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How to Improve Your Search Engine Rankings
by Boosting Your Web Site's "Link Popularity"
Links are the most fundamental building blocks of the Internet
and Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Having links pointing to
your site is what makes your site visible and is vital to achieving
high rankings in the Search Engines like Google, Yahoo! and MSN Search.
The term "Link popularity" is used to describe the amount of
web pages that link to your web pages. Link Popularity is the most
important contributing factor that the Search Engines use to
determine page rankings. In fact, the Internet is the ultimate democracy -
the site with the most “votes” (links) wins.
But, link building can be confusing, time consuming, and tedious. In
this article I illustrate the best strategies for boosting your
Google “PageRank” and “Link Popularity” by getting links
to your web site.
Google "PageRank":
With over 75% of the people surfing the Net using Google, it's the
biggest Search Engine in the World. In fact, getting top rankings at
Google for keywords related to your topic will provide your web site
with a constant source of qualified visitors, leads, and sales.
One of the primary methods Google uses for ranking web sites, is
with their unique way of measuring link popularity called "Google PageRank" (PR). Today, Google doesn't care how
"good" your web site
content is, they mostly care about how "popular" your web site is,
and how "strong" your links are. So, the more links you have
pointing to your site from other quality and relevant sites the
better. When you can get incoming links from website with a high PR,
those count for a whole lot more for boosting your rankings.
In fact, usually you DON'T need hundreds of links pointing to your site to
boost your search engine ranking above your competitors (unless
you’re in a hyper competitive market). You just need a few strong
links from "authority sites" in
your industry. So, if you want to rank high in Google, be willing to acquire
and even purchase high PR links from other web sites. Use the Google
Toolbar (http://toolbar.google.com/) to view the "Page Rank" of any
site you're viewing on your Internet browser.
Content is KING, but LINKS Rule:
There are two schools of thought that exist in the Search Engine
Optimization industry. The “SEO Copywriters” (builders of keyword
focused content pages) and the “SEO Link Builders” (builders of
in-bound links). The Link Builders always rule and rank higher in
the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPS), but content can still be
King if you use it correctly.
One of the best, yet often overlooked linking strategies is to
provide excellent content and resources at your web site for your
visitors. If you strive to have the best web site in your niche or
industry, visitors will naturally use it as resource, come back
often, tell their friends, and link to you.
Use Keyword Focused Text Links:
Every web site has a topic or “theme”, and as Google Developer Matt
Cutts says… "thematic incoming links from authority sites carry more
weight than on-page optimization." In other words, if your web site
sells “blue widgets”, your site’s theme is “blue widgets”. Getting
“blue widget” links from “blue widget” web sites is the ultimate in
linking strategy for ranking high at the Search Engines. Here’s an
example… You get links from widget oriented web sites like
www.WidgetNews.com with the words “Blue Widgets” within the text
links that point to your site.
The words within your links is called “anchor text” and having your
theme keywords in your anchor text is the best strategy for linking
to your web site. Here are some helpful tips to maximize your
results and search engine rankings…
- These “themed” text links can be called “keyword focused text
links.” Be sure to tell people exactly how to link to your web site
by giving them your keyword focused title (used for the text link),
a description, and your URL.
- The more keywords you have in your anchor text, the more diluted
your rank. So, be very careful in choosing the specific
keyword/phrase that you want to rank best for. For example “widgets” vs “blue widgets”.
- Use anchor text to link your own web pages together throughout
your web site.
- It's not a good idea to have 100% of your inbound links to be the
same text across the board. Why? Because it's easy to see that
you've "engineered" your links and the Search Engines ban you for
SPAM. Look more “natural” to the Search Engines by using many types
of good anchor text links like “Blue widgets” and “buy blue
widgets”.
- DO NOT get links from “SPAMMY” sites like “Free For All” links
pages, “Link Farms”, etc.
Get Indexed in the Internet
Directories:
Getting your site listed in the major Internet Directories will
improve your rankings in Google and other top Search Engines. Since
their standards are high, the Search Engines consider many Internet
Directories as “Authority” or “Expert” sites. The two most important
links you can get that are:
- Pay $299/year to get listed in Yahoo! Directory
http://dir.yahoo.com
- Submit yourself to Open Directory
http://www.dmoz.org and don't give
up until you get in. It's free, but can take 3 months!
Linking Research:
To maximize your search engine rankings and traffic, your web site
should be listed in the most frequently visited web sites in your
industry or “theme” such as:
- Industry Specific Internet Directories like
www.WidgetDirectory.com
- Industry Specific & News web sites like
www.WidgetNews.com
- Industry Specific Discussion Groups & Forums like
www.WidgetTalk.com
The best way to find other web sites that can link to your web site
is to simply search for your targeted keywords at
www.google.com.
See which web sites are ranking the highest for those targeted
keywords and then acquire keyword focused links from these web
sites. Do not ask your competitor to link to you, rather… find out
who’s linking to them, and get them to link to your site.
Another smart strategy is to search at Google for your site’s for
linking opportunities with specific keywords. Here are some
examples…
+widget +directory
+widget +news
+widget +link
+widget +add url
+widget +submit
+widget +discussion
+widget +forum
Other Linking Resources & Strategies:
If you’ve followed the above linking strategies, you will have a
solid foundation of keyword focused text links for your site. If you
need even more links, use the following resources…
- Top 100 Strategic Links - Improve your Search Engine rankings
by submitting your web site to our list of the
"Top 100" Internet Directories.
- Publicity – A consistent publicity
campaign can get you links from some of the best web sites on
the Net. These links provide your web site with “Link Popularity”
and the Google PageRank numbers you need for high search engine
ranking and traffic. Plus, the links themselves can bring you a
significant amount of targeted traffic. Send press releases to the
media and write articles for use on other web sites.
- Link Brokers – If you are in a highly competitive industry
that requires aggressive marketing and linking, consider purchasing
relevant links from a
text link
broker. For a flat or monthly fee, a link broker can provide you
with hundreds of new keyword focused text links to your web site for
boosting PR and rankings over your competition.
In Conclusion:
Achieving top search engine rankings for your keywords can be a
big
boost to your business and bottom line. Since links are vital to
achieving high rankings in the Search Engines, allocate your
resources to developing your web site’s Link Popularity and boosting
your Google PageRank.
Other Resources:
Contact us now for a free price quote
on our search engine marketing services by calling Matt
Hockin at 866.279.5785 or by clicking here.
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