If content is king, then linking is the queen that shares his throne. We have all heard about adding content to your site to give the search engines fodder to consume. But the secret to luring the search engines is the links to your site. Today’s search engines look very carefully and critically at who is linking to you, and what it is that they are saying about you. A link from a leader in your industry carries a lot of weight and means that your site is important. Two links from industry leaders means your site is even more important. 100 links from random web sites, from industries you are not even related with, means almost nothing. Thus, getting links is only the start; the important thing is getting good links from quality web sites.

Why Do Links Matter?
Since the arrival of Google and their PageRank, search engines have put a lot of weight on links to a site. There used to be simple ways to get good rankings: Meta tag titles, keyword density, etc… Today, things have become more complex, with search engines now using a very complicated algorithm that involves:

• links to your site
• what is written in those links
• who is linking to the site that links to yours
• what are the key phrases used in those links
• what is the quality of the site that is linking to yours
• how many other links does that site have
• how many links out (and to what sites) does your site have
• other such criteria

To use a rather appetizing analogy, these new criteria are added to the stew that is your site, along with the quality and quantity of the content. Left to simmer on the worldwide web, this stew is then eaten up by the search engines depending on how well your site matches the aforementioned criteria. Put differently, the king and queen must join together to turn your site into a number one result.

How Do We Get Links?
It all starts with content. No one will link to you unless you offer quality information about a particular subject. If you are in real estate, you must offer information about the area you sell. If someone wants to buy in your area, first s/he will want to learn about it, so you will need to have good resources about that area.

The next step is to find new sites that would benefit from your site’s information; new sites whose clients would potentially buy your real estate. For example, one of our clients (www.monlac.com) sells real estate in the Laurentians area of Quebec. Their site has content on activities in Quebec and the nearby Laurentian mountains. Thus, we will be soliciting links from web sites such as the nearby water parks and ski hills, nearby towns, lake and boating associations, and local construction web sites to name just a few. To these web sites, not only will linking to www.monlac.com make their customers happier, but it is in their best interest that the site sells real estate since it brings in more business for them.

How Do You Solicit Links?
To solicit sites you have to use a lot of elbow grease. Send out personalized emails to these sites. Don’t send out mass emails or sp@m. Be friendly, and point out the benefits of linking to your site. If you are lucky, maybe 1 in 3 emails will get a response. It is frustrating and discouraging, but keep your spirits up. Many times a site is perfect but they don’t ever update it, so your site won’t get the link in because nothing ever changes on the solicited site. Don’t waste too much time on sites that haven’t been updated in years. It is also important to follow up. Until you get a flat out denial, keep saying “Hi”, and keep it personal. Keep track of who you have contacted and what you have written or said because you have to make it seem like they are the only person you are contacting. As soon as they get a sniff that you are sending out a mass email, or that you are using the exact same approach with other sites, you will probably lose their respect - and their business!

Do not forget to submit to the directories such as the Open Directory Project, because getting listed here counts for a lot in all the big search engines. Take your time and choose the right category to submit to.

Also, read about how they want their descriptions and titles written, and write them that way. These are the keys to getting into the directories.

Soliciting links is a very time-consuming (and frustrating) venture, but it is essential to getting good rankings in the search engines. It takes a lot of patience and a lot of time. Getting your first link is like getting your first sale. It is just as hard - and just as satisfying.

By Shawn Campbell

With all the talk of how to make a great website and ways to keep visitors, it is important to also understand the other side of designing an Internet business.

Every day, thousands of websites are finding unique ways to turn away visitors and potential customers. Although many webmasters know about the obvious “turn-offs”, there are many little details that “tick-off” visitors and make them leave.

In fact, I have found that there are 13 “small” items that can make or break a website. To avoid having your visitors “click-away” from your site make sure that you include the following things:

1. A Professional Appearance
Most websites don’t need flash effects or dazzling visuals. But, your Internet business should be perceived as a legitimate site, built by someone who cares about the content and appearance. In other words, the colours and graphics should blend well with one another. In addition, all web-copy should be dynamic and devoid of grammar or spelling mistakes. Finally, any images on the page should enhance the experience for your visitors without distracting them.

2. Proper Navigation
The pages on your website should be easily connected. To do this, every section should connect to the main page, with a clear and concise menu. Don’t make your visitors spend a lot of time looking for different sections. Help them by ensuring that the navigation of your site remains constant throughout all pages.

3. An Obvious Theme
Your index page should immediately let the visitor know what you are selling or promoting. Usually the best ways to do this is by briefly describing the purpose of your website and include product photos that can help people understand your purpose.

4. A Logo
One of the best ways to “brand” your site and remain unique is to have a logo for your Internet business. By having a logo, your website is more likely to make an “impression” with your visitors and develop a following. Any logo used needs to be consistent with the theme and colour scheme of your site.

5. FAQs
There will be times when your visitors have a question that is not covered by the standard descriptions or sales pages. To help them out, it is important to have a section that is devoted to answering common questions. By creating a FAQ page, your prospects can easily find the answers to their questions and will be more likely to order from your site.

6. A ‘What’s New’ Section
With repeat visitors, there will be times when you want to update them with current news or promotions. The best way to do this is to create a “What’s New” section. That way, you can inform old visitors, while making sure that they know about all current marketing campaigns.

7. Contact Information
Eventually, your website visitor will have a question for you. Because of this, it is vital that you list all possible ways that they can reach you. By creating a contact page, you will be able to answer enquiries and reinforce the fact that there is an actual person behind the website.

8. Feedback Forms
The best websites always change, catering to the needs of the visitor. In order to find out what your customers need, it is important to solicit feedback from them. A common way to do this is by creating a feedback-form on the site, which includes questions that will help improve the overall quality of the Internet business.

9. Privacy Policy
With the problem of spam, many people are afraid to give out personal information such as their email address and credit card numbers. To help alleviate this fear, you need to include a “Privacy Policy” section. Basically, this page will let them know how all information is used and if they will be contacted in the future. It is better to be upfront about your practices than to be accused of mishandling information.

10. Email List
Top websites work on developing an email list of prospects that can be contacted in the future. This should go without saying, but your email list subscription area should have a prominent position on your web page. In addition, include a quick blurb about any incentive that you offer to visitors for joining the list.

11. About Us
Most website visitors appreciate knowing that a business is run by an actual human being. To help personalize your website, you need to include a little information about both you and your online business.

12. Sales Page
Even with the best product descriptions, it is important to create a dedicated page that describes how your products are superior to your competitors. This section should be a summary of all your key features written in a dynamic tone. Basically, you want your visitors to read this page and immediately buy from you. An example of a sales page can be seen from my own site: /Mizambar.com.

13. Refund/Return Policy
On the other side, there will be times when a customer is not happy. To help alleviate any fears that they might have about purchasing online, there needs to be a section where potential customers can read your rules on accepting returns and refunds. Carefully list how and if you accept refunds. If you do not, then be upfront about it.

Because there are millions of websites on the Internet, it is vital that you give your visitors what they need. Unfortunately, they will not tell you what is necessary. But, by including these 13 items in the design of your website, you can assure that you will have a distinct advantage over your competitor’s Internet business.

By Scott J. Patterson

I had an email exchange with an SEO client today after his webmaster called him pushing reciprocal linking software (when all this web designer was after was to generate some extra work from a client that hasn’t needed him for awhile). Then that client called me after he received my email denouncing the software, fully convinced by a follow-up phone call from his web designer that the reciprocal linking soft- ware WAS valuable.

He had been assured that the spamming, err - I mean, linking software, would increase his visibility for an inside page on a hot topic currently in the news. He didn’t want to hear my unpopular opinion that reciprocal linking is DEAD! Halloween is over people! We don’t need the mummies of yesterdays’ linking schemes haunting our Thanksgiving too! Oh, it must be a Thanksgiving TURKEY! A reciprocal Linking Turkey! Can reciprocal linking Santa’s be far behind? OK, I’ll drop the holiday metaphors.

I tried in vain to convince this client that he didn’t need that software for his review of the new Myriad Pictures film, “Kinsey” about early sex educator Professor Alfred Kinsey. We had just that morning distributed a press release online which is now posted on over 100 high visibility news sites and Yahoo news picked it up!

These are hugely valuable ONE WAY inbound links that will vastly improve his search engine ranking immediately due to the topical nature and excellent timing of the release. This client is a sex educator and runs an educational web site about sex and love. His press release put down the idea of the use of the new Intrinsa� testosterone patches to cure the low sexual desire of post-menopausal women and praised the new film Kinsey. He’ll be top ranked for two highly desirable and valuable (to him and his web site) keyword phrases within the week.

By the way, I HIGHLY recommend this approach for those with newsworthy issues they want to promote to the press. http://www.eReleases.com will send your newsworthy press release to over 100 top news sites, hundreds more radio, television and newspaper reporters, and tons of journalists who have signed up to receive them. Ereleases.com is syndicated by major news organizations and you can gain hundreds of links while generating interviews and even television appearances, all for only $400! Some people will pay that much for worthless reciprocal linking software and installation by webmasters having a slow week. ;-) Back to our story�

I re-affirmed my opposition to the use of the software as we ended our call and he hung up disappointed because he wanted my support and assurance that the sales pitch he got from his web designer on the reciprocal linking software was accurate and that it would do more for him than this press release.

Unfortunately, we’ll never know because he bought the sales pitch from the web designer, installed the software and immediately sent out a sp*m - AHEM, er, I meant to say - email to his newsletter mailing list announcing the availability of reciprocal links and asking them for links to his newsworthy new pages.

When will this linking insanity end?
Following is my reasoned - and decidedly calmer than I am now - email response to him.

Dear Gary,

This link generation scheme is standard for reciprocal link software. The value of “Reciprocal links” is far lower than the value of the ONE WAY links you already have from that press release distribution and the posting of the press release on your site which, by the way, includes linking instructions at the bottom of the relevant pages.

I’ve written an article call “Linking Psychosis is Treatable” which discusses the foolishness of links pointing all over the web.

It doesn’t address reciprocal linking so much as the insanity with which webmasters pursue them. Your press release has ALREADY generated a huge number of inbound ONE WAY links that will increase the visibility and rank of both Kinsey Film Review and Intrinsa� Testosterone Patch pages.

Doing the reciprocal page will initially LOWER your rank because it is RECIPROCAL. There is a concept called “Authority Site” that search engines use where ONE WAY inbound links are ranked VERY highly and reciprocal links are devalued BECAUSE of software like that being promoted by link-crazy folks not willing to do the hard work of generating the more valuable one-way links.

The search engines know about the software available from linking fanatics and DEVALUE pages that use it. Ultimately it can increase your visibility, sometimes, over the long run, but it just isn’t that helpful in most cases.

I’ve taken a hard line about this and get a lot of flack about it from those without SEO experience or knowledge. But smart professional SEO’s agree that reciprocal linking schemes - AND ESPECIALLY SOFTWARE GENERATED PAGES - are not worth much in search engine rank. The search engines are reducing the importance of those type of pages daily because it is too easy and too commonly used by scores of webmasters looking for an easy ranking.

I have written in the past that “Reciprocal Linking is Dead!” in which I outline my linking policy and encourage all reciprocal links requests to submit articles to be used on my site and that I’ll link to them through the resource box of their articles - IF I decide to publish them - but that I just don’t do reciprocal linking - period. I don’t even require them to link to me, but I point out that I have over a hundred fifty articles on my web site available for use on their site if they use my resource box, provide author credit and link to me through my resource box.

That’s my story and I’m sticking with it. ;-) No matter how unpopular it makes me with software vendors selling programs or link fanatic webmasters looking for extra income and easy solutions.

By Mike Banks Valentine
Mike Banks Valentine operates WebSite101.com and performs ethical search engine optimization and press release optimization & distribution online. If you’ve got news you can rank at the top for your search phrases.