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Official search engine statement: link building
do's and dont's
Bing recently published a document about link building. Although
it focuses on how Bing deals with inbound links, it can also
help you to get better links for Google, Yahoo and other search
engines. The most important points of Bing's document can
be found in this article.
The importance of link building
The Bing engineers know that link building is important and
they describe link building as follows:
"Link building is a very important form of self-promotion
on the Web. You contact webmasters of other, related websites
and let them know your site exists. If the value that you
have worked so hard to instill in your site is evident to
them, they will assist their own customers by linking back
to your site. That, my friend, is the essence of link building."
In other words, reciprocal linking is fine. They also remind
webmasters that link building is an ongoing process:
"Think of link building as your chance to build your
reputation on the Web. As your website is likely one of your
business' most valuable assets, consider link building to
be a primary business-building exercise. Just don't make the
mistake of believing it will result in instant gratification.
Successful link building efforts require a long-term commitment,
not an overnight or turnkey solution. You need to continually
invest in link building efforts with creativity and time.
Good things come to those who wait (and work smartly!)."
Things that you can do to get good links to your website
Here are the things that Bing recommends:
You should develop your website as a brand and brand it consistently.
People like to link to high quality websites.
You should find relevant bloggers, industry websites and product
reviewers and make them aware of your website.
You can publish concise and informative press releases online.
You can publish expert articles in article directories.
You can participate in relevant conversations on blogs and
forums and add a link to your website when applicable.
You can use social networks to connect to industry influencers.
Your profiles should contain links to your website.
You can use email newsletters to notify people about new content
on your website.
You can launch a blog or a forum on your website.
You can participate in relevant industry associations and
their online forums.
You should strive to become a trusted expert voice for your
industry while promoting your website.
The link manager in IBP can help you with most of these tasks.
It finds relevant blogs, related websites, directories, etc.
It also helps you to contact the other websites, keeps track
of your contacts, etc.
Warning: the following things will get your website in trouble
Just like Google and other major search engines, Bing doesn't
like to be cheated. If they detect unnatural linking patterns,
your website might be penalized. The following things can
trigger search engine filters:
Your website get a lot of additional inbound links a very
short time.
Many links that point to your website are from unrelated websites
or blog comments.
Your web pages contain hidden links.
You get links from links farms or automated link exchange
systems.
Paid links point to your website.
Known spammers link to your website.
Your website links to known spammers.
Here's what Bing does when they find suspicious data that
is related to your website:
"When probable manipulation is detected, a spam rank
factor is applied to a site, depending upon the type and severity
of the infraction. If the spam rating is high, a site can
be penalized with a lowered rank. If the violations are egregious,
a site can be temporarily or even permanently purged from
the index."
Getting inbound links requires some work. The Bing engineers
are very clear about this fact: "Make no mistake: getting
legitimate and highly valuable, inbound links is not a couch-potato
task."
Fortunately, the link builder in IBP will help you to get
things done as efficiently as possible. You can download it
here.
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