Link Building Basics
Jonathan Stewart
Head of Natural Search
Email: Jonathan.Stewart@icrossing.co.uk
Blog: http://connect.icrossing.co.uk

I will be talking about…
...LINKS
Why they are good
Tools to use for analysis
How to get them

I will be talking about…
...LINKS
Why they are good

Links are votes
The more you’ve got, the more popular you are

What makes a good link?
It’s all about quality
Trust Content
DoFollow
Anchor text
Age of Link Position of the Link
Page Rank Relevance

I will be talking about…
...LINKS
Tools to use for analysis

Tools
What tools to use for link analysis
http://www.google.com/webmasters/tools
http://siteexplorer.search.yahoo.com
http://www.seomoz.org/linkscape
http://www.seoelite.com

I will be talking about…
...LINKS
How to get them
• Directories
• Link Reconfiguration
• Press Release Optimisation
• Creating Great Content

I will be talking about…
...LINKS
How to get them
Directories
•
• Link Reconfiguration
• Press Release Optimisation
• Creating Great Content

Directories
Are they still worth the effort?
Removed from Google Webmaster
Guidelines October 2008
•Have other relevant sites link to yours
•Submit your site to relevant directories
such as the Open Directory Project and
Yahoo!, as well as to other industry-
specific expert sites.”

Directories
Top tips for directory submissions
• Don’t use directories to focus on big money, core terms
• Ensure each directory has a strict editorial policy
• Ensure the page you’ll be listed on is cached and has Page Rank
• Ensure the directory ranks for its own name
• Make sure you vary your anchor text

I will be talking about…
...LINKS
How to get them
• Directories
Link Reconfiguration
•
• Press Release Optimisation
• Creating Great Content

Link Reconfiguration
Making the most of your links
You can contact webmasters linking to you and ask
them to change the following:
• Anchor text
• The page they’re linking to
• The page they’re linking from

Link Reconfiguration
An example…

Link Reconfiguration
An example…

Link Reconfiguration
Tips for being more successful
• If you work agency side, use a client email address
• Be polite and interested about their website in your email
• Don’t use cookie cutter or automated emails
• If it’s a great link, phone them!

Link Reconfiguration
Give them a compelling reason
• Rebranding
• Linking to a 404 page
• Linking to the wrong page

I will be talking about…
...LINKS
How to get them
• Directories
• Link Reconfiguration
Press Release Optimisation
•
• Creating Great Content

Press Release Optimisation
Making the most of your online collateral
Places to distribute:
• PR Web
• Response Source
• Source Wire
• 24-7 Press Release

Press Release Optimisation
An example...

Only the first link counts…
Google only credits the first anchor text
http://www.widgets.com/index.html http://www.mydomain.com/home.asp
Red Widget
Blue Widget

Press Release Optimisation
Why does this matter?

Press Release Optimisation
How to do it properly

I will be talking about…
...LINKS
How to get them
• Directories
• Link Reconfiguration
• Press Release Optimisation
Creating Great Content
•

Links Through Content
Content is still definitely King!
http://www.toyota.co.uk/iqblog
We wanted to generate some good, natural links
We worked out what people might be interested in
• Fuel efficiency
• Saving money
• Being environmental
Let’s do some hypermiling!

Links Through Content
Did it work?

Thank you.
Contact:
Jonathan Stewart
ICrossing UK– Brighton
+44 1273 828 182 work
Jonathan.Stewart@icrossing.co.uk