External Website Optimization for Search Engines |
Why is it so? Because if other sites link to you, they in some way recommend your website, and therefore its authority is higher for search engines. And the quality of recommendations is determined by link text, that’s why link text must contain a keyphrase by which you optimize your website.
For you to understand the influence of links better, let’s look at the analogies from real life.
E.g. if 10 people say that some restaurant is very good – tasty food, fresh products and high-quality service, then if you decide to go to a restaurant you will most probably go to this one that was recommended. And if 100 people told us that the restaurant is very good then we would have no doubts about its quality.
Summary: the more links, the better.
Now imagine that you need to complete some documents and you don’t know how to do it. But you have two friends: the first is a professional lawyer that deals with documents every day, and the second is a teacher of physical training at school. Whose advice will be more valuable for you? I think the answer is obvious...
Summary: the closer is the subject matter, the better.
And the last analogy. Imagine that you go in for some kind of sports, let’s say wrestling. At one of trainings you are practicing a hold with your partner, and he says that you are applying the hold wrong. You ask the trainer and he says that your hold is perfect. Whose words will be weightier for you, the trainer’s or the partner’s? I think the answer is obvious...
Summary: the higher is the authority of a linking website (i.e. the higher is PR), the more valuable is the link for search engines.
You must also know that unilateral links are more weighty, i.e. when someone links to your website without a backlink. An exception are strictly thematic websites, you can exchange links with them as you like :)
Now I’ll describe how you can find links to your website. Here are some of the methods:
1. Submission to website directories
According to different data, there are from 1000 to 10 000 directories where you can add your site. Every day tens of directories appear and die. You can submit your website yourself (which usually takes long time if you don’t use special programs) or use special services.
2. Submission to article catalogs
There are a lot of catalogs that can publish your article. An article should be written either in HTML format (and you can insert links to your website within the article) or in text format (and insert the link under the article). You can find up to 1000 such catalogs.
3. Submission to press release catalogs
The principle is the same as in article catalogs, but the number of press release catalogs is much less, and a submission form differs.
4. Bulletin Boards
There also free bulletin boards where you can add an ad, with a link to your website of course. As a rule the ads are placed there for a fixed period, and therefore you’ll have to repeat the procedure more than once.
5. Forums, guest books, blogs
Register at forums, blogs, guest books that are thematically related to your website and leave comments with a link to your website. But do not spam – write comments that can be really useful, then they will live long as well as your link :)
6. Adding news to specialized websites
There are news websites that allow adding of your own piece of news where you can insert a website link.
7. Thematic link exchange
Find websites of the same subject matter as your website, and contact administrators offering link exchange. You can also exchange articles containing links.
8. Contests, prizes, and bonuses
A good way to get links to your website is to start some contest with prizes etc. This will interest visitors and they will tell about it their friends etc. Later a link to your website can appear at forums, blogs etc. where people discuss such events.
9. Unique, interesting and useful content
Fill you website with unique, interesting and useful content, and I assure you that in the course of time you will get a lot of natural links, i.e. people will recommend your information because it is of high quality.
10. Buying of links at link exchange services
One of the most effective methods is buying of links at special link exchange services. There are also services that provide paid submission of articles (with a link to your website).
There are probably a lot of other ways to get external links to a website, but the mentioned methods are basic and they are usually enough.
Good luck with external optimization!
You may want to take a look at the following related articles:
E.g. if 10 people say that some restaurant is very good – tasty food, fresh products and high-quality service, then if you decide to go to a restaurant you will most probably go to this one that was recommended. And if 100 people told us that the restaurant is very good then we would have no doubts about its quality.
Summary: the more links, the better.
Now imagine that you need to complete some documents and you don’t know how to do it. But you have two friends: the first is a professional lawyer that deals with documents every day, and the second is a teacher of physical training at school. Whose advice will be more valuable for you? I think the answer is obvious...
Summary: the closer is the subject matter, the better.
And the last analogy. Imagine that you go in for some kind of sports, let’s say wrestling. At one of trainings you are practicing a hold with your partner, and he says that you are applying the hold wrong. You ask the trainer and he says that your hold is perfect. Whose words will be weightier for you, the trainer’s or the partner’s? I think the answer is obvious...
Summary: the higher is the authority of a linking website (i.e. the higher is PR), the more valuable is the link for search engines.
You must also know that unilateral links are more weighty, i.e. when someone links to your website without a backlink. An exception are strictly thematic websites, you can exchange links with them as you like :)
Now I’ll describe how you can find links to your website. Here are some of the methods:
1. Submission to website directories
According to different data, there are from 1000 to 10 000 directories where you can add your site. Every day tens of directories appear and die. You can submit your website yourself (which usually takes long time if you don’t use special programs) or use special services.
2. Submission to article catalogs
There are a lot of catalogs that can publish your article. An article should be written either in HTML format (and you can insert links to your website within the article) or in text format (and insert the link under the article). You can find up to 1000 such catalogs.
3. Submission to press release catalogs
The principle is the same as in article catalogs, but the number of press release catalogs is much less, and a submission form differs.
4. Bulletin Boards
There also free bulletin boards where you can add an ad, with a link to your website of course. As a rule the ads are placed there for a fixed period, and therefore you’ll have to repeat the procedure more than once.
5. Forums, guest books, blogs
Register at forums, blogs, guest books that are thematically related to your website and leave comments with a link to your website. But do not spam – write comments that can be really useful, then they will live long as well as your link :)
6. Adding news to specialized websites
There are news websites that allow adding of your own piece of news where you can insert a website link.
7. Thematic link exchange
Find websites of the same subject matter as your website, and contact administrators offering link exchange. You can also exchange articles containing links.
8. Contests, prizes, and bonuses
A good way to get links to your website is to start some contest with prizes etc. This will interest visitors and they will tell about it their friends etc. Later a link to your website can appear at forums, blogs etc. where people discuss such events.
9. Unique, interesting and useful content
Fill you website with unique, interesting and useful content, and I assure you that in the course of time you will get a lot of natural links, i.e. people will recommend your information because it is of high quality.
10. Buying of links at link exchange services
One of the most effective methods is buying of links at special link exchange services. There are also services that provide paid submission of articles (with a link to your website).
There are probably a lot of other ways to get external links to a website, but the mentioned methods are basic and they are usually enough.
Good luck with external optimization!
You may want to take a look at the following related articles:
