your linking page can ruin the prospects of your own page.
Use online resources to find out about the traffic driven to the web page you want to link to. This will help you decide if such a link will be useful.
Find out if links are displayed in the cached version of the page? If not, then the page is using negative tactics to keep search engine spiders from identifying its outgoing links.
The page should not have a 'rel=NOFOLLOW' attribute, because most search engines will not follow such links.

Go through this checklist before you link to a website. Opt for links that can actually bolster your SEO campaign, and let go of the useless ones.

Essential Link Building Tips for your Site's Optimisation

2007-10-24T02:22:00.000-07:00

A sound link building campaign can do a world of good for your online business. However, it is imperative that you are well-informed about the basic concepts related to the same.

The following tips will help you get a clearer picture of how to go about enhancing your link popularity :

# PageRank – If you are catering mainly to Google, PageRank or PR is an essential feature to be taken into consideration. The higher the PR of pages linking to you, the more value your site will get from them.

# Relevance – When other sites give links to your site, it simply means they are 'voting' for you. Therefore, the relevance of such sites to your product/service, business or industry at large, is quite significant. Try and get links from pages that have content related to your website.

# Links on Linking Page – If you go by Google's PageRank algorithm, the value of each link is equal to the PR of that page divided by the total number of outgoing links on that page. Therefore, it is advisable to get links from pages that have less number of outgoing links. Do this little evaluation before hunting for pages with high PR, because if they have too many outgoing links, they'll be of practically no value.

# Dynamic Link Pages – Link pages that are generated dynamically take time in getting indexed by search engines. Such pages will actually not do any good to your site.

My experience tells me that it is better to stay away from framed sites or redirected links. Even if they will add up to the quantity of inbound links your site has, they can never actually help in the process of optimisation and better ranking of your web pages.

Wanna get into Quality Link Building?

2007-10-19T03:49:00.000-07:00

Every online business dreams of reaching the top of search engine rankings, so as to rake in more traffic and increased revenues from this extremely lucrative medium. When we talk of SEO, link building is one such technique that can get you desired results.

If you want to popularise your website by linking it up with other relevant websites, the best way is to get into quality link building. Listed below are the most common sources of getting traffic to your site through links:

Article Submission – Submit articles in ezines and other online resource banks. These articles should be related to your product or service and should be in accordance with guidelines set by the article directory in question.

Directory Submission – Submit your site's URL to directories like DMOZ and Yahoo, among others, to get targeted traffic back to your site.

Press Releases – Tell the world about the latest developments in fields related to your business by submitting Press Releases in specified directories.

Blogs – Visit popular blogs and write 'comments' on current issues related to your business.

Forums – Participate in online discussions and express your views about issues talked about thereon.

Social Bookmarking – Join social networks and let people know about your business.

Classifieds – Create simple and appealing ads and submit them as classified listings to get dedicated traffic back to your own site.

When we talk of quality in link building, it simply means the quality of websites that point towards your site. Getting links from popular or established online resources or directories will stand your business in good stead.

The Benefits of Being Linked Up

2007-10-14T23:16:00.000-07:00

In my last blog, I had talked about 'Link Popularity', a concept that helps determine the popularity of a website, as vouched for by other external web pages. However, why should we get into link building in the first place? What are the benefits we can derive out of the process of link exchange?

First and foremost, links get traffic. When websites point to your site, they automatically divert their visitors to you. This increases your traffic influx, and can also lead to a improvement in your sales revenues. If you target Google as your primary search engine, then links can help you get better PageRank or PR. This trademarked algorithm takes quality and quantity of incoming links into consideration when calculating the PR of a page.

Links can also help you get your web pages indexed faster on a search engine result page. Even if your pages are deeply nested in your site structure, they can be easily crawled if other websites point towards them. Lastly, links make crawling of dynamic web pages faster. Even though the content of such pages change frequently, their links can lead to faster indexing by search engine spiders.

In case you thought link building is just another SEO service, think again. Its benefits are far greater than what's 'visible' to the eye. Focus your search engine marketing campaign on this technique, and you will never regret your decision!

Enhance Web Popularity by Establishing Links

2007-10-10T04:18:00.000-07:00

When we discuss link building as a search engine optimisation tool, it is but essential to talk about Link Popularity. This term refers to a site's popularity with regard to the number (and quality) of links pointing to it from other websites.

One of the most effective means of procuring high search engine rankings, link building will be successful only if other 'entities' in the online marketplace cast a 'vote' for your website. When a site points at one of your web pages, it means that it wants its users to visit that page. In doing so, it automatically enhances the popularity of your site.

As discussed in the previous post, links should be established with sites that have some relevance to your content, or business in general. For example, if you run an online movie shop, it will be extremely beneficial if you are linked to sites related to movies (studios, magazines, film sites, etc.).

Apart from giving a boost to your web traffic, link popularity will save a lot of your time and money that would have otherwise been spent on promotional tactics. As more and more sites link to you, search engine spiders will be able to crawl and index your web pages with minimal efforts.

A word of caution here! Do not encourage links coming from link farms or banned sites/networks. Although it is not possible for you to stop people from linking to your site, you can always take certain precautionary measures to control the situation.

Linking and SE Ranking – The Unbreakable Bond

2007-10-06T04:16:00.000-07:00

Link building is one of the most essential services of organic search engine optimisation. A formidable link exchange programme can rake in backlinks, targeted traffic and eventually, sales for web businesses. Your links are considered as 'votes' – the more, the better!

Links can be of two types – inward and outward. The former comprises web links that divert users from other sites to your site, and the latter means links that you put up on your website to send visitors to some other website.

When you get into online link exchange, it is imperative that you choose websites that have some relevancy to your business, products or services. It'll be great if the content on that site has keywords similar to your own site. In fact, getting links from irrelevant online entities can lead to supplementing or blacklisting of your site.

Through this blog, I intend to discuss various concepts related to link building and the benefits thereon. The next post will be an introduction to the concept of link popularity and the means of going about it. Watch this space!