Virtually all Webmasters these days are aware of the fact that
exchanging linkbacks with other sites is an excellent method
for building traffic.
In fact, if you go about it the right way, you can build a
sizable audience for your Web site (even if you don't have
much luck in achieving good positioning in the search
engines). I've had a good amount of success in building
traffic to my sites over the years, and linkbacks have been a
key component of that success.
There's a number of tips and tricks I've learned over the
years about the best way to benefit from linkbacks with other
sites. These include:
1. Make it as easy as possible for other Web site owners to
link you. One way I've tried to achieve this over the years is
by creating a page that has ready-to-use "cut and paste" HTML
linkback code that Webmasters can grab and add to their pages,
if they want to link one of my sites. In fact, I have no
problems at all with linkback partners who wish to directly
link to a button or banner image that resides on my server.
The way I see it, if someone is willing to link a site of
mine, then I'm certainly willing to pay for the necessary
bandwidth. If you require people to actually grab a button or
banner from your site and upload it to their site in order to
link to you, then you're only adding another step. This may
not seem significant. But I've found it can be for many site
owners, particularly newbies. The fact is, most successful Web
site owners tend to be busy and pressed for time. Anything you
can do to save them an extra step is significant and, over the
long run, will result in more linkbacks.
Another advantage of offering ready-to-use "cut and paste"
HTML linkback coding is that you may find that a lot of
Webmasters will link your site, simply because they like what
you're offering. If you run a useful, worthwhile site, you'll
find that a lot of other site owners will link you and not
even ask for anything in return.
2. Forget full-sized banners. It's hardly news that the banner
ad market is pretty dead these days. That goes for banner
linkbacks, as well. (Although some people refer to small
buttons or icons as "banners," the term properly refers to
images that are usually around 468-by-60 pixels in size).
Banners get very few clicks. In fact, I've found that a
well-worded text link can actually draw more clicks than a
full-sized banner. And, what's more, a text link doesn't
impact a site's all-important load time, unlike a full-sized
banner. Besides text links, I find that 88X31 pixel buttons
also perform well in linkback deals, particularly if you have
an eye-catching design. Animated buttons tend to get more clicks
than static buttons, but nevertheless, I always offer potential
linkback partners a choice of several designs, both static and
animated. If you offer linkback partners a choice of designs,
you'll increase the odds that they'll be willing to display
your button.
3. Piggyback on other sites' search engine success. Spend some
time at the major search engines. Type in the most likely
keywords that you think people would use to locate your site.
Then take a look at the sites at the top of the search
results. It's possible that your site will never achieve top
search engine placement for a given set of ideal keywords. But
don't fret: although you may not have direct control over the
search engines, you can benefit from the sites that are
well-placed. I've had a good deal of luck over the years,
working out linkbacks with sites with excellent search engine
placement on desirable keyword(s). If you can't be the top site
in a given search, you can have the next best thing: to be
linked prominently on that particular site.
4. Closely monitor your site's referral statistics. When you
work out various linkback deals with other sites, it's
important to keep tabs on how many clicks these sites are
sending you. Ideally, both sites in a link trade will send
each other an equal number of clicks. Of course, it rarely
works out that way. But the fact is, you should keep tabs on
linkback traffic and make sure that your link partner is
sending you a fair number of clicks.
5. Look for sites to linkback with that draw an audience
that would be interested in what you offer. When you consider
doing a link trade, you shouldn't simply focus on the traffic
your link partner is drawing. What is more important is how
likely that site's audience is going to be interested in what
you offer. One thing I always do is spend some time browsing
around a potential linkback partner's site. The question I
ask myself is: "Would a typical visitor to this site be
interested in what my site has to offer?" It pays to spend some
time exploring any sites that you work out linkback deals with.
Even if a linkback partner is steering you loads of traffic,
your credibility will suffer if you're sending your visitors to
a linkback partner who has content that's inappropriate for your
audience.
6. Pick linkback partners with potential. I think this method
is often overlooked by Webmasters who do link trades. To me, a
suitable link partner is someone who runs a useful, credible
site that I know my visitors will enjoy and benefit from. But
the ideal link partner I look for is someone who runs an
outstanding site that hasn't yet found an audience, for
whatever reason. Perhaps the site is too new to have built an
audience. Or maybe the site owner excels at content, but has
poor promotion skills. Sites that fall into this category make
for ideal link partners. If you're the first site to send
significant traffic to them, it's something that they'll
always remember (and always be grateful for). What's more, if
they have a worthwhile site, it's usually only a matter of
time before they do build a sizable audience, which, of
course, will benefit you over the long run.
7. Regard your linkback partners as more than just a link. The
most valuable asset you can build as a Web site owner is your
partnerships and relationships with other site owners. Over
the years, I've built up a sizable network of Webmaster
friends and partners who've played a key role in the success
of my sites. I began my relationship with most of these folks
via a simple link trade deal. In many cases, what started out
as simple link trades have evolved into valuable business and
Web partnerships. As a result, I've cultivated a network of
valuable, trustworthy contacts, who I can depend on and share
useful advice with.
If you follow these steps, you'll be able to make the most of
linkbacks in building your site. Using linkbacks effectively
is the single most potent technique for building an audience
for your site.
