PostHeaderIcon What Are Backlinks to a Website? by Carl Broady

Backlinks are simply clickable links or clickable address urls from one website to another.

Websites with more quality backlinks will rank higher with the search engines for a given search term.

The results of an internet search for any given term, words or phrases are displayed in what has been determined to be the most relevant Website to that particular search in the number one spot at the top of the list on the first page. The rest of the Websites that are found are displayed in what are considered to be a descending order of relevance.

A higher rank on search engines will almost certainly result in more traffic. The more traffic a website receives the higher it will rank.

The search engine weighs the amount of traffic or visitors a website receives, or has received recently, as well as the number of backlinks that the website has. The more backlinks and traffic a website receives means to the search engine, that the site is important and very relevant to the word, words, phrase or question being searched for.

A website needs to have as many, if not more backlinks, and backlinks of a higher quality than any websites that it competes directly with for a given search term or key word.

Search engines weigh the quality of backlinks as much as they weigh the quantity. To a search engine a high-quality backlink comes from a website that it trusts with a high PR “page rank” and that is also very relevant or closely related to the site which it links to.

Simply put, a backlink is a vote. One website is voting for, or recommending another website to it’s visitors, and in so doing a website is staking it’s own reputation on that recommendation.

The more votes or recommendations a website receives the more relevant that website is considered to be.

Some website promoters will often try to employ different techniques to manipulate the ranking of the website that they are promoting.

To prevent or at least minimize this kind of manipulation the search engines continually change and update their algorithms, the way in which they decide which website is the most relevant to a given search term. They are looking for natural high quality backlinks and are constantly looking for patterns or signs that might suggest some kind of manipulation.

Page rank is determined simply by the amount of visitors that a website receives. A backlink coming from a trusted website in the same, or very similar category with a very high page rank will be considered far more relevant than the backlinks coming from very low ranked, low quality, unrelated or what the search engines might even consider to be undesirable websites.

Search engines never encourage people to pay for links to their website but paid links are a little bit of a grey area because, a paid advertisement on a website for another website is exactly what it is “an advertisement” but to the search engine if this advertisement is clickable it will also show up as a backlink. The search engine’s filter will decide if it’s to be counted or not.

The Yahoo directory carries a lot of weight with search engines because even though Yahoo does charge a fee to have a website listed in their directory, they are very discerning and quite expensive. Search engines consider a link from the Yahoo directory to be a very relevant high quality backlink.

The DMOZ directory does not charge a fee for inclusion but is also a very discerning directory and it is very difficult, and takes a long time to get a website listed on DMOZ. Because of this the DMOZ directory also carries a lot of weight with the search engines.

Websites with high quality content that many people find interesting or useful will, over time, almost certainly, automatically receive many natural back links.

Natural backlinks are of course are what really count.

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Article Source: EzineArticles.com

PostHeaderIcon Backlinks Still Matter – It’s All About Quality by Tracey Munn

Are you one of the millions of website owners perplexed by Backlinks? The recent Google changes have only affected websites relying on low quality, irrelevant Backlinks to obtain top Search Engine Rankings. Many website owners relied solely upon saturating their website in hundreds, even thousands, of low quality Backlinks to obtain top search engine rankings and have now drowned in those low quality links once and for all.

Google changes simply mean that websites with great content and high quality Backlinks will be rewarded for their efforts. This is a good thing. Finally efforts will be validated.

Yet, there has been a mass outpouring of confusion about whether Backlinks remain a useful tools for increasing website rankings at all. Many website owners have removed Backlinks altogether. However, they have found this has now adversely affected their rankings and are lamenting the loss of those high quality Backlinks. So, do Backlinks even matter? Yes, they sure do. But it’s all about quality, not quantity.
Basically, Backlinks work via a PR (PageRank) Points system. The more points, the higher the PR value of a Backlink. Below is the PR Points Table – the more PR points the better the Backlink quality.

PR (PageRank) Points Table eg: 1 = PR1

1 = 8 points
2 = 64 points
3 = 512 points
4 = 4096 points
5 = 32768 points
6 = 262144 points
7 = 2097152 points
8 = 16777216 points
9 = 134217728 points
10 = 1073741824 points

What we learn from the above table is our aim is to have Backlinks with high PR points as these are the ones that matter.

It seems simple, however there is yet another catch. A quality Backlink is also one that is relevant to your website. Relevant Backlinks are those that are related to the content in your website. If you have a blog about mice, then a Backlink to a site about cosmetics is not considered relevant!

Alright, so now we know that Backlinks are certainly important to assist with increasing our website rankings, but where do we find high quality Backlinks? There are numerous software programs available that are genuine and will provide you with excellent Backlink references. IBP (Internet Business Promoter) is just one. If you take your SEO seriously it is worth investing in a program like this.

A stern warning though. Do not go paying for a bunch of low quality PR1 and PR2 backlinks at random. You do not know what you are getting and should your website be linked to hundreds of irrelevant sites you will be penalised by search engines, and nobody wants that to be the outcome. Just remember, Backlinks matter, but it’s the quality not the quantity.

Tracey Munn is an Australian Business Development Expert with qualifications in Accounting and Psychology. Tracey is the founder of The Business Group and Internet Business Australia http://www.internetbusinessaustralia.com. The Business Group creates Online Home Based Business Solutions and also provides support to new and existing business owners.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

PostHeaderIcon Backlink or Be Killed! 7 Ways to Optimize Your Backlinks by Daphne Spurlock

Alright, so the title sounds a little bit extreme but this wayward reference to a popular skating game from the 80s illustrates the point that backlinks are a essential part of your overall SEO strategy. Without them no amount of on-page search engine optimization will get your site ranking. As A matter of fact, some SEO experts claim that about 85% of your ranking is determined by backlinks to your site, and where those backlinks come from.

A little while back we talked about how authority sites were like well-connected people, and this attracted a higher PageRank status from Google. Essentially this highlights the important role that backlinks play in getting your site ranking.

Ok so you know that already but how exactly should you go about implementing your backlinks? Here are some suggestions to make sure you get the most from your backlinks.

It’s true that not all backlinks are created equal. Which is why Nike doesn’t have the Average Joe doing endorsements for them, instead choosing someone well-known, well-liked and, up until a few weeks ago, well-respected to ‘vote’ for their products. Backlinks are exactly the same. The more well-known or reputable the site that ‘votes’ for you or links to your web page, the more that link is worth.

Of course your average basketball charity event would find it difficult to get someone like Kobe Bryant to personally endorse their tournament, but it has been known to happen. On the rare occasions it happens one of the organizers has got very creative, very lucky or both, to secure a personal nod from the man himself. Likewise your chances of Google, Facebook or Amazon linking to your site with a dofollow link are slim.

Don’t let this discourage into conceding defeat. Like our parents told us as we grew up through those awkward teenage years and hated looking in the mirror, we need to make the most of what we’ve got. This means maximizing your backlink opportunities.

Here are 7 sure ways to maximize your backlinks

Keyword-optimized anchor text – Looking at your keyword list, choose one main keyword phrase you want to rank for. Have 3 closely-related variations of that phrase to use as anchor text. These will become your primary backlinks. There will be situations where you may choose different anchor text based on the page you’re linking from – see point 4.

Use a backlink checker – Use a free SEO tool such as Traffic Travis to spy on your competitors and find out where they’re getting backlinks from. Chances are they may be a good first option and ‘low hanging fruit’ in terms of acquiring new backlinks. You can also use the backlink checker available from the Affilorama website.

Search for dofollow blogs by Googling ‘CommentLuv blogs’. These blogs allow you to comment on posts and include a valuable backlink to your site.

Backlink in context – Contextual relevancy is another important aspect of link building. When we relate it back to Tiger Woods endorsing Nike products, it’s partly built on relevancy. Which is why they don’t use Michael Moore, simply because people wouldn’t be able to make the connection. Similarly when you backlink from a page about biting Bichons make sure you use appropriate anchor text that matches not only the page you’re linking from, but also the page on your site that you are linking to. This adds weight to the backlink’s importance.

Avoid overstuffed pages – Avoid getting backlinks on pages with too many links (a page with more than 100 outbound links is too many)

Aim high – Target websites that have a higher PageRank than yours with a minimum PR of 3. The higher the PR, the more valuable the backlink, indicating that your site is relevant and an authority on the topic.

Go for trusted links – Try to get links from education or government sites as these backlinks are generally trusted more by the search engines. Affilorama have recently released the Trusted Site tool! for Affilorama Premium members that will seek out government and education sites that allow you to add backlinks to your site, for any given keyword phrase. Can backlinks be bad for me?

All this talk of the magical goodness of backlinks might have you thinking they can do no wrong. You might be tempted to go on a backlink blitz, picking up links from anyone and everyone without a care in the world. But waite a minute before you do that, hold on just one moment. Before you go bananas over backlinks, it must be pointed out that not all backlinks are worth having, in fact there are some that will actually harm your site instead of helping.

We won’t go into any detail here but if you want to check out a couple of pointers on what to avoid have a read of the last paragraph in this free SEO lesson on getting backlinks to your website. So how do you extract maximum value from your backlinks? Have you been enjoying good success with your link building campaigns?

I am an Internet Marketer and a Social Media Networker who loves God,family,friends and church. I enjoy teaching people how to use social media to promote themselves and their business. I have been in network marketing for some years and have been involved in several mlms. I have created this website Make Money Online to help those who are serious about building a successful business online and becoming top earners in this industry.

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Article Source: EzineArticles.com

PostHeaderIcon How to Build Backlinks by Paul Diamond

If you want to build effective backlinks, then the golden rule is to use the two R’s:

1. Make sure that it is Relevant
2. Make sure it is Related

The easiest way to determine and find this information is by using a tool like Backlink Agent.

It’s no good creating a great looking website, blog or landing page, then running around and posting in “general forums” hoping and not understanding why your link page is not receiving any hits!

If you want to drive qualified, high quality and most importantly “interested” traffic to your pages then it has to be both relevant and related.

So how does a tool like Backlink Agent work?

Well, take a case of using forums to build backlinks (forums are an excellent source of quality links), and lets say you have an affiliate link to a great product that gets rid of acne scars. You simply type in the search term “get rid of acne scars” and select forums, and back comes listings from over 14,000 references to that search term.

That’s 1000′s of potential customers for your great acne scar removal product, this is what I call the “rifle” approach to finding people as opposed to the “shotgun” approach that so many people use, often accompanied by spending vast amounts of money on advertising

The best part of using forums to build great backlinks is that it is Free!

In the eyes of the search engines your website, blog or landing page’s popularity is measured in part by the number of backlinks that it has accumulated over time. This will help your page rank and as your page rank rises so does the overall Authority of your website, that in turn is recognised and rewarded by the search engines.

Hopefully this has given you an insight into both the importance of creating relevant and related backlinks and also shown you that there are tools like Backlink Agent that can speed up your research time and show you how to build backlinks the easy way!

I will post an article showing you how to make the most of these forums and the best manner in which to achieve the best results. Feel free to visit my site if you wish to see How Backlink Agent Can Create Great Backlinks

Showing people tips and reviews through the use of video. Videos like: How to build great backlinks [http://www.affiliate-tool-reviews.com/review-of-backlink-agent.html].

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

PostHeaderIcon Backlinks Basics – And How Good Websites Go Bad With Backlinks by Jean Asta

If you have a website of your own, it won’t take long before you learn about backlinks. They are an incredibly important marketing tool for websites – and one that is often either underused or misused! Knowing how to get backlinks, how they work, and how building backlinks the wrong way can trash your website’s rankings are all vital topics any website owner should know.

What are backlinks? They are simply links to your website from another website. A visitor on a website is looking for information, they click on a link on that website, and it is actually a ‘backlink’ to your website, bringing the visitor to view the linked page. The more quality, relevant, natural backlinks that lead to your site, the higher your site will be ranked by search engines, and the more likely you are to get the traffic you are targeting to arrive at your site.

This all sounds straightforward enough, but you have to be sure that you understand how to get backlinks that will help you – not hurt you. We said in the last paragraph that backlinks have to be quality, relevant and natural. Let’s look at these three requirements a bit more closely.

Quality backlinks are those that connect from a site of quality content. You only want backlinks from reliable, reputable sites – hopefully that also have high search rankings in the related topic area. You do not want backlinks from ‘backlink farm’ sites – automatically generated web pages that simply list link after link to other websites. This once popular ‘trick’ was used to try to fool search engines. But, as usual, the search engines eventually learned this trick too, and now they disregard these sites.

A backlink won’t be quality if it isn’t relevant. For example, if your website is about yoga for pregnant women, you would want backlinks from yoga sites, pregnancy sites, women’s health sites, or sites with other relevant topics. Search engines look to see that backlinks make sense – having a backlink from an office supply store to your yoga site wouldn’t be relevant and the search engine would either ignore the link or knock your ranking down.

Finally, backlinks should be natural. This means that they were built over time and by a process that makes sense. You do not want to suddenly create dozens of backlinks all in the same time frame – these will be flagged as suspicious. But you do want to slowly build a network of quality backlinks that will help the right visitors to get to your site.

You can start building backlinks by looking for sites that are relevant to your own website. Reciprocal links – where you agree to link to a page if they agree to link to yours – are a popular tool that used to work very well. However, search engines are getting more astute all the time, and if you reciprocally link to a site that is irrelevant or of poor quality, that will hurt you more than help you. So you can certainly establish reciprocal links, but do it selectively – only if it makes sense for the targeted audience of both sites.

Another trick website owners once used was to link to their own website from another one of their websites. The problem is that search engines now check to see if your backlinks come from the same IP address as your site. If you attempt to network all your sites together just to get backlinks, you’re going to hurt your rankings. But again, if you have one or two that are logical, that are natural, and that would make sense to your visitors, you can establish a few backlinks between your own sites.

Jean Asta is a full-time writer & management analyst. She has produced thousands of articles, ebooks & operational report. eCasinoDirectory [http://www.e-casinodirectory.com] is a free articles and links directory where you’ll be able to freely submit [http://www.e-casinodirectory.com/free_directory_submission.html] gambling articles and gain valuable inbound links.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

PostHeaderIcon How to Build Quality Backlinks to Your Site by Charles Kassotis

Building backlinks is absolutely crucial to the search engine optimization success of a website. There is no surefire or concrete way to build backlinks however, and many search engine optimization specialists and internet marketers have their own thoughts and techniques about how to accomplish building backlinks for their websites.

Backlinks are links from another site, back to yours. They are seen by Google and other search engines as votes for your site, because if people are liking your site enough to link to it, it must be good, and informative. It helps to link to other sites related to your own, in the same niche. Read more about how to backlink so you can send your site soaring to the top of the ranks.

Ways to Build Backlinks

Aside from getting natural backlinks through creating relevant and quality content that people enjoy, there are several ways you can build your own backlinks.

Get listed in appropriate and relevant directories, forums, and social networks. Listing in directories will leave your mark to help you get traffic and spread awareness about your website. Using a link to the website in your forum signature while you talk with people, offering valuable content and advice, is a good way to get people to look at it, once again spreading the word about the site, gaining traffic, and potential for natural backlinking. There are a variety of popular social networks such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, and LinkedIn, along with several niche social networks site where you can market your website and reach your audience. Also consider finding some niche related do-follow blogs to follow and pay attention to on a regular basis, offering valuable comments and thoughts to the conversation.

Use content exchange and affiliate programs. Offer relevant sites RSS feed links. If they take your feed, you get a quality backlink, and you get potential floods of traffic. Affiliate programs can get expensive for you, as commissions can quickly add up, but if you already have one in place, you can use it to get backlinks from your affiliates.

Put out news announcements and press releases. If you regularly release news announcements and press releases and push those out to relevant agencies and websites, you are spreading buzz about your business, product, and website. Press release sites get plenty of traffic they can share with you, which also increases you chance for building natural backlinks through people who discover you.

Make sure you avoid link exchanges, automatic backlink builders, and link farms. These practices can get you banned from search engines all together, thus defeating the purpose and wasting your time. The point is to ensure the backlinks are natural, so you should build them naturally.

There are several ways you can build backlinks to your sites, but not all are the same or offer the same amount of link juice(PR). Learning how to backlink the right way can have a profound effect on your rankings, visit [http://www.howtobacklink.com] today and learn the truth about backlinking.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

PostHeaderIcon Backlink Building Ideas for Ecommerce Stores by Teresa A Douglas

Building deep links into ecommerce product pages is a difficult task. Of all websites, online stores have the hardest time attracting inbound links. No matter how search engines update their algorithms further, backlinks will always be the main ranking factor. Unless your products are good enough to advertise themselves, you are going to need a good link building strategy to succeed.

Here are a few link building ideas for ecommerce stores:

Add Security Seals

One of the most important things to consider when promoting your online store is making your customers feel safe while they are shopping. Adding security seals to your ecommerce website will increase the conversion rate. An added benefit of these seals is that they can help you get quality backlinks, as some of them list their strategic partners on their websites.

Create a Coupon Code Page

People usually share deals, especially when they think they’ve found a good offer. If you want to increase your chances of getting relevant backlinks to your site, create a page that features your latest promotions and deals.

Write Unique Content on the Product Page

Creating exclusive content related to your products and services is a great way to get backlinks to your site. Some ideas might include how-to guides, ebooks, and user manuals. If you sell kitchen appliances, write relevant articles about the main functions of these accessories.

Run Contests

Building online relationships is the key to marketing success. Contests are an excellent way to attract new customers and connect with your fans. They can also help you increase traffic and get inbound links to your website. Launch the contest from your Facebook page and include a link to your online store for maximum exposure.

Start Blogging

Blogging is a powerful marketing tool. Create your own blog, write useful posts, and link back to your online store. The content needs to be informative and compelling. Make sure you promote each blog post on social media websites. You can also submit your articles to other blogs with high page rank and include your website address.

Take Advantage of Shopping Comparison Sites

Getting your online store listed on shopping comparison websites will help you obtain quality backlinks. These websites already rank well for the keywords you are targeting and this can be used to your advantage. Some of them are free.

There are many other ways to get inbound links to your site and boost your search engine rankings. Take full advantage of social bookmarking sites and interact with your potential customers online. The more links you set on social networking sites, the more likely they are going to be viewed and drive targeted traffic to your online store.

A good SEO company that specializes in backlink building can successfully promote your online store and bring you new customers. Hire a professional who offers link wheel SEO services as well.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

PostHeaderIcon Backlink Building Strategies for New Websites by Teresa A Douglas

Launching a new website or blog is an exciting experience for any online marketer. However, this excitement can turn into disappointment if you don’t get traffic to your site. Link building is the main priority for any person who wants to get organic traffic and achieve high rankings in search engines.

One thing many webmasters do wrong when starting their link building campaign is that the try to obtain backlinks from every site that they can. Link building will help you improve your rankings only if you get backlinks from websites that are similar to yours. While gaining quality backlinks from reputable sources is important, there are a number of things you can do when you are just starting out.

Directory Submissions

If you are developing a new website, directory submissions are a good place to start. Stay away from any low ranking directories as they won’t provide any real benefit to your website. Search for local directories that are specific to your business. With the right approach, you should be able to get at least 30 quality backlinks within a few months.

Get Indexed

Since you’ve just started your online business, you should focus on getting your website indexed as soon as possible. The best places to get a backlink for indexing your website are Yahoo Answers, Youtube, and Blogger. Consider writing press releases once a month. Submit one guest post a week. These strategies will help you obtain relevant backlinks and get indexed fast in search engines.

Make a Plan

The best way to start your link building campaign is to plan your moves ahead of time. Make a list of blogs to comment on. Leave useful comments related to the topic discussed. Identify your competitors and research their backlinks. Try to find similarities between you and the websites that are already ranking for your keyphrase.

Offer Giveaways

If you have a product or web application, find the best sites in your niche and offer product giveaways in exchange for a backlink. Running giveaway competitions for links and SEO is no doubt one of the most effective link building strategies. Furthermore, there’s a potential for increasing brand awareness among potential customers.

There are many other things you can do to promote your new website. You may offer an article for publication on other sites in return for a link. Developing relationships with local newspaper writers and adding a blog to your domain can help you get quality backlinks and attract new visitors to your website.

A successful backlink building campaign can help you achieve higher rankings in search engines. If your want to drive organic traffic to your website and get quality links, consider hiring a company that offers professional backlink building service.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

PostHeaderIcon Why Is Backlink Building Important for Your Business? by Teresa A Douglas

There is no magic solution to guarantee high search engine rankings. However, there are several factors that may affect the popularity of your website. The number of links pointing to your website is one of the main factors based on which search engines determine page rank. There are many different ways to build backlinks to your pages. Here are a few tips on how to get quality backlinks and improve your rankings in search engines:

Focus on Article Marketing

Sites like Squidoo and HubPages allow users to post content and include a link back to their websites or blogs. Writing quality articles related to your business will help you become an authority in your field and build a strong online presence. Search engines love original content. No two articles should be the same. Make sure you include a link to your website in the author resource box. If people find your content interesting and engaging, they will click on your link and visit your website.

Get Listed In Directories

If you want to build an online presence, getting listed in directories is a must. Most directories allow you to submit your website for free, but sometimes you have to wait a few months before your submission gets approved. It is recommended that you submit your site or blog to directories gradually rather than adding to 100 directories one day.

Social Networking

Social networking is one of the most powerful marketing tools. If you use Facebook or Twitter, you will be able to build links back to your website with shared articles, pictures, videos and fan pages. Another advantage of using social networking sites is that you can get in touch with other business owners and webmasters in your niche.

Guest Posting

Guest posting is a quick way to get backlinks, traffic and exposure for your website. Search for authority sites with high page rank and then contact the people who own those sites. Writing guest posts will help you build relationships with the author of the site and his readers, drive organic traffic to your site, and build quality backlinks.

Writing press releases and posting relevant comments on forums are other great ways to get relevant backlinks to your website. One thing you should never do is buying links. Make sure your link building strategy is simple yet comprehensive. As a final word, remember to avoid doing anything that appears shady.

Backlink building is a great way to gain exposure for your website and increase your popularity online. A good SEO company that offers backlink building service can help improve your rankings and drive organic traffic to your website.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

PostHeaderIcon Backlink Building Practices at Your Fingertips by Teresa A Douglas

Backlinks or inbound links play a major role in search engine optimization. The number of backlinks a website has is an indicator of its popularity. Building quality backlinks will help in boosting quality traffic to your site and increase your chances of getting indexed by search engines. You can get relevant backlinks from social media sites, web directories, article directories forums and other high raking websites.

How Does Backlinking Work?

Search engine spiders basically look to see who has linked to your website. However, not all links are created equal. It is important to get quality backlinks from reputable websites. Backlinks from authoritative sites are highly valuable. Search engines consider each backlink as a vote from another site. The website that a backlink comes from should be relevant to the site it’s pointing at.

How to Get Backlinks

If you are trying to promote your online business, it is important that you know how to create backlinks to your website or blog. There are a number of legitimate ways to get relevant backlinks. The first step in building backlinks is to submit your website to web directories. Look for free and paid directories with high page rank.

Another way to get quality backlinks is to leave comments on other websites or blogs. Make a list a high PR websites in the same niche as yours. In the comment field, enter your name and website address. Make sure you provide useful information in your comment. You may also contact the owner of the blog and ask him to exchange links. Writing guest posts on other people’s websites ca help you build backlinks as well.

Webmasters can also get relevant backlinks by using article directories. Write a few posts related to your online business and submit them to article directories. This way you can show your expertise and gain loyal readership. Anyone who has a business to promote should use article marketing.

Using social networks is a great way to increase traffic and get backlinks to your website. Internet users spend more than five hours a day on popular networks such as Facebook and Twitter. Each user is a potential customer. Promoting your online business on social networking sites will help you gain popularity online and generate sales.

There are many other ways to get relevant backlinks to your website or blog. Creating a successful backlinking campaign requires time and efforts. Avoid automated link programs and focus on building organic backlinks.

Focus an backlink building to gain popularity online and promote your online business. Consider hiring a company that offers quality backlink building service. Getting quality backlinks to your website is the key to a successful online business.

Article Source: EzineArticles.com

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