Link Building Advice

Posted by Pixelhead

Sorry I have not posted in a week or so. The past couple of months have been really bad for posting. I must be doing too many other things…got to stop Plurking.

Anyways, it is the end of the month, and I am compiling reports, and going through some directory links, and I am weeding out crap, clicking on the clients links in the directories when I find they have been added. Doing this as I have said before will often times(if the directory sorts by hits) move your link to the front category page, which often times is the only page in the category that is cached in Google. Some directories also have a “most popular link”, so clicking your link could also result in two links, even though this will only be temporary.

Linking Building Gripe

When I come to a directory and the directory redirects me to an advertisement(Check this Directory), I without a moments hesitation will delete these types of directories from my directory list.

Paid Link Building

Increasingly, we only take on clients that are willing to put money towards a link building budget. When purchasing a link in a directory, or rather paying the moderators to review your link for inclusion(we certainly would never pay for a link), be sure to check that the category you wish to have your link appear in is cached in Google. I rarely pay for an un-cached directory link.

On the topic of Paid directories, I found a new resource that seems to be a pretty good resource for paid link directories. Paiddirectorylist.com has paid directories categorized according to PR. I have been using the directory list for several weeks now, and have found a lot of familiar sites, but also a lot of new ones.

Well that is my Link Building gripe/resource for today, if you are looking for more info on link building, check out my other Link Building posts.

Got any Link Building questions or advice?

If you like this please give a Stumble or thumbs up on Sphinn .

Written by Pixelhead on July 29th, 2008 with 21 comments.
Read more articles on Link Building

A Quick Way to Build Backlinks and Get Higher Search Engine Rankings (October 20th, 2008)
Ways to Get Your Website Indexed Fast - FREE Links with Possible High PR! (October 17th, 2008)
SEO Tip: Video Optimization (October 14th, 2008)
Link Building Tip Video - Create Keyword Rich Content (October 3rd, 2008)
Link Building Tip - Deep Linking (September 18th, 2008)

21 comments

Read the comments left by other users below, or:

Wayne
#1. July 29th, 2008, at 4:50 PM.

I would think it is easier to place 5 comments in 5 different blogs than it is to fill out all the ‘paperwork’ for a single directory entry (past experience at least, I have yet to hit the directories).

Given that, would you say that commenting on well trafficked blogs could provide better value initially than a directory entry?

Don’t stop plurking, you have yet to reach nirvana!

Pixelhead
#2. July 29th, 2008, at 5:26 PM.

Great comment Wayne, thanks. Don’t worry, I am not going to stop Plurking anytime soon.

For our client sites, we don’t do blog commenting unless they have a blog associated with their blog, which is always one of our recommendations by the way.
And then when we do leave relevant comments on blogs, we don’t suggest using keywords in the link title.
If we want to get keyword rich links from blogs, we use TLA and buy some, or go to Reviewme and purchase some blog reviews.
When we do Link building, directory links are a big part of it, but we do use many other sources, blogs being an ever increasing part of it.

Paul
#3. July 29th, 2008, at 7:05 PM.

Do you think that purchasing links/reviews could possibly hurt your sites in the long run?

Pixelhead
#4. July 29th, 2008, at 7:49 PM.

There is a high probability that if your links appear to be paid for, that it could hurt your rankings. That’s why I am very cautious about the types of links that I buy. When I pay for a directory link, I am not paying for the link, I am paying for the review of the link.

Christina
#5. July 30th, 2008, at 6:18 AM.

Hi ,
Thanks for the link to the Paidirectory site and I’m wondering if you ever had any experience with linkmarket.com I know it’s recommended by plrpro
but what’s your opinion on it because its a paid linking thing also!

Britney Vaughan
#6. July 30th, 2008, at 11:57 AM.

This is a pretty interesting stuff indeed! For me too it would be easier too comment on the blogs than to go for a lengthy paperwork . That’s true indeed that one should be very cautious about the types of links one purchases. I am compelled to bookmark this excellent stuff and here it is: http://del.icio.us/britneyvaughan

Parrot Bluetooth

Pixelhead
#7. July 30th, 2008, at 3:21 PM.

Christina, I have never used Linkmarket.com, but I did check it out. We generally don’t advocate link exchange programs for purposes of SEO. One way links are so much better. However, if you do establish some reciprocal linking relationships with relevant sites, it could result in some good traffic. In general it doesn’t hurt to participate in these types of programs, just don’t let it be your only method of link building.

Saratoga Picks
#8. July 30th, 2008, at 8:39 PM.

Thanks for the great post! I have been browsing through paiddirectorylist.com now for good directories I did not know about previously.

Paul
#9. July 30th, 2008, at 9:36 PM.

I don’t do link exchange either.

Chelle
#10. July 31st, 2008, at 1:19 AM.

I kind of agree with the first commenter - it’s more productive to leave a few comments & network with bloggers…I’ve never used a link directory to find blogs or information, so I’m not sure other than by building a backlink (which may or may not do you any good) I guess I’d rather find other ways of getting more links Could just be me though?

Christina
#11. July 31st, 2008, at 7:04 AM.

Thanks for the info pix!

Pixelhead
#12. July 31st, 2008, at 3:39 PM.

Chelle, Directory submissions are so much easier than posting on blogs, but blogs probably provide a better sense of community. When I am doing directory submissions, I first use a notepad doc with all my submission info, such as keywords, description, deep links extra. Some directories, do make you jump through more hoops, but those are few and far between. On a good day, I can do about 10 to 20 free directory submissions in an hour. Of course if I am doing paid submissions, that will be considerably longer since I need to find a good cached category.

Christina, hope it was useful.

Link Building Services India
#13. August 2nd, 2008, at 11:20 AM.

Quite interesting, but my personal opinion is not to submit link in paid directories. I have not done it ever till now and will not do in future as well. Because all those things you are getting free with some more efforts so you have to go for free if time permits.
http://www.zealousweb.net/search_engine_optimization/link-building-services.htm

Free Directories
#14. August 3rd, 2008, at 10:47 PM.

I too am frustrated by those directories that use complete page ads. They are a waste, and I delete them off my list as well.

I use paiddirectorylist as well. It’s run by Shabu, and he does a great job with his list.

Software Development Sydney
#15. August 4th, 2008, at 1:16 PM.

Good Post Pix! But i don’t think getting paid links only thru directories can’t make a big impression in SERPs. We should try all other link building strategies.

Thanks for your list of paid dirs!

Keep plurking…

http://www.dotcominfoway.com.au/

Pixelhead
#16. August 4th, 2008, at 2:53 PM.

SDS, I fully agree that you should use multiple methods of Link Building. Paid directories are just one method, which can result in a link appearing in much more timely manner. Free directory submissions, because they are free, if the link is approved into directory, may take months, where as when paying for a link, look at it as you are paying to expedite the link review. I have gotten submission notices for links that I have submitted well over a year ago, and often that site is no longer a client. Often times as well, the free directory owners often abandon these directories, so submissions to them are wasted.

Free Directories
#17. August 5th, 2008, at 5:03 AM.

Adam, for my clients I always submit to the newest free directories instead of the higher PR free directories. Too many submitters are chasing PR and those free directories get bogged down with tons of submissions. New free directories are great because they normally approve links within a week. But as you noted, some of these free directories will drop off the face of the Earth and along with it our links. Yet others will become paid directories and will be active for years. For long term results, submitting to paid directories is a sure way to go.

When my directory was free, I was getting at times 200 submissions per day. Most of the submissions were pure spam and did nothing more then waste my time. Now that I run a pay for review directory, I am able to spend more time on each submission. I check to see if the submitter has used the same description in 1,000 other submissions, which in many cases they do. So a little rewording will go a long way in helping them, and myself, for indexing purposes. I also have time to correct the submitters spelling mistakes and contact them for further clarification if needed.

Pixelhead
#18. August 5th, 2008, at 2:20 PM.

Thanks for stopping by FD. Being a (successful)directory owner can take up a lot of time, but can really pay off in the end. Oh, thanks for posting,and I will be using your links when doing directory submissions.

Free Directories
#19. August 9th, 2008, at 7:51 PM.

Thanks for your nice comments Adam.

I try to keep the free directory list as clean as possible. If you run into any bad/non-functioning directories, please use the report link to let me know. I will confirm and remove the directory from the list.

I also have a social bookmarking list as well. But over time the number of high profile/quality dofollow SB sites has dwindled.

Eva White
#20. August 11th, 2008, at 7:47 AM.

link building is the ultimate sucess tool for a blog isn’t it, once you get the content and layout sorted out. Did you see my new layout?

Findcashbackcards
#21. September 27th, 2008, at 5:58 AM.

In general it doesn’t hurt to participate in these types of programs, just don’t let it be your only method of link building.

Appropriate Comments Welcomed

If you want to leave your comment on this article, simply fill out the form below. One link limit per comment and only if appropriate, and comments should be relevant. Please make sure you have read our Commentators guidelines.: