You learned in Chapters 3 and 4 how important inbound links are for your website. Last month, you even dipped a toe into the ocean of link building when you used the search engines to find out how many other sites are linking to your landing pages.
Unless your site is truly wretched, there's bound to be somebody out there who is interested in linking to it. (And if you think your site is beyond linking, stay tuned! You'll get some content-building and linkability improvement lessons in Chapter 9, "Month Three: It's a Way of Life.") Put on your PR hat—or get your team's most talented communicator in the room—and get started on your SEO link-building campaign:
Monday: Your Existing Links
Tuesday: Submit to Directories
Wednesday: Surf for More Link Opportunities
Thursday: The Art of Link Letters
Friday: Submittals and E-mails
Surfing Is Not SlackingWay back when, when we were SEO consultants working for a small web development firm, we were lucky to have an open-minded boss. On any given day, you might have seen five other workers knee-deep in HTML edits or up to their ears in database code, but what was on our monitors? Movie fan sites, Florida vacation sites, and sports nostalgia sites. We remember the day we had to send an e-mail around saying, "Don't worry: We're not looking for new jobs. We're just researching career sites for a client!" But it was all part of the SEO job, and an important one at that. If you're in a corporate culture where personal e-mails and web surfing is frowned upon or prohibited, it is essential that you get the clearance you need to access the Web in the same way that your customers and competitors do. Likewise, if there are no actual restrictions on web surfing in your company but you just feel like a slacker when you're surfing the Web, just remember what surfing does for your company:
Every SEO expert has a favorite generic search term to use for testing, one that's broad and popular enough to be represented by the full gamut of paid and unpaid listings, directory listings, and text snippets, not to mention official sites, unofficial sites, and misspellings. Ours continues to be "Brit-ney Spears." Have fun finding yours! |
Today, you will assess your website's existing listings and links with an eye toward improvement. We have created a worksheet to help you in your link-building efforts.
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Now: Download the Link Tracking Worksheet from www.yourseoplan.com and save it in your SEO Idea Bank.
Last month, during your baseline site assessment, you determined the total number of sites linking into your landing pages. Now you will take a magnifying glass to these sites and document them in your Link Tracking Worksheet. Here are the steps you'll take:
Document Inbound Links
Assess Existing Link Quality
On your Link Tracking Worksheet, you will see a section for existing inbound links. Today you'll identify the URLs of the first 10 or so sites that are linking to each of your landing pages. Ten should be plenty to work with for now.
Find the URLs using one of the following four methods:
On the search engine of your choice, perform the special search you learned in Chapter 6 for finding inbound links. (We prefer using http://siteexplorer.search.yahoo.com because it's so easy to export the list and dump it into the worksheet.)
If you have access to a website statistics program, review it for referring URLs.
Use a backlink analysis tool, such as the one found at www.backlinkwatch.com. See Figure 7.3 for an example. This tool provides backlink URLs and also the text that the linking sites are using to link to you. Fun stuff!
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If you have verified your site with Google Webmaster Tools, you have access to a much more complete list of links than you'll get from the Google search engine.
Perform this step for each of your landing pages, ignoring links coming from your own site. If your site has no incoming links from other sites, you can skip the rest of today's tasks!
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Now: Open your Link Tracking Worksheet and fill in existing linking site URLs for each of your landing pages.
Search engines care about the quality as well as the quantity of inbound links. And you care, too, because a link is a direct pathway for potential customers to get to your site. Today you'll ask a few key questions about your linking sites that will help you determine if each link is going to help the right audience find the right page on your site. Later this week, we'll show you how to write to site owners to request changes to any problematic listings you discover.
The following key questions will help you assess the quality of your inbound links. It may seem like a lot to think about, but once you get a feel for it, you won't need the checklist. In fact, you'll probably be able to assess each link within 30 seconds of opening the page.
Starting with the first inbound link URL on your list, open up the page and think about the answers to these yes or no questions:
Is this site related to the same general subject matter as mine?
Does the linking page content speak to my target audience?
Are my target keywords included in the text that links to my site?
Are my target keywords included elsewhere on the page?
Does the link work?
Does the link go to the best landing page choice?
Is the link up-to-date?
Is the link flattering, or at least noncritical?
Although numerous factors can contribute to the quality of an inbound link, these are the most important. The more yes answers, the higher-quality link you have. If there are any no answers, flag this URL with a note of the problem. Obviously, some problems (like a link being from an irrelevant website) can't be fixed. And if a link is coming from inside a forum post or blog comment, it's good to know about, but there's no point trying to modify it. But others, especially links that don't work, are red flags that need to be addressed.
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Now: Make a note of any trouble spots in the Notes column of your Link Tracking Worksheet.
Get into the habit of asking these questions anytime you review a website, and it will serve you throughout your campaign—especially later this week when you are looking for new links.
Getting listed in human-edited directories is one of those incremental SEO tasks that can make a difference in the aggregate. It's relatively easy to find directories with categories that match your organization, and they represent a chance to build a link to your site using your own well-researched, well-targeted words. Think of a directory listing as just another inbound link with a slightly different link-request process (usually there's a submittal form to fill out, and specific editorial guidelines to follow, instead of a free-form e-mail correspondence). If you happen to have a nonprofit or noncommercial website, you have greatly increased potential for free links on directories.
Your directory requests will be accepted or rejected based on the judgment of human editors, and part of what they judge is whether your suggested title and description match your site's content. So if you have substantial optimization that needs to take place before this is the case, use today's task just to gather submittal information. You can perform the actual submittal when your site is ready.
There are some big, well-established directories such as the Yahoo! Directory (http://dir.yahoo.com) and the Open Directory (www.dmoz.org), which survived extinction when the Age of Directories in the "90s made way for the Age of Algorithmic Search that came after. Submitting your site to Yahoo! and the Open Directory, while no longer crucial to a site's visibility, is a fine thing to do. They have specific categories that might describe your organization perfectly, such as Health: Alternative: Practitioners: Wellness Centers: North America: United States: Michigan. If the category fits, you may as well submit.
But the majority of today's directories, the ones you'll be spending most of your time on, are little guys with niche traffic. Niche directories are small, but they can be pow-erhouses for targeted traffic. You know your company, and you know your niche. Now it's time for you to find directories that speak to it. Here are ways you can go about it:
What are your competitors using? Check links to your competitors the same way you did in Chapter 6, but this time take some time to read through the listings. Are there any directories listed? Click them and see if this may be a good directory for you, too.
What offline opportunities do you already know about? Many publications, such as Sweets (http://sweets.construction.com) and Thomson Local (www.thomweb.co.uk) have online directory components. Check to see if your company is included in any such publication.
What comes up for your target keywords? Are there any directory pages among the top search results for your target keywords? (See Figure 7.4 for a visual.) You could benefit from their ranks by getting listed.
Last but not least, be sure to search the search engines for relevant niche directories. For example, if your organization is a day spa located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the search terms "day spa directory" and "Albuquerque directory" will both turn up many possible niche directories. But watch out for these pitfalls as you consider niche directories:
Many of the directories that will come up in your searches will be repurposed versions of the Open Directory. Don't waste your time on a duplicate submittal.
Don't believe the hype: If a niche directory wants a payment for your listing, you need to carefully check the link quality factors before you pull out your pocketbook. Websites are so easy to create that there are thousands of directory sites on the Web that aren't worth the virtual paper they're printed on. Unless you can get a several-month free trial, you should be cautious about paying for niche directory listings.
While we've got you in a cynical mind-set, be sure to look closely at free directories as well. Don't fall for the idea that your website needs to be listed in every free-for-all general directory. If the directory categories are ridiculously generic, like "engineering" and "comic books," or if you don't actually need to select a category for your listing, the directory may not be trying to appeal to a human audience.
If you do decide to create your own directory listing, here are some tips on saving time and maximizing results:
Cluster with your competition. Search the directory for your top business competitors. If they're all in the same category, you want to be there, too.
Get specific. Browse the directory, starting from the biggest, top-level categories and working your way down to the one most specific to your organization. For example, if you provide tennis lessons, you don't want to be in a generic category like "Sports." You want to be in a more appropriate category like Shopping > Sports > Tennis > Training or a local category like Regional > North America > Canada > Ontario > Localities > T > Toronto > Recreation and Sports > Tennis.
Use category tiebreakers. If you are faced with two categories that seem to fit your site equally well, choose the better-quality category page based on the link-quality factors you assessed on Monday for inbound links in general.
Put some thought into your submittal. Most likely, you will want to submit your home page, but it's possible that a different landing page will also work. In rare cases, if your site has landing pages with unique content, directories may include multiple listings for your site. Use the HTML page title and meta description tag you prepared in Week 1 as a launching point to write your title and description. Be sure to consider what your competition is saying (or not saying) about themselves when you fine-tune your suggested listing.
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Now: Submit your site to directories that you've determined are worth your time.
On Monday you began building the list of potential linking websites on your Link Tracking Worksheet. Today, you'll surf the Web to expand your list of sites. First, you need to know what makes a link worth chasing:
Quality Links Defined
Expand Your Link Requests List
As you surf for potential linking sites today, you may be tempted to build the longest list you possibly can, with dozens or hundreds of sites. But every one of these link requests is going to take a five-minute chunk of time out of your life—why, that's only 12 per episode of Battlestar Galactica!—so you need to be choosy.
An Expert's Opinion: The Difference Between Success and FailureIf your only exposure to link building is spammy, reciprocal link request e-mails from pushy webmasters, you may be surprised to know that there is a very different way to build links. "It's a very human process," says renowned link-building consultant Eric Ward. Eric is such an authority on the subject of successful linking campaigns that he has earned the nickname "Link Moses"—a bit of a misnomer given his fresh-faced good looks. Eric feels that taking the time to carefully assess potential linking sites is critically important."You can automate only so much of the process, and then it comes down to you and your browser window, making qualitative decisions about the target sites. Most people dread that part. I dig it. That's the difference between success and failure." Over half of Eric's business involves teaching his clients how to do it themselves. According to Eric, "The most successful sites will take ownership of the link-building process and not depend solely on vendors." So if it's better to do it yourself, how can you make sure you're spending your precious time on the highest-quality potential linking sites? Eric offers advice on identifying quality sites: "The signs of value will vary depending on the subject matter, but one constant is the site's content will be high caliber and not coated with 10 or 20 pay-per-click ads. The site will not require a return link as a condition of giving you a link." And how does he identify sites that aren't worth the effort? "If the majority of what I see on the page is advertisements instead of content, I'm immediately suspicious. If the site says "Submit your link free!" it's likely to be of little value. If a page has never been crawled by any search engine (this can be verified), the page isn't likely to be of value." Don't be intimidated if you're just getting started with link building. Eric advises, "Do a search on the phrase "link building expert" and read all the articles you find. Those of us who do this for a living have shared many of the tips and tools we use." Tell it, Moses! Eric shares his tips and tools on his website, www.ericward.com. |
Between Eric Ward's factors to consider in the sidebar "An Expert's Opinion: The Difference Between Success and Failure" and the link quality factors you learned on Monday, you've got a lot of tools for analysis. But there's one more angle to consider: whether the site makes it possible for you to do your link-gathering job. Be sure to take these administrative issues into account:
Is contact information available on the site? Without it, you can't request the link.
Does the site appear to be regularly updated? Do a quick scan for the "last edited" date or other signs of life. If nobody is manning the store, there won't be anybody to add your link.
Now that you know what you're looking for in an inbound linking site, here are some ideas for where to look.
So far, you've only scratched the surface of your potential high-quality linking sites. Here are some places you can look for additional opportunities:
Sites Linking to Your Competitors By now, you're a seasoned pro at finding inbound links using the search engines. Do this now for your Big Five competitors. Who is linking to them? Can you get a link there, too?
Any Sites Doing Well for Your Top Keywords Go through the top listings for your target keywords—both organic results and sponsored results—with a fine-tooth comb. These would be great places to get links.
Your Clients/Customers/Fans Do you have a client base that is pleased with your service? Do they have websites that speak to a segment of your target audience? If so, they may be happy to provide a link to your site! Bonus points if they put your link alongside a glowing recommendation.
Your Service Providers/Vendors Are you a major client of any organization with a web presence that has a tie-in to your target audience? Maybe they would like to link to your site. Maybe they'd even like to list you as a "featured" client!
Your Partners Corporate partners are likely to include links on their websites. Check and see if there's one for you.
Sites That Already Include Your Company Name Perform a search for your company name in quotes. You may be surprised to find many websites that include your company information, maybe even a URL written in text, without making it a link! With a flick of the mouse, those could become inbound links for you.
Local and Regional Directories Any site that includes listings of local businesses will probably be happy to have their information updated—preferably with your organization's web listing!
Business Associations and Accreditations Most professional and trade associations include lists of their members. If your organization is accredited in any way, there may be a link in it for you.
Sites That Are "Related" to Yours In Chapter 6, you learned about the Alexa database of information. One of its tastier tidbits is Related Sites, other websites that draw the same audience as yours. Take a look at your related sites for linking potential.
Sympathetic Sites If your site has a religious, political, or philosophical theme, there is likely to be a large circle of similarly minded folks on the Web. These people will likely be enthusiastic about supporting one of their own. Ditto for specialized hobbies and enthusiasms.
As you surf, be open to wandering down unexpected paths—sometimes that's the best way to find new opportunities. And be sure to make a note of the site URL (location of potential link), name of site, and contact information in your Link Tracking Worksheet.
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Now: Record additional potential linking URLs under "New Links/Requests" in your Link Tracking Worksheet.
If you own a website, surely you've seen them: annoying requests for links. Usually they go something like this: "Dear Webmaster. I reviewed your site and feel that it would be appropriate for a link trade. Please add the following HTML code to your home page... after your link is added, we will add your link to our links page."
Most of the time, this type of letter goes straight into the Trash folder. Follow these dos and don'ts to craft link letters that do get results and don't annoy their recipients:
DO include key information. At a minimum, your letter must include the following: the URL from which you would like a link, your landing page URL, your landing page title, and your landing page description. Remember to choose the best landing page on your site, which, depending on the nature of the linking page, may not be your home page.
DO be straightforward. At the very least, it's going to take a few minutes for someone to add your link to their site. At most it might require a committee review and approval. You're writing to a total stranger and asking for a favor—don't pretend it's anything else.
DON'T offer a link trade. If your site is appropriate for a link, you should be able to get it without a reciprocal link agreement.
DO explain the benefits of the link... Website owners want to link to sites that their site audience will like. Specifically describe how your site relates to theirs.
...but DON'T write a novel. We're talkin" 25 words or less.
DO write from a company e-mail address. Webmasters want to know that you really come from the company that is requesting the link.
DON'T mass-mail. Figure out the name of the person you're writing to, and use it. Then, sign with your own name and title.
And finally:
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Pearl of Wisdom: DO say Thank You.
A Bulletproof Link LetterSeveral years ago, we were doing some link-building efforts for a major media website that had just launched an innovative product. The product was interesting enough that we thought some of the industry thinkers with blogs might want to take a look, and maybe even write a review. So, like Little Red Riding Hood skipping into the forest, we sent out a bunch of our usual perky, polite link request letters. Hoo boy, were we in for a surprise! Bloggers can be a little bit like sleepy dogs that wake up snapping their teeth. We received some less-than-polite responses:What were we doing pestering them? Who the heck would want this product? Why the heck did we send this e-mail? Worse, at least one blog actually published the text of our e-mail, with our full name and e-mail address! That could have been more than a little embarrassing. Luckily—or was it actually foresight on our part?—our letters were carefully written to avoid embarrassment to ourselves or our client. We were eminently polite and professional. We described the benefits of the product without resorting to heavy selling. And we took some time to review the blogs for relevance before sending out our e-mails. Our punishment took the form of exposure, and not worse. Nowadays, there are blogs on every subject, from lost socks to lost souls, and surely there are some in your industry. At some point in your link-building campaign, you'll probably want to approach one. Keep these guidelines in mind when you do:
And, finally, imagine your e-mail posted on the blog for the whole world to see. Would this be embarrassing in any way to you or your organization? If so, you need a rewrite. |
To make your life a little easier, we've written a sample link request letter for your use. Download it from our companion website at www.yourseoplan.com.
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Now: Open a new document and write your own general link request letter including your site's must-have information. Save it in your SEO Idea Bank.
You now have the two elements in place that you need for your link-building campaign: a list of quality sites that might be interested in linking to your site and a sample link request letter.
Today, step through the list on your Link Tracking Worksheet and, one by one, personalize and send out your link request e-mails. If you encounter a site with a Contact Us form, it's perfectly kosher to paste your link request e-mail into that as long as you dutifully enter your contact information into the proper fields. As you go, record the date that you requested the link, and who you e-mailed, in your worksheet. You will want this information later if you wish to send a follow-up request.
As the Internet moves away from static websites with links pages to a more dynamic and bloggy existence, you may be wondering if digging through websites and writing so many personalized letters is a feasible method for you. Link building can take a lot of time, and webmasters frequently ignore even the most carefully crafted approach.
We do want you to perform some link requests today, because this type of communication is essential to a well-rounded SEO skill set. But we know you're busy, so we'd like to offer you a few choices about how to move forward with link building for the long term:
Link Building, an Hour a Week In the Hour-a-Week approach, you systematically seek quality sites, make link requests, and document your efforts in your Link Tracking Worksheet. This is the nose-to-the-grindstone approach we have taken for years. It may be a good fit for you if you enjoy documentation, and is especially well-suited to you if you are hitting up an industry that still has a predominance of static websites containing links pages. Choose one day per week as your day to chip away at link building.
Catch-as-Catch-Can This approach is a reasonable alternative if your schedule does not accommodate an hour per week or more of link research and documentation. Not so much a process as a mind-set, the Catch-as-Catch-Can approach requires that you keep an eagle eye out for linking opportunities as you surf the Web and go about your daily business. For example, next time your CFO is quoted in a testimonial on a website, when you check to be sure her name is spelled correctly, you can also follow through on making sure the quote links back to your company's site.
Build It, and Links Will Come Following this approach, you build a useful and interesting website with linkability and social search in mind (as we will continue to coach you to do throughout the Plan) and hope for the best.
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Now: Step through your list of potential linking sites and send link requests to as many as you can. Decide which link-building approach is right for you for the long term.
With a week of link research and submittals under your belt, you're in perfect shape for your online social search debut next week.
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