Five Simple Steps to Getting Links to Your Site

Today if you want your site to survive in the search engines your going to need backlinks. Almost all the major search engines rank sites based on the number and the quality of backlinks. Besides getting a good search engine ranking with links, it also one of the most effective ways to increase a site's traffic. So, how do you build your link popularity? In this article I'll show you 5 simple steps that will help you build your site's link popularity.

Step 1 - Determine the type of sites you want to trade links with. Focus on sites that are related to your site's market, don't go after sites that are not related, it won't help your ranking that much. To locate link partners search with your main search phrases in the search engines. Example, if your site is about cars, you could search with phrases such as car repair, tires, etc. The sites you see on the first few web pages of the search results should be your main targets. Remember to stay away from direct competitors.

Maybe the best way to Locate quality link partners is by visiting the Yahoo's directory or ODP because all these web sites were reviewed by humans before being listed. If you decide to use a directory visit the category that's most related to your web site, if your web site's subject is popular enough you should find more then one category that's related to your web site.

Step 2 - Review each web site you found carefully, check to see if they are using spam, if they are using spam, stay away, this will only hurt your web site in the long run. Remember to aim for the big money and not a quick dollar. Look to see If they have a links or some call it a resource page. If they don't have a links page, you should most likely move on and forget about it.

You should also review their content and resources they provide. Would their content or resources be useful for your visitors? Do you feel that it's a good resource? Is it a web site that you feel good about recommending?

Step 3 - After reviewing the web sites, you'll need to gather information about them. First, find out the owner of the web sites name. Sometimes the owner with list his or her name on the site, usually located on the about us page. Otherwise, you can get their name is by doing a WHOIS search. There are several available you can use, just search with the phrase WHOIS lookup.

Find out their email address. Remember to get the right one, you don't want to contact them through their support email address, instead search for their marketing or partnership email. Also find something on their web site that is unique and useful, this could be an article, an online tool or a service, use this to compliment them.

Step 4 - Create a list of all the web sites you have found related to your web site. You can list these web sites however you prefer. Personally I always rank them based on their link popularity, ranking and Page Rank. This allows you to have a good idea which ones you should target first. If your web site is new you should go after the web sites that don't have the highest link popularity or Page Rank.

Step 5 - Finally, we are nearly done. It's time to put all the information you have gathered into action. Send a custom e-mail to each site requesting to exchange links. Remember not to use generic e-mail link exchange request, half of the time these are deleted without ever being truly considered. State the webmaster's name, this will show that you have at least looked at the web site.

Next, you need to mention something you liked about their web site. Who doesn't like a nice compliment every once in while? I know I like them and you are probably the same way. Compliments can help seal the deal, they not only make the webmaster like you more, but also show that you took the time to look over their web site.

Tell them about your web site. What is offers and how it can benefit their visitors. Unfortunately many webmaster no longer care about offering a useful resource and only care about money. So, you'll need to tell them how much traffic you get and how it can benefit both of you. Tell them exactly where you think your link should be placed on their site. Also tell them URL of where you'll be placing their link on your web site.

Matt Colyer began as a SEO Specialist in 1997. He founded Superior Webmaster in 2004 as a source of articles and tutorials for Web site owners looking to improve their Web site.

More SEO Articles

How to Get a Website Indexed Fast
Get Indexed FastWhat does getting indexed mean?The search engines keep a cache of every web page in their index.In English, this means: The search engines make a copy of every web page they visit and put in their records? ummm, I think that?s what I mean.

10 Minutes to Your Google Sitemap
Google's calling your name..

7 Simple Steps to Spy on Your Online Competition and Acheive a High Page Rank
My Grandfather ran a small Grocery Store and when you would ask him a Question about his Business he would laugh and reply does Macy's Tell Gimbel's. (At the Time Gimbel's was a major Competitor of Macy's in the New York Department Store Market.

7 Search Engine Optimization Strategies
Search engine optimization refers to the technique of making your web pages search engine friendly so that search engines are more easy to understand and analyze your website. Consequently, your site has a better chance to gain high search engine ranking.

Link Exchange Tips, No Tricks
Use text links, avoid image links. Anyhow, if you have used image links, then always make sure to put your keywords in the alt tags.

A Naive Mistake Cost Me My Google Rankings
Little do you know but you too could be making mistakes with your website that are costing you your search engine rankings.Goggle and the other search engines are constantly changing their algorithms to keep pace of search engine spammers.

How To Rank High On MSN Search
The new MSN Search is quickly gaining popularity among internet search engine users. Google still being the #1 search engine with Yahoo in #2, and MSN in a strong #3.

Good Things Come to Those Who Wait (and Other Analogies and Cliché?s for SEO)
We?ve all heard that familiar expression, ?Good things come to those who wait?. Whether you?re waiting for your Heinz ketchup to pour out onto your burger (remember those commercials?), waiting for Christmas day to open your gifts, waiting for summer vacation to be let out of school, or waiting in line at the DMV? well, maybe not the DMV, good things will come if you simply allow them to come in their own time.

How My Page Rank Went From 0 to 5 In One Update - How Yours Can Too
Increase Your Google Page Rank!Page Rank. We all know what is.

Gaining Additional PageRank
Google is the major search engine webmasters have to deal with in regards to gain traffic from a search engine. Yes, Yahoo and MSN are big, too - but they are only follow-ups compared to Google's popularity.