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What is Link Popularity?

In the SEO forums, HighRankings.com and Jim’s World SEO forum where I lurk, there is a lot of talk about PageRank and how to use linking to get higher search engine rankings. During the Internet’s infancy, link pages were on most Web sites as a way to show the user what sites that webmaster frequented, or thought were useful or fun. Then link pages gained more popularity as a way to drive traffic. When the search engines, like Google, got involved with things like “Page Rank," linking and link pages became more complicated. This article will help clear up this once simple, though now complex, concept.

Link pages and Internet marketing

Link pages started as a great way to market a Web site and gain site traffic. When I was the webmaster for the Oklahoma Indian Times site, I began the links page with only one link. When I turned over the site maintenance to OKIT staff, the links page contained over 500 links. The linked sites were generating more traffic than the site was getting from all the search engines combined. At first I had to scour the Internet looking for Native American sites to link to, but as OKIT site’s popularity grew, I had many sites e-mailing me for placement on the links page. It was also the most viewed page on the entire site. Though link pages do not drive as much site traffic as they used to, they are still important.

Search engines and link popularity

Most search engines are thought to place emphasis on link popularity in their ranking algorithm--the number of sites pointing to your site is what determines your link popularity, and the more links there are, the higher your site ranking. This rating applies only to high-quality sites--not just to any site that will give you a link. Google uses a ranking algorithm they call PageRank™. The inventors of Google reasoned that, if someone puts a link from their site to yours, they are essentially "voting" for the quality of content on your site. The idea is based on the fact that people will most likely link to sites that they want their visitors to see--so they are not going to link to junk. PageRank is a measurement of the links you have coming to your site. Not only does it measure the quantity, but it also measures the quality of the links (quality of the sites).

Google uses the PageRank as a significant factor when ranking your Web site. So the better PageRank you have, the higher position you will have for any keyword. Again, there are many other factors involved in determining your exact rank, but the PageRank is important.

According to Google, “PageRank relies on the uniquely democratic nature of the Web by using its vast link structure as an indicator of an individual page's value. In essence, Google interprets a link from page A to page B as a vote, by page A, for page B. But, Google looks at more than the sheer volume of votes, or links a page receives; it also analyzes the page that casts the vote. Votes cast by pages that are themselves "important" weigh more heavily and help to make other pages "important."

Important, high-quality sites receive a higher PageRank, which Google remembers each time it conducts a search. Of course, important pages mean nothing to you if they don't match your query. So, Google combines PageRank with sophisticated text-matching techniques to find pages that are both important and relevant to your search. Google goes far beyond the number of times a term appears on a page and examines all aspects of the page's content (and the content of the pages linking to it) to determine if it's a good match for your query.”

What is your site’s PageRank?

To determine your site’s PageRank, download the Google toolbar (toolbar.google.com) and go to your site. Place your cursor over the PageRank bar. A box will appear beside your cursor and tell you your site’s PageRank and your rank “X/10.” And yes, different pages on your site can have different PageRanks.

Most of the pages on my Web site have jumped in rating from 3 to 5. Right now, most of my pages are settled at a PageRank of 4, but I am trying to get that ranking higher.

Are sites linking to your site?

If you are interested in finding out how many sites link to your site, go to Google and type in “+site.com” replacing site.com with your URL minus the http:// and the www. For example, by entering my site, +w-edge.com, I received 134 listings of sites linking to my site. I was very excited to see two Web design classes at the University of Colorado linking to my articles page for Web design information. You can also do this for just about any search engine out there--and I would recommend that you do so, I have found many different sites linking to mine by checking AltaVista, About.com and AlltheWeb.com.

Tips for improving link popularity

To build your PageRank, you can’t just add a link to any Web site--you have to get quality links. Quality links are defined as links from sites that have a PageRank of 3, 4 or higher. To determine meaningful links, the following procedures are recommended:

1. Request links - Start by conducting a search for Web sites that are similar to yours, or visit some of the SEO forums, most of which have a link exchange section. I like to include SEO and webmaster information on my site, so I look for sites that specialize in this area. When you find a Web site that you would like to trade links with, visit it and collect the e-mail address of the Web site owner. Send a polite e-mail to the owner suggesting that you would like to trade links. And as a matter of good faith, already have a link to their site on your site that shows where their link will be displayed.
2. Investigate directory listings - Directory listings (some you will have to pay for) boost link popularity because they rely on human editors, who produce relevant content. There are many directories, some of which are little known, that might be advantageous to be listed in. You can find many industry-specific and smaller directories in Search Engine Guide's Search Engines Directory.
3. Promote linkability within your site - Basically, you want to provide quality resources and outgoing links as appropriate. These can include links to search engines, news hubs, weather reports, industry resources, industry professional groups and so forth. Outgoing links can be important in two ways: They provide incentive for other quality sites to link to you when you're already linked to them; and, if internal linkage is done properly, it can improve your PageRank score.
4. Publish articles - Write informative articles that interest your audience, then submit these articles to appropriate online publications in your industry. Provide a brief bio containing your Web site URL, and make it a condition for publication that the article must appear with a bio containing your URL. Also include some text on your main article page like “You have my full permission to post any of these articles to your Web site as long as you leave the links and give me full credit in all of them. You can also link directly to any of the articles on my site. Also note that many publishers would love to have new articles to add to their e-zines. Feel free to use these articles below as long as the link in the resource box of each article points back to me.” I make both of these statements with articles from this column and it really works.
5. Include testimonials - It can be worthwhile to start a testimonial page of products, resources, services or books that you like. Or even list a page of clients for whom you have worked. Contact the company, telling them why you value their services or find their products effective. The company may respond asking for permission to display your comments on their Web site. Grant them permission provided they agree to link to your site.

I am not overly sold on PageRank, or the idea that it helps my SEO rankings in the search engines. I have a client who is number one in Google for all her keywords; she does not have a links page or many sites linking to her site. But I admit I am a little thrilled when I see my PageRank go up again. All of the tips I list in this article will help to advance your ranking, but what will help your site in every way is to build good quality content. If people find your content and your site useful, they will come back--and perhaps link to it.

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