When going about asking a site for a link on their page, how do you ask?

[SteveOllington]

^^ Why the thumbs down?? Who would give a thumbs down for that post?? Some odd people out there!

[DanDeceuster]

The key is to build relationships, not links. I wrote a YOUmoz post about this in great detail, but they are taking their sweet time to post it (that means you seomoz community managers!)

If you are only in it for the links, people will know, and they won't care, because every email they get is a link exchange. If you are in it to try and build a mutually beneficial relationship over time, people are more interested. Think of how you can actually partner with someone and synergistically bring more value to both of your websites

[Cyle]

yeah i saw that, so i gave you a thumbs up. Your respons was great btw, maybe it was a miss click.

[Dan-Petrovic]

Spot on. This is what I was going to write - but there you have it. Online (much like in real life) is all about connections and relationships - and if they are genuine they will provide value that goes beyond SEO.

[Dan-Petrovic]

And if you don't get a link? Nevermind. You end up with a great piece of content that will likely attract a non-negotiated link anyway.

[SteveOllington]

Thanks I didn't notice I got one too, I just saw that EGOL got one for his response which was a good response.

[Gaveltek-173238]

If you can add value by creating a relationship between to the two brands and are not solely interested in gaining rankings. That is how you win with LinkBuilding. Remember one well placed link can deliver convertible clients, as opposed to tire-kickers, etc... Quality over quantity. If you are able to build the link, be sure to run them through your social media channels, just to show them you are willing to drive traffic in their direction as well. Social media is very easy to track, just a helpful hint!

[MarieHaynes]

I like the idea of using the words, "I was quite surprised by the results of my analysis"...kind of makes the person reading the email want to check out your site.   I'm going to use this phrase when I finish my next bit of link bait.

[onlinemediadirect]

Real life realtionships = very good long lasting links in my experience. Another great thing is to start offering a blog creation service to your clients. Then you could perhaps suggest to customers in relevant areas to trade links on there blogs.

[SeoStallion]

I think the long and short of it is that there is no easy way. Establishing a solid web presence is the only way to capture the golden links (other than partaking in punishable activities). If you create useful enough content that people see you as an authority in that field then you will get high ranking natural links.

If you don't have the time to create the content you could consider paying for the articles to be written. A friend of mine has made a business out of paying a small amount of money per article featured on his web development blog and then selling advertising space.

[SEOTeam35]

you have to have a right approach before approaching for links...first of all identify the blogs in your niche or related niches by going through Google blogs, forums, technorati, blogroll, wefollow, search, competitor links etc , organize the contacts in spreadsheets with names,email,phone number, mozrank etc of the site, introduce yourself to the website or blogger,, establish relationship and give some kind of incentive to the blogger either with free promotions, offers, content etc and build relationship with the blog owner or website for long term and lastly they become your regular linkers to your campaign....repeat and rinse the process every month....

important thing to remember when approaching to blogger or site owner...be transparent, authentic, state your intent etc...follow them on twitter, comment on their blog etc....

[Marcus_Miller]

EGOL gets 3 thumbs down here, which seems crazy to normal, sane, experienced SEO's and just people in general who are benefiting from free advice and consultation.

But, I figure there are those out there that don't like this answer,  not because it is wrong, but because it is not easy. So, they are not thumbing down the user so much as they are thumbing down the fact that there is not a $99 tool that will get you all the back links you want without having to make any friggin' effort.

Haters always gonna hate!

[EGOL]

But, I figure there are those out there that don't like this answer,  not because it is wrong, but because it is not easy. So, they are not thumbing down the user so much as they are thumbing down the fact that there is not a $99 tool that will get you all the back links you want without having to make any friggin' effort.

Thank you Marcus.  I enjoyed your answer!

I actually got a chuckle out of the thumb downs.  Those folks will never have a site with thousands of kickass links.

More for the rest of us!   

[damon1212]

I'm learning that there are no shortcuts.  So many people think that because "it's the internet" that "there must be an app for that".

Elbow grease.  The Original App.

[toddmumford]

Very nicely.

And by phone, where possible.

[Benj25]

I agree with EGOL, it is easier to get a link when the site is already linking to content similar to yours in the first instance.

I try my best to build a good working relationship with them in the first instance and not just jump in and ask for a link.

So I open a dialogue on Twitter, Facebook or by email / phone, I send them free books and help them out and then I ask for a link when they are favourable to our company and cause.

[jmporchet]

As we all know, some links are better than others, some are even worth spending 5+ hours before making the request.

But if your time budget is tight, I would suggest the following, which is done in 5-10 minutes and still adds some (minimal) value to the other party:

• identify the link prospect,
• install Xenu Link Sleuth, run it on the target's website and hope for some errors,
• write your outreach email, include the errors you've found, and if possible a potential solution.

Something like

"I was browsing your website and encountered a [interesting error] which might be because [possible reason why].
By the way, would you be interested in [your offer]?".

Obviously adapt this with acitrano's answer.

[matmox]

Exactly. Thumbs up!

[connectiveWeb]

A couple techniques that have proven to increase conversions on email requests:

• Flattery: Try to find something that you genuinely like about the site you are requesting a link from and mention it. Appeal to the webmaster.
• Help out: Use a tool like "Check Page Links" on their website to try to find any broken links. If the links that are broken happen to be a perfect match for the type of content you are trying to get a link for you can simply say "I noticed that you have a broken link on this page and we have perfect content that you could link to in it's place".

Both of these should help your success rate

[EGOL]

I am sure that flattery works well most of the time..... but as soon as I see it I am reaching for a can of Raid.