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Our primer on websites...
If you are one of the many
people overwhelmed by how all of this works, we'll dummy it down a
bit. This page is mainly all about linking.
Linking
Basics
The invention of the hyperlink allowed
the web site to truly come into it's own. Web links can make it
possible to easily go anywhere you want seamlessly. Search engines
use links to explore the web, when a search bot finds a link on site
"A", the bot will follow that link and index the new site
(B) and add it
to the database (if it's not there presently) - or update the database
if there are new pages and information.
Relevancy
Over the years, it was generally accepted that the more links you
had pointing to your site, the higher you would rank. For awhile,
that seemed to work, but as the search engines soon found out, many
sites were "gaming the system" with links. To better achieve
accuracy in the search results, the search engines algorithms have
started to use relevancy as a factor on links. If you are renting
lawn equipment, a link from a Viagara site will be of little use, if
the link comes from a company that sells lawn fertilizer, that can
help - it has relevancy.
Adding resource and/or linking pages to your site
Most web sites overlook this, an organized resource section helps
your viewers with additional information, and may contribute to
helping you achieve higher rankings. I recommend using topical
resource pages rather that all on one page. For example, our lawn
equipment company could have a resource page devoted to links on
landscaping supplies such as fertilizer and plants
and yet another separate page devoted to information sites, such as
local ag or extension service infopages or university ag
infopages/ By making each page topical with a "theme' of content,
you add relevancy. You may not get much traffic from these inbound
links, but the search bots see them and measure them in order to
best rank your site and that may be worth a lot to your success in
ranking your site. A well organized topical links page also is
attractive to other sites that link to you - it helps them, and
that's an attractive plus in getting them to link with you.
Text Links
The actual link should have relevant text, NOT "click
here". A good text link could be:
More on our landscaping supplies - fertilizers and grass
seed.
Relevant text links are where it's at. Banners work well
as an eye-catcher and are effective, but text links may be a better
bet for ranking.
Linking Policies
State them right on your link pages; yes you want relevant links,
contact me here at (add email or ph number). Make the links as nice
as possible, pictures, logos, some nice copy - all can contribute to
making this a success for both parties. Be wary of sites where you
can't find your link naturally, they may be link farms and this is
not good form. If a site is chock full of Google or other adword
programs instead of content - avoid them. Only exchange links with
sites you think your valued viewers would be comfortable with.
Trusted Links
I have always believed that the search bots "trust" certain sites
more than others. A link to you from a DMOZ category would be seen
as "trusted" as to accuracy than say a site that has been online
only a few months and is about a completely different topic.
It may also be that
Chamber of Commerce sites and trade organization sites have more
importance as well. Many web savvy companies use the Google page
rank as a measure of importance - I'm not a big fan of this, a site
with a very high page rank still should be relevant. Recently Google
has downgraded page rank for many sites, especially those that
appear to be selling links. Which, by the way is what Google does
for a living - so it figures they don't like the competition for a
very lucrative revenue stream - go figure.
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Content and Links
Arguably two of the most important factors
in high search rankings. For links, this is no longer a case of
"more is merrier".
Look for relevancy.
A link from a relevant site may be seen by search
engines as a "vote' for your site's importance. |
