The subject of getting links to increase a particular site's popularity comes up quite often.



Reciprocal Links, purchased links, link bait, etc. Is one type of link better than another in the eyes of search engines. Do reciprocal links even work anymore? Which type of link carries with it the most weight? There are a lot of considerations to make which will determine what type of linking strategy you will choose to deploy.

To begin with, let's take a look at some of the most fundamental types of linking strategies which have been used by internet marketers.

There is of course the natural linking method. This type of organic link occurs when a site has such good and well written content that other webmasters take notice and make reference to it from their own website. This type of link can be easy to obtain if a particular site has unique content and already is pretty well trafficked. To get a site like this off the ground can be rather difficult if no one knows it exists. There must be other ways! And there are...

There is the reciprocal link. When a webmaster finds a site that complements the content of their own site, they may email the webmaster and say basically "I will link to your site if you link to mine". Many times a webmaster may simply link to the other site and ask for a link in return. This frequently works and can be quite effective, although this type of link has lost some of its value in the search engines.

Some may choose to purchase links that point to have them point to their own site. The more highly trafficked a site, of the higher the pagerank of that site, the more it will cost to have them put a link there which points to your site. You have probably already seen these types of links. They are found along the sides of a webpage or at the botton with the heading 'sponsored links'.

Another method for attaining links is called 'link baiting'. This method, when implemented properly, can help build links at a pretty fast pace. It can be done by getting a scoop on certain news or by piggy backing on the popularity of other sites such as 'digg' or 'del.icio.us. Write some good content, or write about something controversial which will cause others to take notice and link to you. It is usually blogs that participate in this type of linking strategy and it can be effective.

The various kinds of link building strategies may seem over your head at first, but give yourself enough time to become familiar with them. Depending on the type of website you own, it can be quite lucrative.