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Free Website Content
Four Kinds of Links
4 Kinds of Links
By Sharon Housley
Links are an important component in an
online marketing campaign. Websites usually need a significant
number of quality links to perform well in organic search
rankings. Once upon a time, high-quality links were
plentiful. But with the growth of the web, and an ever-increasing
number of competing websites, garnering link love and
attention is a time-consuming and tedious process.
There are 4 different types of links
that webmasters can work to obtain...
1. One-Way Links
A one-way link is a hyperlink from one
website to another. For example, Website A links to
Website B.
Undeniably, these are the best kind of
links for a website to have, albeit the most difficult
type of link to obtain. A website will usually need
to contain unique and compelling content in order for
another website to link to it without any payment or
reciprocal returning link.
2. Reciprocal Links
Reciprocal links are when two websites
exchange links. For example, Website A links to Website
B; and Website B links to Website A.
The value of reciprocal links is questionable,
as you are essentially 'trading' links. Some search
engines track the link patterns, and consider reciprocal
links as "exchanges". Many webmasters believe that search
engines place a lower value on reciprocal links than
for one-way links, which is why their value is questionable.
3. Paid Links
Paid links are just that: links that are
purchased. For example, Website A gives $ to Website
B; then Website B links to Website A.
Compensatory links range from purchased
text links to pay-per-click links, where a webmaster
pays for clicks that are generated from the link. The
upside to paid links is that they are not difficult
to obtain if you are willing to pay. You can also control
the rate in which the links increase, and how long the
paid links last. The downside is that major search engines
discourage webmasters from purchasing text links outright
(most search engines accept pay-per-click links). In
fact, if a search engine suspects that a website is
trying to "buy" their way to the top of their organic
rankings by manipulating the number of websites linking
to a webpage, they may ban the website from the search
engine.
4. Network Links (3-Way)
Network links are links that are triangulated.
For example, Website A links to Website B; Website B
links to Website C; and Website C links to Website A.
Network links are an expansion of link
exchanges, and generally make it more difficult for
a search engine to discern the link patterns. As a result,
search engines may assess the value of network links
as one-way links rather than the reciprocal links that
they really are. Excessive use of network links can
be more easily identified by search engines.
Most webmasters incorporate all the link
types into their linking strategy.
About the Author:
Sharon Housley manages marketing for FeedForAll http://www.feedforall.com
software for creating, editing, publishing RSS feeds
and podcasts. In addition Sharon manages marketing for
RecordForAll http://www.recordforall.com
audio recording and editing software.
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This article may be used freely in opt-in
publications and websites, provided that the resource
box is included and the links are active. A courtesy
copy of the issue or a link to any online posting would
be greatly appreciated send an email to sharon@notepage.net
.
Additional articles available for publication available
at http://www.small-business-software.net/free-website-content.htm
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