Association links

Another factor of links assessment by search engines is the reciprocity factor. In the day when more links equaled more success , this was effective. Website owners would link to each other with the typical " I link to you and you link to me , wink , wink " understanding that they were assisting each other in building links.

                                   Now, the sheer quantity of links is not valued ; the quality of that quantity is the most important factor. Because of this , reciprocal linking ( " I link to you and you link to me " ) is not valued as much as a simple , one - way , incoming link from another website. recommendation on where to eat , they would probably give me the name of a restaurant and my friend benefit from an increased reputation . My only benefit is that I had a great meal. Linking follows the same path . A true link referral is where the site that is the destination of the link benefits from the searcher who needs an answer . The site that is the destination of the link benefits from the searcher`s mind  a trusted resource. This is the perfect world that search engines envision when calculating links as a source of website authority.

                                Reciprocal linking implies that there is a kick back on the referral. As soon as we find out that our friend recommended the restaurant because he gets financial compensation for his referrals, his advice is now suspect . Did he recommended the restaurant out of our best interest or his ? This is why reciprocal links simply do not count as highly , because it shows there may be an established relationship involved .   

Image or Text Links

search Engines also view the type of link to determine whether it is text link or an image link . Text links count very highly, so many optimizers opt for text - based links. However, image links contain a product image or some other eye - catching graphic. Using alt attributes , as explained on Tuesday , will enable the search engines to determine the context of the image link and apply that to some level of link popularity benefit . However , it is generally agreed that the level of value of an image link from the alt attribute is not near the value of a text link . Although by itself an alt attribute does not count for much , it is one of those hundreds of tiny factors that add up over time .

                           There is still much debate about the value of a text link compared to an image link containing an alt attribute - which is most effective for SEO , and which is most effective for persuading visitors toward action ? Of course , since websites vary , the answer to this debate is to test different methods for your site. Some eCommerce websites have tested using text links and image links  ( and various combinations ) . The surprising result was that visitors clicked image links more . Even though they held little SEO value , they attracted more attention and gained more sales . While this may work for one websites, it may not work for others. This is why measuring the results is always more profitable that measuring rankings. Decisions like this should only be made on a case - by case basis after measuring the outcomes . Sometimes , site managers decide to scale back SEO in orders to do things that might result in higher sales. This should be done based on testing and not rash decisions. These types of decisions need to be carefully weighed.

Content Links

Some factors the search engines use for evaluating links are types of the link that is being used on the linking site and the surrounding content around the link on the page of that site . Essentially, they ask, where is the link to the site on the page ? What part of the page contains the link , and what is the surrounding text ? Different types of links are given different values. Editorial links tends to be valued very highly , because they are links that fall specially under the word - of - mouth category.

        Purchased or advertising links are assigned very little value, because the advertiser can control the link text, and the link is purchased as advertising , rather than part of the natural content of the website. Banner ads and other advertising links that are purchased through and advertising server do not count toward link popularity. They are simply a method of advertising and considered a seprate type of link.

How search Engine Use Links in Rankings

Links play an important part in establishing your website`s credibility in terms of the ranking algorithm. Beyond simply getting a link from another website , the next level of value is to get a link with a keyword in the anchor text , which will enhance the link with context. There is a large difference between the following links if they were presented with in the context of an article.

      The first is simply the URL of the website . Although there are many links like this around the internet, they simply link to a page by its URL address. There is no itself. The second option provides the context of the content on the linked page. It is developed by the author of the linking site to convey an additional level of meaning to the link by presenting it with intent and purpose, in relation to the content of an article . This type of linking provides more information to both the user and the search engine. The user sees and understands the intent and the context. The search engine finds the pattern of keywords being used to provide " outside " context to a page through using anchor text. 

Sales and Leads

As mentioned, a link is an online word - of - mouth referral . Getting referrals is important, because many links can provide a significant part of your business . When evaluating a website, I always search for the links to a website that produce a very high percentage of conversion links , a business knows that they should continue to develop the relationship with the business that is the source of that link also look to create relationships with other similar businesses .

            This is necessary evaluation when looking for link partners and for evaluating the links currently sending traffic to your website. How valuable are your links ? Knowing your high - conversion links will help you define a strategy for building more high - conversion links by understanding their source .

Brand Exposure

A benefit of getting other websites to link to your websites link to your website is that it increase your visibility online . By your website or business name having links on other sites , readers see you associated with specific topics and can begin to develop an idea of what your business is, which may also enhance your credibility within an industry. If your website is consistently cited in research , articles , and information within an industry , your brand credibility improves.

                   There are many times an article , video , or topic goes " Viral " online . Somehow, the topic or information resonates with a particular group of people, and the article or video is shared , passed along, or emailed to others with in a social circle and beyond. You may not get much business out of this type of referral network, but it does increase the number of people who see your brand or company name and are exposed to information you provide.

Rankings

Of course, most online marketers are after rankings . It is a known fact that a great lead from high - authority website can boost your rankings in a matter of days . Sites that are considered authorities carry weight in the ranking algorithm. while all search engines evaluate link in different ways, Google tends to be the counter of attention because it provides the market share of searches . In the early days of search engines , Google gained  notoriety based on the relevance and great results provided to searchers . Much of this was because of the linking aspect of the algorithm . Most other search engines were only concerned with on - page factors and not evaluating links . Even to this day , the other not much attention is focused on understanding that aspect of their algorithm.

       In Google , this link value measurement is called Page rank . Gaining a link from a site high in Page Rank will carry some of the linking " weight " from the authority site to your website .

       The Page Rank is displayed in the Google Toolbar, and when it was first launched, both site owners and webmasters pursued any thing they could do to increase their page rank value . Links were traded and value based on the page rank of the linked page . People compared the page rank of their home pages. Webmasters tried to crack the other pages. Within only a few short few months, many webmasters and site owners were more concerned about gaining page rank than rankings or even business. The SEO community was focused on gaining links in order to increase Page Rank . When it got to the point that site owners were beginning to buy and sell links to each other on the basics of the Page Rank, Google stepped in and changed the Page Rank calculations. Since time , the page rank display is rarely accurate and rarely updated. Many believe it was a public relations ploy to publish this part of the algorithm , because it did create an amazing amount of interest within the online marketing community.

      The lesson learned from that entire stage in search engine marketing was that there were too many who followed the excitement of chasing their page ranking rather than focusing on getting more sales and leads out of their websites.  People refused to link to low page rank sites ( because they may lower the linking site`s page rank ) and there fore didn`t link to sites as they normally would. This behavior seemed to the opposite of what Google intended .

    Page Rank is still around, in some from, but it is one of dozens of ranking factors for websites. Links from other websites are still considered a valuable type of currency online, because the authority from high - value websites can pass to your site and increase your authority in your niche or industry.