Website Directories and Link Exchange Sites

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Website Directories and Link Exchange Sites

Part 5 of "Get a Traffic Injection with Power Linking"

by Rick Hendershot, Linknet Power Linking

In the first four lessons we looked at the reasons for creating a link generation program and sketched out some important things you should do before getting your link program underway. In the next two lessons we discuss the two major categories of link exchange partners:

1) directories and link exchange sites, and

2) sites dealing with subject matter related to yours.

Directories and link exchange sites

Generally speaking, these are listings of sites, categorized according to subject matter. Normally your listing will be in the directory along with hundreds, or even thousands of others, with no way of determining the relative value or quality of the sites listed. So it is unlikely these listings will generate much traffic for you. In fact, generating direct traffic is not usually
the point of such listings.

The point is to give you an inbound link, hopefully from a page with higher than average Page Rank, and the Search Engines consider that important. This alone will enhance the ranking of your site by Google and the other Search Engines. The more times your site is listed -- with a link pointing back to your site -- the more "important" your site will be considered. And for that reason, you should be listed with as many directories and link exchange sites as you can find. As always, the higher the Page Rank of the page containing the back link, the better it is for you.

Start with popular directories

One of the easiest ways to get inbound links is to register your site with a number of website directories. These are usually categorized lists of sites including a link and a brief description. An easy way to get a list of directories is simply to do a Google search for "website directories". Another is to go to a directory site such as www.linkmaster.com and then check the Alexa toolbar for "Related Links".

Some of these will be well known directories such as Yahoo, DMOZ and Jayde. You will also find some of the standard Search Engines in a list like this. Some of the big directories like Yahoo, Looksmart and Zeal require a payment to get listed. My recommendation is to look around for free alternatives before paying the big directories for a listing. You will find you are able to get hundreds and hundreds of free links with a bit of effort. Once you have an idea of where your link program is going, you can go back and reconsider the pros and cons of spending money for listings.

This technique will also unearth some directories you have never heard of before. Try to be selective, because directories come and go. And, remember, what you are looking for are links on pages with "relevant" content, that have high PR, and that get a decent amount of traffic.

Here are some directories you can try:
JoeAnt
GoGuides
UncoverTheNet
WebAtlas
Gimpsy

Look for link exchange sites

A link exchange site is one where you register your site with a description, basic keywords, and category. Then registered webmasters can search through the listings, check out your site, and request a link exchange if they are interested. In other words, a link exchange not only gives you a valuable inbound link, but (in theory, at least) also lots of suggestions for related-content link partners.

One relatively new exchange site is Ken Evoy's of SiteSell / Site Build It fame, called
"Value Exchange". This service will even let you know by email when "you have matches" -- link partner prospects in the categories you have previously specified. Other sites like this are linkateer.com, linkexchanged.com, superlinks.com, gotop.com, and links-pal.com. The more you look, the more of these sites you are likely to find.

My own experience with too many of these services is that a lot of the registered members are relative newbies, so their sites don't have much link value. Also I find there are lots of (low value) registered sites in areas like "website marketing", "business opportunities", and "online casinos", but almost none for hard-to-find keywords like "trade show displays" or "vinyl banners" (two of my client sites). Perhaps this will change as time goes by and the exchange sites mature.

It can also become a full time job just evaluating link exchange requests from automated sites. These systems are often set up to send out hundreds of automated requests all at the same time, irrespective of "relevancy", so you end up getting requests from every Tom, Dick, Sanjay, Sarah, and Ursula. In other
words, you may be better off not registering for the automated service, and just relying on a manual search of the listings for sites you want to exchange with.

Rick Hendershot publishes several small business websites and ezines, and provides online clients with low cost ways of generating traffic. For more information see Linknet Promotions.

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