Top 10 Ways to Improve Your Site's "Link Pop"

10. Post comments in discussion groups and on message boards. Be sure to make useful, relevant statements based on topics being discussed. Comments that only contain a link will usually be deleted or banned. If you make valuable contributions, people will want to find out what else you have to say by visiting your site.

9. Give away awards to other sites that you find particularly outstanding. Provide a graphic with the award title and a link to your webpage.

8. Email other webmasters and simply ask for a link. Let them know why your website will benefit their readers, and provide a pre-coded html link for them to cut and paste to their page.

7. Never underestimate the power of blogs. Talk to bloggers about links and posts about your website. The blogging community is ever-growing, and blogmasters are always looking for cool new things to post.

6. Write a site review on your webpage and send the site's webmaster a link. Who would pass up an opportunity to advertise a great testimonial?

5. If your site distributes a newsletter, start a contest for ad space. Offer to advertise a website in your publication to the sites that offer you a free link.

4. Write free articles for an article directory (search "article directory" in Yahoo! or Google for submission options). This allows people to read your work and publish it for free. Make sure to include a Bio Box that includes a link to your site. Stipulate that the article may be reprinted for free as long as the Bio Box is included. This will instantaneously provide extra links to your page when people reprint your work.

3. Write to webmasters and compliment their site. Often, they will want to include your kind statements in a testimonial section, and a link to your site will give the quote credibility.

2. Start your own reciprocal linking campaign. Write to webmasters of quality, relevant sites that you want your readers to see. Choose wisely! Tell them why your site will benefit their readers, and show them how prominently their link will be displayed on your page. Make sure to include a pre-made html link to your site that can be easily cut and pasted.

1. Submit to as many directories as you can. Webmasters agree that directory submission is the BEST way to gain targeted traffic to your site. By listing your site in a directory, web users will view your page as a reliable resource tailored specifically to their search criteria. And a great way to quickly submit your website to hundreds of Link Directories is by using the Link Directory Submitter.

Why Link Farm and FFA Submissions Are a Bad Idea

Before search engines got smart, a site's page ranking was based on keyword match-ups. When webmasters stock-piled their sites with keywords, the wrong sites were getting too much attention. Google decided to focus on a site's "popularity" instead. The number of incoming links became the focus of PR criteria. The theory behind this system was that if a lot of sites link to another site, that site would contain valuable content.

But again, webmasters got sneaky. With this trend, we began to see the evolution of "Link Farms" and "Free-for-All" (FFA) sites. These pages were essentially a gigantic collection of (often times) useless links. In most cases, the sites were not categorized or descriptive. They became a place for webmasters to dump their links in order to make their site appear more popular.

This strategy worked for some time, but soon search engines caught on. "Link Farms" and FFA sites served no purpose to web users. Since Google prides itself on catering to web users (and NOT developers), a solution had to be formed. "Link Farms" were cluttering up the web and making it more difficult for users to find valuable resources online.

Google soon began to rate the quality of the links that determined a site's "link pop." "Link Farms" and FFA sites became categorized as spam, and thus contributed no value to a site's link popularity.

Today, submitting to a "Link Farm" or FFA site can be harmful to your website's reputation. Google takes a strong stance against these kinds of link pages. At best, the "Link Farm" will drag down your ranking and make it harder for the valuable sites to work in your favor. At worst, your site will be BANNED altogether for using spam sites to attempt to generate traffic. This is a very real possibility.

"Link Farms" and FFA sites present very little value. Although it may sound tempting, users will not obtain quality or relevant links from the submission. Plus, who wants to see their link among "junk" websites for adult entertainment, dating sites, and casinos? Submitting to "Link Farms" doesn't contribute to your credibility and is just not worth the risk.

Instead, spend your time submitting to credible directories and exchanging links with other relevant sites. The process can be time-consuming, but it is the only way to generate safe, site-specific traffic.

For an easier method to the tedious directory submission process, and to Submit your website to 300+ link directories fast and easy we recommend Directory Submitter.