The Maine SEO Blog

Recently, I blogged about a session at Social Media FTW (Search Engine Optimization and Social Media). In it, my boss, Rich Brooks, gave a great analogy for incoming links. I didn’t share it then since I wanted to give it its own special place…because I think it’s that powerful.

The analogy

Let’s say you’re visiting Chicago; so naturally you ask 10 friends what restaurant to go to while you’re there (as opposed to Googling it. You’re smart, you want recommendations.) 7 friends suggest Restaurant A, 3 suggest Restaurant B. All things being equal, you’re going with Restaurant A.

That is, of course, until you realize that those 3 friends are Chicago natives and the group of 7 are tourists, just like you. The 3 friends might even tell you “Tourists say Restaurant B, because they don’t know about A”. Then things change – the 3 friends have established their expertise now, and you’re on your way to B for some fine dining.

The same rule applies for Link Building

More links may be pointing to Website A than Website B. At first glance, that might mean that search engines would give more “value” to Website A (all other things being equal)…

But just like our restaurant scenario, things aren’t always as they appear. You see, as far as search engines are concerned, quality incoming links matter – not quantity. Sorry, A.

What’s the takeaway?

Sure, try to get out there and get all the incoming links you can. But the low hanging fruit won’t help you in the long term. Shoot for attaining links from those high quality websites that will help you establish your expertise.

Nicki Hicks
Visual Learner

Thanks for all the photos.

Anchor links aren’t for everyone or every website. However, a short list linked to anchors sections below can be incredibly helpful for readers. We use it on our SEO page like this:

With frost eminent, and more lettuce (and other assorted vegetables) than I know what to do with, I searched for “can you freeze lettuce” (knowing full well that even if you could, I probably wouldn’t want to anyway).

When I searched, I found this result (which told me I could indeed freeze it, but the taste would be compromised), accompanied by an even cooler discovery: an extra link to the anchored section I was looking for!

I’m not sure if this is a new development or not – as I’ve never seen or heard of it before. [Update: Because it is new!] But it just goes to show you – those anchors are important!

Nicki Hicks
Won’t ANYONE take this zucchini?!?!

Webmasters and bloggers are more likely to link to business blogs than business websites. You might’ve heard Rich say this.

The reality is: it’s true! That’s why you need to really work on leveraging that blog. Hopefully your blog and website link back and forth, so while a link to the blog isn’t as good for the website as a link directly to the website, it’s pretty close!

How do you leverage the blog? Create captivating posts: not only what’s going on with your business, but also what’s going on around town (bringing in the local bloggers), what’s going on in your industry (bringing in industry bloggers), etc.

Then, go looking for blogs/websites that talk about the same subject(s). Google’s blog search is my favorite resource. The best way to start is by commenting on blogs you find – not just the generic “Great blog, keep it up!” but something insightful, a question, or best of all: that starts a conversation. Then, start the process of asking for a link.

The next time you write, ask yourself: what would be of interest to a blogger enough so that he/she would want to link to my blog? At the same time, these posts shouldn’t overwhelm your blog; first and foremost you write for your readers. So what’s the balance? Writing interesting posts that will entice both links and potential customers.

Nicki Hicks
Link Building for Blogs

There are certain ways you should ask for a link, and then there are certain ways you shouldn’t.  I recieved such an email just this morning: and to that person, I’m sure your company means well…it just doesn’t show in this link request.

1. “Dear webmaster.” Never EVER address the person as “webmaster”. It quickly told me that this person a) copy and pasted this email and/or b) did not take the time to read any posts and find out my name.

2. (The first of many) grammar errors. Read, reread, and proofread your link request emails. Since this particular request was through my contact page, I could theoretically overlook one grammar or spelling mistake, but not the 5+ here!

3. Random characters and symbols. ‘Nuff said.

4. A compliment. OK…props for that. However, I know full well that my website is just as esteemed as the 2839 other blogs that received this identical link request.

5. Link and anchor text will appear later. Typically, you would include the link and copy you’d like to appear as anchor text in the initial email. Not knowing what link I’d even be giving this person makes me just plain nervous.

Nicki Hicks
Thanks, but no thanks

Link building is all about building relationships: approaching a blogger or webmaster and literally saying “Hi, this is what I offer. I think you might be interested” is all it takes (with a little more flattery and the personal touch, of course).

As a Search Engine Marketer, it’s apart of my job to “court” bloggers and webmasters and establish links for clients. Once I’ve established that relationship, what’s to say the client can’t go ahead and maintain it? With the proper training, strategy, and ongoing consulting, it’s very doable! With that in mind, let’s define two very different types of clients:

1. Small business with a small budget

In this case, I would much rather put tools in place to help the company build relationships in-house.  As the SEO, I could establish link relationships for the company, then see the client succeed in continuing to build onto that relationship after training.
So what we would do is:

• Identify appropriate websites/bloggers/webmasters to pursue for links
• Submit clients’ articles to the right article distribution and buzz sites

Meanwhile…

• The client writes quality blogs and articles that are both more keyword rich and will result in the possibility of more comments and backlinks
• We train the client to leave thought provoking comments on blogs
• We train the client to continuously be searching for inspiration, “hot” new topics, and bloggers to court

2. Business with less time and more budget

This client is, more likely, a larger business with no extra time or manpower to build link building relationships. They have a larger budget, and are willing to use it. In this case, we’d be more than happy to keep poking and prodding for continual link building.

Since we deal with so many small businesses, we understand the fact that marketing budgets have decreased due to the current economic environment. Sometimes, educating clients and giving them the right tools is the perfect solution.

Nicki Hicks
Linking in Tough Times

Photo by oooh.oooh