Ethical Marketer's Club - Members Only

There is a great controversy over purchasing backlinks.
Google, for one, really frowns on this practice because it
makes their ranking system hard to administer fairly. Google
did put the word out that they would be “punishing” people
who have bought backlinks but the fact is it will be very
difficult to tell in the long run which links are natural
and which are sold..

Today, I wanted to give some insights on how backlinks
can help you and especially the pros and cons of buying
backlinks.

Backlinks are a bit like Traffic: you can get them
for fr*ee, or you can purchase them.

There is a great controversy over purchasing backlinks.
Google, for one, really frowns on this practice because it
makes their ranking system hard to administer fairly. Google
did put the word out that they would be "punishing" people
who have bought backlinks but the fact is it will be very
difficult to tell in the long run which links are natural
and which are sold.

Also, usually Google does not reveal important part
of their ranking algorithm...

There may be a few ways for them to tell based on the domain
of the person backlinking to you, but then again, that's
about the same as avoiding link farms. So, it doesn't
exactly isolate the fact that one link is paid and another
is natural. However, there is more and more controversy over
this practice as Google tries to get a handle on improving
their algorithm yet again.

Google, though, is not the only search engine and many
people are not trying to optimize their site for search
engines as much as make money from their sites. Yes, quality
backlinks can translate into money, a higher PageRank, and
more visitors but bought backlinks can also generate
traffic. If your purpose is to bring traffic, many of the
sites that fell in rank after Google shifted its algorithm
didn't report a loss in traffic. So, it's debatable whether
it really hurts you to buy links or not.

Of course Google is important, but as I always claim,
designing a traffic generation strategy aimed at pleasing
Google is a marketing blunder. Do things naturally, based
on the needs of your web site and search engines will come
naturally.

Let's go back to buying backlinks...

It also appears that buying links to be listed in
directories does not seem to be weighted as poorly as buying
links from major sites selling them. You do want to be
listed in the major directories under your relevant category
and that's something many search engine optimization
companies will do for you, if you pay them. This also
provides relevant backlinks to your site.

a) PROS

- Numerous backlinks added quickly,
- Less time-consuming for webmaster,
- Can build PageRank very efficiently,
- Brings in traffic to your site.

b) CONS

- Can cause you to be banned and de-indexed by Google,
- Might dilute the quality of your neighborhood,
- Costs money,
- No guarantees you get the results you want.

Obviously, when you choose to go the link buying route, you
will need to gauge the reputation of the company selling
links. If they are someone that Google has blacklisted, it
could mean that you also would be blacklisted if your links
were found to originate from them.

1/ CONSIDERATIONS BEFORE YOU BUY

It's really a personal decision whether you choose to buy
links or not. Despite Google's obvious distaste for this
practice, many webmasters do use paid links as part of their
marketing strategy. However, there are some things to
consider before you buy.

- Timeframe
Usually, you can buy links based on the number of links
and/or a timeframe. You may have to decide on being in a
six-month program if your site is relatively new and has
little exposure. Otherwise, you probably won't see any
lasting effect from a one-shot deal.

- Budget
How much are the links and do you have the money to spend on
them? Include the timeframe in your budget estimations.

- Featured Areas
As mentioned earlier, you want to get a backlink in a very
visible area of the page that is referring you. Putting it
near the top, highlighting it in some way, or paying to be a
featured link can do this.

- Relevant Links
The content of your referrer should have some relevance to
your own website. Don't buy links just to link farms because
that's just going to get you penalized.

- Neighborhood
Are you paying to get into a great neighborhood or a slum?
The PageRank of your referrers will tell the story there.

- Ratio of Natural to Paid Links
If you have only sponsored or bought links, it will quickly
become apparent that you are paying for promotion. One way
to keep this from being obvious is to have some percentage
of your links as natural free links so the paid links get
lost in the crowd.

- Choosing Anchor Text
See if you have the option to customize the anchor text.
This can greatly benefit the value of the backlink. Be sure
to vary the anchor text but keep it closely matching the
content of the page you want backlinks to.

- One-way
The links you buy should be one-way links to make them
appear more natural and count more.

- Edu sites
There is some indication that the credibility rating might
have something to do with the extension, particularly .edu
sites. If you can buy a backlink from an .edu site, it could
increase your PageRank significantly.


2/ LINK AD COMPANIES

There are many different companies out there selling text
links. It is a very profitable business for both the
publishers and the advertisers. As advertising sources
shrink from television and radio, more and more people are
seeking new ways to promote their goods and services online.
If you own a website, you can have people paying you to add
one-way inbound links to their sites from your site. Also,
you can pay others to put up your links on their sites.
Google does have some ways to discern many of the major
companies' links that sell text-based links, but it doesn't
stop people from buying them. In addition, Google also is
thinking of selling its own text links now (in addition to
their Adwords program), and their algorithms are set to
ignore those links when establishing a site's reputation.
So, it's not the text-based link advertising concept they
are unhappy about, it's the fact that they tend to discredit
the ranking by letting people pay for a good reputation.

If you want to use the text-based links to earn some money
and get some traffic, in addition to a campaign for natural
links, you can do this by using the nofollow attribute in
the html coding. This tells search engines to ignore the
link. Google is using the nofollow attribute to ignore paid
links. We'll go into this concept more in the next chapter.
For now, if you want to buy text links, be aware that this
is a tricky business that is very controversial. If your
sole purpose is to increase PageRank, it will most likely
fail in the end as search engine algorithms target them more
and more. However, if you are trying to build traffic and
make your site profitable, they can be used in an Internet
marketing scheme as long as you are careful.

Here are a few places you buy links online:

- Text-Link-Ads.com
This is one of the oldest companies selling static text link
based ads. They are so well-known that Google really frowns
on using them. However, many people have used them in their
marketing campaigns. They sell their links on 30-day ad
runs.

- Linkworth.com
This site credits itself as the "one of the largest and most
innovative marketing portals." They do offer a wide variety
of services besides just text link ads. They also offer paid
blog reviews, rotating text ads, hosted content pages,
directory and article submission, plus more.

- Tnx.net
Their claim to fame is the lowest price links on the market
and their recent entry into the market. They have a program
that gives you 50% off if you are an SEO specialist or
consultant.

- Google Text Link Ads
There is a move by Google to offer it and it went into beta
testing in 2007. It is being called Pay Per Action Beta and
is now closed to beta testers. However, it may end up being
something to join as soon as it is available.

3/ BUYING DIRECTORY LINKS

A second way of buying links that might be allowed by search
engines but aren't done only through link companies are to
buy directory listings. There are free directories that
anyone can get listed in, but there are also paid
directories that you must purchase to be included. These are
sort of like paying to advertise in the WWW phonebook, since
directories can be highly ranked and valuable places to put
your link.

To be sure, some of the link companies will also include
some paid directories in their offerings to you. But, if you
want to be sure that they show up with your backlink and not
the text ad link companies potentially Google triggering
copy, you can buy them yourself. You also get the option of
paying to be featured in the directory, which might land you
in a higher PR page and give you even more exposure. It will
also cost you more, however.

Here are some of the directories that you can purchase a
link in:

- Yahoo! Directory
Yahoo! is one of the major search engines and can lead to
some valuable exposure. It has many categories, not
necessarily business related and even RSS feeds. It is
located here: http://dir.yahoo.com/ . Cost: $299 per year.

- Business.com
This directory claims that over 6 million people view the
directory monthly. Since it is a business directory, you can
expect to get quality visitors to your site - not just the
average web surfer. Cost: $199 per year.

- StartingPoint.com
The fee includes the service to review your site, even if it
doesn't guarantee inclusion. Some sites being rejected
currently are blogs, pornography, and sites with little
original content. It is located here:
http://www.stpt.com/directory/ . Cost: $99 per year.

- Best of the Web
If you have multiple sites, you can get a bulk discount with
this directory listing. It claims to be the oldest paid
directory listing site. It caters to webmaster, site owners,
and marketing professionals. It is located here:
http://botw.org/helpcenter/submitcommercial.aspx .You get a
review of the site submitted, which costs $239.95 for a
one-time review. Or, if you are not sure of the benefits,
you can opt to pay a recurring yearly charge of $79.95.

- JoeAnt.com
This is the least expensive site directory, but appears to
try a generic mass appeal. If you are marketing to a
specific clientele, like businesses, it might be better to
target more niche directories. It does include blogs. Cost:
$39 per year.

- Aviva
This directory has a featured listing which allows you to
change the anchor text and a regular listing, which limits
your link to the official website name. The featured listing
is also put at the top of the page. Their only restriction
for review is that the site is composed of original content
and if the site isn't accepted, you get your fee back. It is
located here: http://www.avivadirectory.com/submit.php.
Cost: $50 per year or a one-time $75 fee.

- Addurl-free.com
This directory used to be totally free but now charges $40
per year or $80 per year for a featured listing. They still
list themselves as a free directory, but if you have to pay
money, it's not free. They claim the money is only to review
the site and not to list it, which is why they can call it a
free listing site. You make up your own mind. They have over
2000 unique visitors a day.


Keep in mind that the costs can change without a moment's
notice and the fees listed here may be subject to change.
Also, some directories might be given backlink credit by
some search engines and not by others and these rules is
also subject to change.

4/ BUYING LINKS DIRECTLY

The safest way to buy links discretely is one by one
directly from webmasters or bloggers. These would be near
impossible to trace for a search engine unless they were
clearly labeled in a sponsors category. This is also the
most time-intensive way to buy links and maybe the most
expensive. However, it can be a very worthwhile endeavor as
you have the most control of who is posting your link, what
it says, and whether a search engine will be able to detect
it as a paid link and ignore it.

If you do want to buy links directly, you will need to
identify sites that are worth the effort of contacting
individual webmasters or bloggers. These sites should have a
high PR value and original content. They should not be too
obvious about the paid links that are sponsoring them, as
that might cause search engines to blacklist the entire
blog. You should try not to be lumped in a grouping of links
or a links page as this can affect your backlink credit and
trigger the search engine to ignore your link. You should be
able to ask for the anchor text that you want and the
placement of your choice (within reasons).

Keep in mind that just because you are willing to buy a link
directly from a blogger or website doesn't mean they have to
sell it to you. Many bloggers follow some ethical guidelines
and might have trouble taking links from profitable sellers
of payday loans or subprime lending, based on principle
alone. Don't take offense if that reason comes up. This is
part of doing business on the WWW, where the rules of
business become more independently managed and at the
discretion of the owner of the site. Instead, see if you can
offer the webmaster or site owner some compromise that will
help you get your link while keeping their principles
intact.

Buying backlinks is not as straightforward as buying
traffic. You're not assured of getting traffic.
You can almost be sure that your site will be
quickly spidered by search engines...if this is your goal.

I recommend that you buy backlinks with the sole purpose,
of developing your brand and generating traffic.

If your goal is to get indexed, then use fr*ee way
of generating backlinks (articles, blog posting,
blog commenting, forum marketing, social
bookmarking, social networks...)

 

JP Schoeffel 

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