Diversity of link strategy

[jjensen347]

As I start my business plans I have to ask how much diversity I need in my linking strategy. I'm very tempted just to use the easiest one, maybe two strategies to get links just because it's the most efficient. Is this a bad idea? It strikes me as a putting all the eggs in one basket plan that creates a massive liability. I know it's a very open ended question, but I appreciate any help I can get.

[NewKidOnTheBlock]

When it comes to link building you cant really just do one or two techniques. Your goal will be to get as many links as possible, b/c nowadays Google has most of the search market and links are by far the most important ranking factor in Google.

Thus getting links is extremely important and the more youll get the higher your rankings will be. So unless you're at #1 for most of your keywords already there is no stopping with the link building.

And link building ain't easy. So whatever helps you get links..you'll do it.

But there really aren't so many link building techniques that Im aware of..or well there are, but its not like in maths class that u could say ill only focus on 2 of 4 topics and try to pass the test that way.

The theory of those link building techniques really isn't that complicated. Its more about creativity, out-of-the box thinking and street smarts - which are the "common denominator" for pretty much all link building techniques.

The only link building "technique" that I think is complicated in theory is link baiting aka viral marketing.

[jjensen347]

When it comes to link building you cant really just do one or two techniques. Your goal will be to get as many links as possible, b/c nowadays Google has most of the search market and links are by far the most important ranking factor in Google.

This confuses me. It seems to me that picking the strategy that is most efficient would get as many links as possible. The reason is that based on however you choose to define efficient you will get the most impact per hour. If you use multiple strategies you get fewer links because you spend time on less efficient strategies rather than the one that is the most efficient.

[NewKidOnTheBlock]

Another theory could be that there is a point of diminishing returns, though..in that case it would be most efficient to get every strategy covered until it becomes less efficient..technically speaking.

What link building strategies do you know of?

[jjensen347]

I listed what I asked and asked what other strategies there are in this thread: http://forums.searchenginewatch.com/showthread.php?t=18822

I know there are a lot, forum postings, reciprocal link requests, and directory submissions. I think that some (I'm not entirely sure which ones) will give me more of an impact per hour of time. Most of them I could do full time for the rest of my life and never be in trouble of running out of web to do it on. For example if I just do article submissions (and thus get really good at it) am I going to be regretting that latter?

Joe Jensen

[NewKidOnTheBlock]

If you did only directory submissions or posted only in forums or only wrote articles and have all your links from one of those types of sites (directories, forums, article sites) the search engines might see that as an unnatural link pattern.

You want your link pattern to look like a natural part of the web. Something that doesn't look like "SEO", but looks as if could have happened without anyone doing linkbuilding on purpose.

[jjensen347]

I like your last reply, that makes sense to me. Of course this raises the question of what is really the "natural balance" to emulate. I guess if I look at it that way life will be much simpler.

[Robert_Charlton]

...the more youll get the higher your rankings will be.

If all other things were equal, this might be true, but all other things aren't equal, and this isn't true. I've seen sites with thousands of links that are junk, and it can take a surprisingly small number of good quality inbounds to beat them (at least on Google).

Spend a lot of effort creating content that's actually worth linking to, and then do all you can to promote it. There's nothing wrong with promotion.

I would avoid going for speed, though, and I'd spend more effort focusing on link quality.

...forum postings, reciprocal link requests, and directory submissions...

Forum postings and reciprocal link requests do not suggest a natural approach. There are a handful of good general directories, and there may also be some good niche directories in your market area.

I'd spend effort tracking down sites that might be actually interested in what you have to offer, joining communities related to what you do, and trying to find links that will bring you useful traffic, not just abstract PageRank.