Build Links Naturally
I also suspect the subject of link building will be a frequent one here on SBS. It was the subject of a panel discussion at this week’s WebmasterWorld PubCon event, and WebProNews has a brief recap of some of the session comments.
What stands out the most for me is this comment from Eric Ward, a guy who has been involved in link building and link research for more years than most of us have had web sites:
“Algorithmically, it’s so easy for the engines to spot any tactic for unnatural linking patterns,” said Ward. “The overwhelming majority of people participating in linking schemes are doing it in such a way that it makes it very easy to detect.”
And that’s the truth. You have to think about the amazing science and technology behind a search engine … how do they find a million matches for your search across the web in less than a second? Well, they have some of the world’s smartest minds handling their IR (information retrieval) research and algorithms, and you can bet they know how to spot unnatural link building.
So stay away from link farms and other schemes designed to make your site seem more popular. Natural link building is the way to go. Put great content on your site and encourage others to link to it. Hard work to be sure, but it’s worth it when done right.