We all know that link exchanges are a thing of the past. Google sees right though all the proverbial “back scratching” links. The fact that they were so exploited lost almost all of their value. But with today’s Real Estate Agent using many different websites in their online presence, it just may be a good time to take another look at reciprocal links. But this time, from a totally unique approach!
Disclaimer
Before we jump too far into this, it’s important to understand the different types of Search Optimization techniques. Black Hat techniques try to exploit search engines and find loopholes. Their results can have a big impact but are usually short lived. In the long run, Black Hat Optimization typically does more harm than good. With this in mind, I NEVER suggest people use Black Hat Optimization techniques. On the other hand, White Hat Optimization always is done straight by the books. The theory with White Hat Optimization is don’t push the envelope, Just develop good solid practices that will benefit users and search engines will reward you for it. This is my favorite type of optimization because it benefits both users and search engines and it has the best long term results. With that said, I would classify what I am about to show you as “Gray Hat” Optimization. It’s not anything that will get you banned from Google but at the same time, it’s not included in their best practices. So don’t say I didn’t warn you. :-)
Now on to why you came here in the first place.
The reason why reciprocal links lost they luster was because search engines could easily spot the offense. But what if reciprocal links weren’t so easy to flag? What if instead of thinking about reciprocal linking as linking websites, we thought of it as linking people! How is this accomplished? Let’s take a look at the graphics below. Note that in the following graphics, different colors represent different real estate professionals.
The first graphic (above) shows a standard link exchange. It’s not very effective and easy to spot. Now let’s look at example two.
Do you see what’s beginning to happen? Because you have multiple online marketing initiatives, you can capitalize on multiple website from a linking point of view. You will notice that all of the links are one way links. That’s right reciprocal linking without reciprocal links! Now, Google is pretty smart, so to make it a little more natural, I suggest adding one more person in the mix.
You can quickly see that adding one more person greatly expands the linking matrix. And again, they are all one way links.
The examples are just simple ideas to help explain the concept. But you can take this and apply it to many variations. You can include your blog, your MySpace account, or other online presence into a complex matrix of one way links! You can even create links within your own marketing strategy.
Begin to think about your online marketing beyond just your website. Capitalize on your multiple resources and link up with other colleagues. You will see a big impact in your rankings. Remember, the best way it to build links is to do it the natural way - by providing good content that is worthy of receiving links. But if you need a little extra boost, try reciprocal linking the “2.0” way.
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Brad Carroll
Dakno Marketing - A Real Estate Web Design and Marketing Company
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