Generating Targeted Website Traffic - Inbound Links

Different Types of Inbound Links (IBLs) and Their Value

Unfortunately many sources you read about "links" don't distinguish between different types of links. In the real world Search Engines do ascribe varying value to different "links". Toward the end of 2005 SE algorithm updates started assigning a "Relativity" value to all Incoming links. Prior that time, they also had discounted links from Sites they considered to be in "bad neighborhoods" such as links from "link mills", link farms" and other obvious "Black Hat" sources. In more recent updates they have extended the link devaluation to links, both inbound and outbound that were born out of the "Gray Hat" practice of trading links with non-Relative Sites to artificially pump up "link count".

Reciprocal Links

For years it was an accepted practice for Site owners and Webmasters to build links trading with anyone that would trade links between Sites. A whole industry was born from that practice. During that period in Internet history, the Search Engines valued the Quantity of inbound links without much consideration for their "Quality", not having established the proper algorithms to determine to what degree a link was "Relevant".

Although we are not sure about exactly what those proprietary algorithms look like, we know for a fact that Non-Relevant Links of any kind, carry forward very little if any value any more. A certain GOOGLE patent makes a number of claims about the evaluation techniques they may use to determine link value, including how often a link is selected and how long a visitor views that linked source. Others claim that the GOOGLE Jagger update may have ushered in the use of LSI/LSA .

Reciprocal Links with Relative Sites or Pages retain good value. As with all inbound links, those from more authoritive, higher ranked Sites hold more value.

Generic Links

Generic Links are those that are "one-way" or non-reciprocated. Generally it is believed that "generic", BLs provide more value than reciprocated, overall. However, there are varying degrees of value there too with "Relativity Ranking" factors applied. Again with "Generic Links", the most valuable are those from higher ranking pages, or more "Authoritive Sites".

Acquiring Generic Links

The future holds continued Page Popularity Rankings and higher SERP (Search Engine Results Placement) for Sites with the most incoming relevant links. This is still the best indicator for a Site's value to the Internet Community. Note that a Search Engine "spam" or "aging" filter may be applied to a Site that is determined to be gaining links faster than what is considered normal for that kind and size of Site.

This public "voting system" will most likely not be replaced any time soon, with the Search Engines continuing to refine "Relativity Filters". Therefore it is important to discuss some of the many tools Webmasters and Site Owners have at their disposal in the Quest for valuable generic link generation, both on-line and off-line:

Search Engine Submission

Even though a great number of companies still advertise and sell Search Engine Submission Services, they hold very little value if any today, in our opinion. You are better off listing on a high ranking frequently indexed page on another Site, like your Web Developers Portfolio Page to draw initial Search Engine attention.

This is the best Free Website Submission Site that we know of we know of.

Good Content

Good unique and/authoritive content encourages other Site owners to reference another website on theirs, especially now that strong OBLs (Outbound Links) appear to be playing a role in the overall "Relativity Ranking" of a Site. It is more important than ever to have a well designed and appealing Site. This is covered in more detail on our SEO and Search Engine pages.

Directories

Listing with Relevant Directories continues to be important. For a good while webmasters and website owners exploited Directories as linking sources. The "Relativity Algorithm" changes ushered in with GOOGLE's "Bourbon" update and reinforced by their "Jagger" update devalued and de-listed thousands of directory sites. Primary targets in that melee were "faux Adsense directories", many of which were created within minutes using auto content generation services.

High ranking relevant directories for listing a site can be found with a little research. Here is a Forum Thread at WebProWorld that list quite a few directories, a good place to start or help build your own directory submission spreadsheet.

Another good method to find relevant directories is to research Geographically Specific Business Indices. Of course, you have the old standby of reviewing where top competitor links are coming from. Niche Directories seem to pass the "Relative" test better than some.

Submission to Directories is a manual process and can be time consuming. In our opinion, it is a good idea to create and use a disposable email address to defer potential spam issues. Many of the Top Directories require paid inclusion.

Here is another good source for top rated directories.