Link building is one of the critical steps to be addressed in creating an effective and successful web site. There are a number of steps involved, and it's fair to say the whole arena of link building has become a science. Experts provide extremely valuable information about competitive analysis and link building elements. They tell us how to create good links so search engines will find our sites and our ranks will improve. What they don't tell us is how long it takes for all that to happen.

We know that search engine rank and links are inseparable. The better your links, the better you rank. So what makes one link better than the next?

Web gurus like Matt Cutts and Eric Ward tell us that trustworthiness in back links is a major factor for search engines. If you have back links to trusted sites, yours will be deemed reputable and relevant by search engines. A trusted web site is one that consistently reveals no attempt to fool a search engine. Simply put, it just tries to communicate in a straightforward manner.

If one of my acquaintances tries to con me, my trust level for that person drops to the basement and he/she never achieves the level of friendship in my life. The same is true for a search engine. If a search engine detects a con, the site rank will drop to levels not even worth talking about, and the site will never be considered for higher rank in the future. Search engines know who their ?friends? are (whom they can trust), and they also know who tries to con them.

Our point is this: Be patient as you walk through the process of link building. Take the time necessary to determine who your competitors are; take the time necessary to analyze their sites. Identify their links and determine which ones might also be a good match for you. If you find several of your competitors with the same links, it's probably safe to assume they are trustworthy links and you will want to consider using them also.

It takes time to look at linked sites and invite back links. The highest level of patience is required to then wait for them to begin to show up on your site. But the bottom line is this: You need to take the necessary time to do the analysis and developing the links; you don't have to resort to a con that a search engine will eventually figure out.

Cyberspace has conditioned us to expect immediate gratification. A search with any of the major engines gets an immediate response, a response that gives us literally thousands of possibilities on hundreds of pages. We have instant access to answers for any question we can possibly ask. We have come to enjoy that kind of response time, but our ability to wait for a response is impaired as a result. The inherent risk is, if we try to hurry the process, our success may be crippled.

Let your patience control link-building. Tell yourself waiting is part of the process. Once you have done all you can do to develop trustworthy links, sit back, be patient and watch for the results of your labors to appear? slowly.