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Determining How Many Back Links Your Website Should Have
It's not a secret that link building is - and should be - a vital component of any search engine optimization campaign. In fact, that branch of SEO tactics known as off page SEO is mainly focused on how to acquire as many back links to your website as possible.
Indeed, search engine prominence is all about the links. The more websites there are which link to your own URL, the better chances you'll have of figuring well in search engine results pages. Link building has always been known to be a perennial, unceasing undertaking. Webmasters should not stop building the number of back links for their websites. Such is essential for a high page rank - and ultimately, a high position in search engine results - and such is essential for maintaining such a page rank and keeping your website competitive.
But the question in everyone's mind is probably this: how many links, exactly, does a webmaster need for his website?
The answer is not as simple as giving out a number.
Not All Links Are Created Equally
There are different kinds of links which you can win from other webmasters. Not all of them have the same quality, and not all of them will be viewed with the same favor by the search engines. There are different kinds of links, and knowing which are good and which are bad would be the first step in determining how many links you will need.
Here are the possible types of links you can get:
1. Plain links, where the URL itself is imprinted on the web page. These can contribute to your website's page rank, more so when your URL contains the keywords you are targeting. 2. Your link anchored on your website's formal name. Again, if your keywords are used in your website's title, this type of link can contribute to your page rank as well. 3. Your link anchored on relevant keywords. These are the best types of links that are known to make the most significant contributions to your page rank. 4. Contextual links, or those links that appear on the body of the content. Many believe they are weightier than conventional links. 5. Links in directories. These are links jumbled up with a variety of other links, like those that can be found in directories and link pages. Though they still have weight, such will depend on two things: the number of actual links per page (the more links there are, the lower the value of your link) and the relevancy of your link with the other links in the same page.
Aim For The Most Valuable Links First
It goes without saying that your campaigns should be focused on acquiring links that are anchored on the keywords you are catering to. These links provide the most value, and enough of these will ensure that your website will be propelled to the upper echelons of search engine prominence.
Of course, this is easier said than done.
Nonetheless, knowing where you should be going will guarantee a more expedient and efficient progress for your campaigns. Always remember: links are not created equally, and you should always strive to get the quality ones first.
So How Many Links Do You Really Need?
There is no definitive number. It all depends on how many links your competition has.
But we can summarize the answers to this question into two distinct classes, based on the following rules:
1. Take a look at the top ten websites for each keyword you are targeting. You must have more back links than half of those websites.
2. Take a look at the top three websites for each keyword you are targeting. You must have at least 40% more back links than those websites for you to surpass them.
Checking out the number of back links your competition has is easy. Simply run their URL through free tools like www.linkpopularity.com .
Achieve any of the two answers provided above and you're sure to dominate the search engine game.
About The Author
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