Link Exchanges & Page Rank

Google uses a concept called PageRank to determine the placement of sites in their search engine results. It's based on the number of incoming links and also on the quality of them. As a rough example, if just one person with a PR of 8 links to a page, it is better than 30 people of PR 2 linking to it.

On each page the PR is distributed to each of the links (including internal links), so each link is a “vote”—BUT if you have a ton of links on each page, each “vote” is diluted because the PR is distributed between each link. This means if you have a lot of external links on your pages, your internal links will be diluted and you will be “giving away” your PR instead of “recycling” it.

There are a lot of complicated rules to Page Rank, and Google doesn't explain them for obvious reasons. There is a lot of debate as to what Google actually does, but here are some general observations:

• links from other sites count more than internal links
• links from sites that are related to yours count more (e.g. sites with similar keywords)
• links from sites who you don't link back to count more than link exchanges
• links from sites with keywords in the link anchor text help your results
• links from sites with high PR count more than those from low PR sites

Basically, as many people to link to you as possible without “cheating” (see below). This increases your search engine rankings, as you are seen as more “popular” and thus more “relevant”.

To Avoid:
Google and other engines penalize certain site techniques that are seen as trying to “cheat the system”. These include things like link farms, free-for-all link pages (like Bravenet), and even webrings. As a rule of thumb, if the links you are getting/receiving seem too easy or will be replicated on many other sites (so they all have the same list), then you may suffer in the rankings if you use these methods. Some whole sites have been banned, and as Google is essential to your traffic, this can be catastrophic to your site. (You won't be penalized for them linking to you, only if you link to them.)

Sign up here for our comprehensive Newsletter and Business News

With Each Domain	Domain Names
.COMs starting at $9.99*!
FREE with every domain:  See Details
•   FREE!  Blog	New domain registration
•   FREE!  Hosting	Transfer a domain to The Business Park
•   FREE!  Complete Email	Register or transfer large quantities
•   FREE!  Forwarding / Masking	Internationalized Domain Name (IDN) Search
•   FREE!  Change of Registration	Private domain registrations
•   FREE!  Parked Page w/ Domain	Backordering domains
•   FREE!  Parked Page w/ Domain	Monitoring domains you own
•   FREE!  Domain Name Locking	Domain name masking/forwarding
•   FREE!  Total DNS Control