Link exchanges

[Virtual Nations]

This may well have been suggested before on the forum but I missed it.

Everyone tells us that the best way to boost your Google rank is with link popularity. Strikes me that we are all in the same boat looking to improve ranking and this is one element in the proverbial search.

So, who has an interest in exchanging links with our site. If you are then please indicate whether you may be interested in exchanging links with other forum members. Perhaps we could even get the start of a database that can benefit all.

www.shop-in-scotland.net

[TheBoyLard]

Count me in.
Site is still being amended/updated, but happy to join the party.

Andy.

[pinbrook]

you'd need a database or spreadsheet so that you can classify peoples website,

Links need to be to related sites in order to be of benefit

thus a bedding company could link to a bedshop

it would be useful if everyone interested in this could supply a list of sites they are offering for link exchange, whether thay are catalog site or not.

You also have to consider exsisting page rank. A site with a page rank of 1 will have alot to benefit from linking to a site with 5, but the site with 5 has nothing to benefit from linking to a 1.

[Tony Appleton]

Have a look at http://linksmanager.com. This has to be the easiest way to manage your links pages!

[bekyed]

linksmanager no no

Hi,

If you are seriuously looking to do well on google do not use artificial link programs such as linksmanager, this will do more harm than good.
Reciprocal linking takes a lot of hard work but is worth it in the end.

Bek.

[Tony Appleton]

Hi Bek

Thanks for the reply - but how does Linksmanager upset Google?

And yes - I am looking to do seriously well in Google so every little bit helps!!

[pinbrook]

I signed one of my sites up for LinkManager just to see how it works. I went for the free version.

The main problem as far as I can see is the sites who use the automated version. A link to your site can be placed on a link partner customer's site, but in reality your site is listed on a page along with a load of other not necessarily revevant links.

This in my opinion is a little like the old link farms, and thus could be non beneficial.

I have cancelled my membership with link Partners because I want better control over where my links appear.

There is no such thing as a free lunch springs to mind! There are no short cuts to good reciprocal linking.

So yes I agree with Bek.

[Tony Appleton]

Hmm - you're still not convincing me as to how Linksmanager is going to upset a Google ranking.

I take your point, Jo, about wanting control over position of your links, but in reality all you really want to achieve is links in to your site from other ideally highly ranked sites, and possibly clickthroughs to you from those sites.

Don't you feel though, that in the vast majority of cases the chance of clickthroughs is remote anyway, so the only benefit is in increasing your own ranking by having a greater no of links to you?

Don't get me wrong - I'm not 'carrying the flag' for Linksmanager at all, in fact I'm unsure as to how much value I'm getting for my $20 pcm. It does make linking and checking links v simple and easy to manage though.

So - if we all agree that reciprocal linking is a 'good thing' and a valid part of SEO, then please tell me how using Linksmanager is going to upset my Google ranking?!

[pinbrook]

One thing that Google wants to see if links from sites which are in the same arena as your own.

as part of being in links manager for www.surf-wax.co.uk I was offered links from a hotel in turkey and a paintball company in the US.

The paintball listing would have been on a page of text links along with other sites not really in the paintball game. Here is the link page for the hotel http://www.antikhotel.com/links/links.html Both of these look very similar to a link farm to me. As you can see there are many links there which are not in the hotel, travel or surfing arena.


IMO I don't feel that these links would benefit surf-wax at all, so I've withdrawn membership

[Tony Appleton]

Yep - I agree but you have total control over which links you accept or reject.

Sure - I'm bombarded by requests to link to online pharmacies and cheap Viagra sites - but I just reject them and keep my links to areas complementary to my own - surely that's OK?

[pinbrook]

I've had requests to link which I have rejected, but that doesn't stop them putting your link in their pages.

[zmagyar]

I have posted this one to our wish list. I can imagine some handy solution here.

Regards,

[brucet]

Have you got links on the main shopping portals? If you sell in dollars, you can use the data feed in Actinic v6 to get linked on Froogle (page rank 9). Even if you do not, you can use the same feed to get into the entry level of Kelkoo (so they tell me). I suspect it will work for Dealtime as well. Those are the two main UK shopping portals - page rank 7 each.

Actinic users can also get links on the following:

www.shopbritain.co.uk (Google page rank 4)
www.shoppingarcade.co.uk (Google page rank 5)
www.british-shopping.com (Google page rank 6)
www.i-stores.co.uk (Google page rank 6)
www.we-have-it.com (Google page rank 5)

The last time I spoke to Google, they were expecting Froogle to accept Sterling 'very soon'.

Bruce Townsend
Actinic

[JRAS]

Reciprocal Linking

I am in the throes of building new link pages. I have looked at the many software programmes out there which automaticaly create links, but I chose to go down the hard road. I could'nt work out the linking process in catalog, but after a few phone conversations with the actinic girls, (what a service, my hats off to Tracy and Krithika for their unbelievable patience) I use the following method:
I created a letter in works as follows:
We wondered if you would be interested in a reciprocal link with our site.
We are compiling a new set of link sections dedicated to providing a source of reference for both Native American Jewellery, Crafts, Western and Native American Culture and Historical interest. If you could spare the time, please read “Linking With Us” on our site , it is short and explains in detail what we are trying to do.
Kindest Regards,
John & Marjorie Scotney

I lift an appropriate image (preferably the site logo) and build a banner 250 pix wide in adobe image ready, then 'save optimized as' into a links folder.

I then create a fragment in the link page I wish it to appear in, title it , and in layout using the image to the left of text (or right) selection box in the layout selection box, select the saved gif from the links folder.

Since the banner is only 250 pix wide (file size is small as its optimised) this leaves space alongside to build the anchor text and link using the fragment details General & Link areas. I have been told that using anchor text as the link is far more search engine friendly. so this is how I do it.

I realise that not everyone will want to go this route, and there could well be a far easier method, but I find it works for me. I am sure that if visitors are looking through our links, they would be tempted to click on a far more interesting looking link, rather than just plain text.

It takes a lot of work, and not everybody can spare the time, but you do get to visit a lot of great sites. Not all will recipricate with a banner, but it is worth it for those who do.

I would appreciate comments on my method, and on an alternate
method you find more acceptable.
Should raise some comments...

[workbasket]

This is the approch that I have taken aswell. Slow but with massive control.

I also have a page with info and banners for sites to use when linking to us.