Achieving success online comes from hard work and patience and through building and maintaining positive relationships. This isn’t much different than relationships in the real world – except for the fact that monogamy in the online sector is highly discouraged.
Initially, you must put yourself out on the market to attract online users with your shared interest, and then once you get them, you’ve got to keep them interested. The work doesn’t stop after the chase; it actually is just the beginning. This is where link love comes into play.
The reciprocal sharing of links is vital for all online relationships, as it displays a level of commitment, value and trust in each other’s content. This sharing of links builds somewhat of a neighborhood and creates an expanded web of knowledge within your content area.
However, just like in the real world, rejection can occur. How do you avoid linking to someone who doesn’t link back? Or if they do link back, how can you be sure that you have found lasting link love?
First, always keep in mind that you must give before you can receive. Besides just linking to your own content, start to branch out and link to external content. This will start to build your web of links and other users will start to notice you, check out what you have to offer, and may link back to your site.
Once these links are made, you must continue placing time and effort into maintaining the relationship and keeping things fresh. You can’t just call occasionally – some wining and dining must be involved. Comment on their newest blog post, keep up with their articles and give credit where credit is deserved.
But link love isn’t all about free love – remember to set your standards. If the content doesn’t match your style or doesn’t reflect the message you are trying to portray, don’t link to them. Your only standards in dating shouldn’t be that the person has a pulse, so you shouldn’t link to another site just because they are in your content niche.
And lastly, be sure to play the field. Don’t limit yourself to exclusively linking to one site. Spread the link love to lots of different sites and improve your traffic and visibility.
I have the biggest problem thinking that what I read and think is cool or useful would be that way to others. I have to constantly remind myself that there are others who like what I like as well.
Thanks for the reminder
Hey Howe, thanks for the comment! I think it’s easy to feel that way. However, there are so many people online, that it would be almost impossible to find something that no one agreed with you on.
Nice article. Like you said make sure you always link to those who have the same content or similar topics. Don’t link to sites that have no relevance to yours.
Does the overall topic of a site matter or is an on topic article with a link sufficient enough to provide value?
Hey Chris – I would say that as long as the article you are referencing relates to your topic, you’ve made a good link. But it’s always a good idea to check out who wrote the article you are referencing to make sure they are a legit source.