Linking is still a critical part of helping sites rank higher in search engines and to drive traffic. This session included linking legend, Eric Ward, Jim Boykin of WeBuildPages and Bill Hartzer of MarketNet.
First up was Jim Boykin WeBuildPages. Jim decided not to speak from the podium and walk the aisle. Google Jagger update. Some did well, some not. Shortcuts are no good.
He presented a list of linking paranoia that pops up every time there’s a shift in rankings.
What does Google rank highly?
EDU, GOV
High TrustRank (lots of authority and .edu backlinks)
Huge and powerful websites sub pages (Amazon)
Old page that never changes, but gets steady links over time
New page on old stablished sites (good internal links)
Old sites that update and get a steady flow of backlinks that coincide with new content additions
Age of web sites influences rankings (Google)
That means slow and steady rate of content.
Shows Touchgraph Google Browser screenshot
Shows Jim’s linking neighborhoods graphic. Unnatural linking structure will not be rewarded
Get links from the neighborhood.
Good link page is annotated links within a paragraph, not:
Link Title – link description
Link Title – link description
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Next up is Bill Hartzer MarketNet Inc.
Site Content
Your site is ultimately responsible for getting links.
Bad content = no links
Great content = potential for great links
Great content:
Content people will link to unsolicited
Content that stirs emotion
Types of Links:
External links, Intenernal links
Links must be crawlable with descriptive anchor text.
Search Engine Theme Pyramid:
All pages need at least one link from another page to stay in the index
External Links:
Submit to Yahoo DMOZ, Business.com, Joe Ant, Go Guides
Submit to strongestlinks.com directories
Provide free online tool or service
Press releases
Forums
RSS feeds
Articles
Search for variations of “add url keyword”
Link tools:
Wordtracker
Filthy Linking Rich – Mike Grehan article
OptiLink, OptiSpider
Linking strategy: www.refengeofthemininet.com
linkdomain: search in yahoo for a particular site
Outsource a linking campaign to an expert
Bad links:
Links from the same Class C Block of IPs
Links from the same IP address, but different domain
Links from same whois owner
Off topic links
Sponsored links
What’s happening now:
Links from automated link exchanges and paid text link ads seem to count less
Run of site links mean less
Google spam filters are better at catching hidden text and mini networks of links
Link Advice:
More links. quality, theme, age, anchor text, amount of other links on inbound page, html links, internal linking structure,
Inbound links from authoritative, related sites, consistently adding new links and content
Donate your skills to non-profit sites for a link
College and Universities
Create a relevant blog
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Last up Eric ward – Presentation at: ericward.com/pubcon
Has been linking since 1993. What is linking and why does it matter?
Does linking to drive traffic, not for Pagerank,
Google caused it’s own problem with link spam by making it obvious that links are strongly influential for rankings.
Linking terminology:
Authority site – Subject expert
Hub site – Collection of links to expert sites
Quality link – Depends. Paid links, from a blog, editorial link topically relevant sites, discussion lists – long tail links
Organic link – One way, descriptive anchor text, looks natural, not on same Class C blog, not from same from same domain
Links can impact rankings, but also create buzz.
Yahoo Picks, Forbes BOTW
Paid links: AdBrite
Vertical links – links that are subject specific
Email links – while not usually crawlable, many emails are archived to the web
If you seek links only for rankings, you’re missing out on many traffic generating opportunities. Search engines do not crawl the entire available web.
Linking Tools:
Teoma – Resources
Google’s version of DMOZ
Linksurvey
Link Popularity Flaws:
Link depth – keep your content at top or second level directory at most
Non-web based links – Forbes BOTW, Lockergnome, Lil.org
Links for your site vs publicity for your site. There are many well-trafficed sites that review other sites.
Take aways:
Recognize the different types of links. Web based links are not the only types of links.
Tags: linking, link building, seo, Pubcon
