Link Swapper? Does it work?

Seems to be 2 good to be true!

[silverbytes]

First of all I hope nobody move or cancel the thread because I'd like to hear about Link Swapper.

The service seems to be free and they automate your links... for any reason it's just too good to be true because similar softwares charges you a lot.

Have someone used it?

[stevenmusumeche]

If something seems too good to be true, it probably is. But no, I have never used Link Swapper. Reciprocal links are not as important to the search engines as they used to be.

[silverbytes]

Are you sure? They are the difference...

[BroadProspect]

it is a very new service, this is why people have not heard about it before.
just like crawler alert service, the people who care know and the ones who don't pay money, there are a lot of free tools for SEO on the web, the issue is finding them and using them.
paying for services link link exchange managers and link swapper is a thing of the past where so many free tools are out there.
/BP

[maherphil]

I tried the link swapper and it looks just okay. Great idea, but it hosts the link directory on a page that hasn't anypage rank. In my case a php file that is brand new.

For a newbee this might fly, but otherwise it seems that the point of a link exchange is to get on a pr4+ page. Am I missing something here?

[BroadProspect]

it is a pr 0 since google have not crawled it YET, once it does and once it re-calculate the PR (about once a month) then it gets PR, it is like this with EVERY HTML page static or dynamic that you place on your site.
/BP

[DaveAtIFG]

A couple things to note:

It's not difficult for Google to identify and penalize link exchanges. I was PR0'd for it a few years back. :) From the "Quality Guidelines" section of Google's Webmaster Guidelines [google.com]:

Don't participate in link schemes designed to increase your site's ranking or PageRank.

I'm convinced that incoming links and link exchanges have been seriously devalued by Google since the Florida update. I don't believe sites are PR0'd presently, rather links from identified link exchanges are simply ignored or don't pass PR.

I have indications that incoming links and link exchanges can be of significant value in Yahoo.

Lastly, there are many SE reps that read WebmasterWorld daily. You're not fooling the SEs!

[steve40]

Yes I to have checked and no PR on site
so you not only gain no PR but could even be penalised for belonging to a link farm

suspect this was the wrong place to promote with GG checking on forum could be a dead duck before it even got started
steve

[BroadProspect]

I think that if you setup a link directory where the section there are related to the subject and put a big note on top that only relevant sites will keep their listing you will be OK.
I would not recommned placing a "others" section since it may bring wrong link partners.
a link directory aim is to serve YOUR audience 1st, so only relevant good links to valuable sites should be listed there, I would also say use the link directory not just as a link exchange but also point to good sites that do not neccecery link to you, but feel free to send a note to that webmaster that you placed a link to him, WITHOUT asking for recipocal, in many times he will place a link to you if he find your site good for his visitors.
simply use common sense with ANY tool you use, think about the visitor and the SE logic will follow
just my 2c
/BP

[chrisnrae]

I stay away from all of these types of services. In all honesty, the best link campaign (for sustained rankings - I know there can be temporary success with other methods) is honestly an old fashioned one.

"They are the difference"

Every search engine eventually figures out how it is being manipulated and then takes steps to prevent it from happening. Google is no different. If you dig through Google News [webmasterworld.com], I'm sure you'll find talk of the changes people suspect to be occuring.

There is no simple, fast and easy path to solid and long term link development that I have ever come across. And a recipricol link campaign does not equal link development. It is only one way of developing links.

[BroadProspect]

You should differentiate between using an automated tool to manage your links directory and the type of campaign (reciprocal or non-reciprocal) that you are doing.

Tools like link swapper and the other simply let you manage the link process is a more automated way and database driven way, none of them dictate a reciprocal link campaign, in each one you can enter your own non-reciprocal links as a well.

So there is little difference between using an automated tool and using plain HTML pages filled with manuelly writen links, using the tools simply make it easier to manage.

GoogleGuy has mentioned a few times these tools are OK if used properly (not to be used to create link farms and linking to bad env.) so you can stay at the stone age or use some tools to make link development a little easier for you.

For me it is the same kind of choice between using a WYSIWYG HTML editors or using plain notepad to write my HTML pages.

/BP

[robotsdobetter]

It's best to stay away from automated software like link swapper, Robots seem not to like them. It's better to do it yourself, so you have full control over it and save your money and use that money on better things like advertising.

[chrisnrae]

"So there is little difference between using an automated tool and using plain HTML pages filled with manuelly writen links, using the tools simply make it easier to manage."

That may be, but the second I see an automated links program, I will refuse an exchange.