Internet Marketing Tycoon

**sandbox** · 10-19-2007, 07:56 PM

There's loads of stuff about the value of incoming links to a site and how to get them etc but hardly anyone talks about linking out to other sites and the value of this.

Most advice I read on forums is don't link to your competition, don't link to bad neighbourhoods, don't exchange links. I've even seen posts telling people to minimise outgoing links to stop PR from leaking out of your site (what's that all about)

So:
What's your linking out policy?
How do you find sites to link to?
Can linking to other sites be beneficial?

**stOx** · 10-19-2007, 11:36 PM

If you are selling something then linking to other sites that sell the same thing is obviously a bad idea.

But if your site provides information or entertainment linking to other sites is a good idea. People are split when it comes to deciding if this has an SEO benefit, But if you can provide your readers with other relevant quality content that they will be interested in it's definitely beneficial.

**ForrestCroce** · 10-20-2007, 04:51 AM

I run a landscape photography site, which implies a lot of travel. I link out to other photographers, good information about a place, maps, company sites when I review gear, et cetera. I've introduced a few people to photographers they weren't aware of, and I get the idea people appreciate that. Occasionally some news is relevant to my blog, and I do get some long tail searches around it.

I only link to quality pages I wouldn't be uncomfortable explaining to my readers. And I open them in a new tab, which is really a matter of preference.

**gringo** · 10-20-2007, 06:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sandbox

What's your linking out policy?

Link to pages that will help the user in their current context. What I mean by this is that yes, linking to a cheap lawnmower site might help the user, but probably isn't of interest to them at the moment because they're currently browsing a site about salmon farming.

**ssandecki** · 10-21-2007, 08:51 PM

[quote=sandbox] I've even seen posts telling people to minimise outgoing links to stop PR from leaking out of your site (what's that all about)
[quote]

The more pages you link to, the less PR value you give per link. Really, in a sense, if you use the ref="nofollow" tag you can link to as many sites as you want and google won't follow them or pass on PR value.

**temi** · 10-22-2007, 02:40 AM

Linking to other site is not a bad idea if they are in the same industry as you, it help search engine theme your site correctly.

**chrishirst** · 10-22-2007, 02:47 AM

search engines rank pages not sites

**AnimeFan01** · 10-22-2007, 04:16 PM

Linking out to other sites can be valuable I think thanks for that.

**scorpionagency** · 10-23-2007, 02:54 PM

I think, no matter how you look at it, you should at least follow the basic rule of thumbs (As far as your On-page monetization goes).

#1.) You should ALWAYS have more inbound links Vs. Outbound
#2.) You should ALWAYS focus on Retention, thus less exits (Outbound links) & More cross links to sub pages.
#3.) When an Out-Bound link becomes necessary to provide article / theory support, Make sure it is to a Viable, Authoritative, Reference site (Last thing you need is a visitor loosing interest in you because you referred them to an Unprofessional reference).
#4.) ALWAYS Optimize & focus your link campaigns (In & Out) for the Consumer 1st & engines 2nd.
#5.) If you are not sure about something - DON'T DO IT - Take the time to research the idea, you will find it is much easier & faster to do it the right way the first time, rather than having to go back & fix it later (Even if it seems like the research is time consuming - It's worth it).

Just my thoughts on the matter....

<~~Puts on his Boxing Gloves for those that think different~~~

"Joke"

**ScottHughes** · 10-26-2007, 12:27 AM

Trustrank is a factor. Ranking to good sites will increase your trustrank. And, linking to relevant sites can increase the search engines ranking of your page for the relevant terms. The problem is it can be hard to find relevant sites that aren't your competition.

**RL4422** · 11-06-2007, 11:12 AM

I was under the impression that outgoing links were viewed as negative points throught the eyes of major search engines?

**chrishirst** · 11-06-2007, 11:22 AM

Absolutely NOT!

To a search engine, any link on a page is outgoing. Because SEs rank pages not sites

**sandbox** · 11-11-2007, 02:21 PM

So what about the old links page?
I prefer to have links to other sites all on one page, the user knows that they've got a list of other sites and they usually look for the links pages when they're done with your site. So a really full page of on topic links to other sites can be your last chance to get bookmarked or linked to as a useful resorouce.

One of my first sites had more inbound links to my links page than any other page...a dubious honour I think.

**ADAM Web Design** · 11-11-2007, 05:30 PM

Here's a nice, easy link policy:

1) Link out if it makes sense to your end users and provides them something useful and non-spammy.

2) If it's spammy and still relevant to the topic of conversation (e.g. you're outing a spammer), link out with nofollow and provide the user with a means of knowing it's spammy (CSS makes this very simple.)

3) If it's advertising, link out, indicate that it's an ad link, and put nofollow on it so that advertisers get reads of their actual traffic.

4) Don't link exchange or participate in schemes.

5) Don't buy links unless you're buying them for trackable ROI purposes (i.e. links as ads.)

6) Don't obsess over IBLs. They'll come if you're doing something right, and they'll come in ways you don't expect.

**scorpionagency** · 11-11-2007, 09:04 PM

**cough** Copy cat **cough - cough**

Joke -

Great points! Very complementing to the large picture of Traffic Vs. Conversions & ROI stemming from the overall On-Page Monetization campaign.