We've all been there. You launch a new site, it's got great design, awesome unique content, well done SEO, and no one ever sees your site. You're waiting for the traffic that never comes. The answer (as many of you have probably figured out: Link Building.
For those who don't know, links from other sites are the single biggest factor in your Page Rank (or similar search engine rankings). So how do you go about getting backlinks?
First, a crash course on the different types of backlinks:
Reciprocal Link - An exchange of links between two sites.
One-way (In-Bound) Link - A link from one site to another without a link back.
Method 1: Building PR with Reciprocal Linking:
It takes a long time to build reciprocal links. Mostly, you find sites in your niche (similar topic category) and write to the webmasters and ask if they want to trade links. A typical email might look something like this:
"Dear Site Owner:
I have been reading your site/blog and think we could benefit from a reciprocal link exchange. I own/run a site (example.com). It's a site to help people learn SEO, increase Page Rank, and get more search engine traffic.
If you want to exchange links, please reply with your information so I can place a link on my site.
Thank you,
Name
Site"
Some will respond and some won't. When they do, be sure to add the site ASAP. Then send them an email saying you have added the link. Be sure to say what you want the anchor text of your link to be. You'll have to be sure to check every so often to make sure your link is still up. Sometimes these link exchanges have a way of disappearing, and you should remind your partner that it was a reciprocal link exchange, not an inbound link giveaway.
Method 2: Building PR with One-way Linking:
These are actually the better type of link. It isn't very difficult, and the payoff can be very good. The easiest way to get links to your site is directory submissions. There are countless free directories, and it's worth time to get your site listed in as many as possible. There are directories that charge a fee, but I stay away from those like the plague. Feel free to give them your money if you want, but everything I've learned says you'd be flushing your money down the drain.
Another proven way to get links is a press release. Sites like prwire allow you to submit a press release for free. You'll get great exposure and an inbound link or two. The same advice applies here though: don't pay to put out a press release. It's not even close to worth it. My favorite way to get links though, is guest blogging. It's great exposure, creates great content, and you get exposed to a much larger audience than a simple blogroll link. Follow the same method as above for reciprocal links, except ask to guest blog!
That's just the beginning. There are many, many more ways to get links. But start with these. This is the foundation, and every site could use these methods.
Mac Jackson publishes year round at [http://seotutor.info/]
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