What Is Linkbait… and Why Link Baiting Goes Mainstream

Here’s a new catchphrase in search-engine optimization these days: Link baiting.

The term may sound shady, but link baiting is an aboveboard tactic that calls for generating new or particularly interesting content on a Web site in hopes that a popular Web site links to it. Having well-ranked Web sites link to yours boosts your site’s search-engine results, because most major search engines — including Google and Yahoo — consider the number and “quality” of links when generating their rankings. And, having your site linked to a popular site likely will prompt other sites to link to your site as well.

Suppose, for instance, you’d love to have a blogger who’s well-known in your industry link to your Web site. You notice this blogger frequently highlights interesting strategies for funding a start-up business. So in hopes of piquing that blogger’s interest, you add well-written, interesting content to your site about new trends in start-up financing. Then you conveniently shoot an email to that blogger with a link to the post.

Search-engine optimization professionals are starting to sell link-baiting services to small businesses. But experts say it must be done strategically and often isn’t easy. “These sites don’t link to mediocre content,” says one poster on a recent Web forum on the topic. “So you’ve got to have the ability to produce something that is very informative, very funny, very nice or very some-thing-or-other.”

Read Full Story… Want More Site Traffic? Try Some Link Baiting