Link Exchanging

What is the best way to go about this

[joe1182]

I had joined several link exchange programs. After I read some articles on the fact that this was not a good move and that search engines frowned upon this I broke all ties with these companies. I then read that the best thing to do is contact companies that are at the top of the rankings for my keywords. Is this the best practice? Should I request a link to a site that is not related to mine or should I stick to content that is similar? Also I see established sites have 40,000 links and up. How do you achieve something like this?

[sem4u]

Start here:

[webmasterworld.com...]

Feel free to ask any questions :)

[joe1182]

Thanks there is a lot of good infor there. So one quick question. If I am selling computer software on my site should I only look to link with computer related sites? So in other words don't link to real estate and other categories?

[elklabone]

Related sites are a plus, because you could get some real related traffic in because your link is on a related site.

Some people feel the SE's give more weight to "relevant" links, but this is debatable.

I'd always go for related if you could... for one thing, that will add more keyword rich content to your site (in your links or "resources" pages). You don't want to clutter up your site with "real estate links" if your site has nothing to do with real estate, imho.

--Mark

[eggypiece]

joe1182
" Should I request a link to a site that is not related to mine or should I stick to content that is similar?"

In my opinion, I prefer to stick to sites related somehow to my themes and subjects. I don't do it so much for the SEs, but because I think that is what my customers would like to see. Because I have a multitalented wife who does handmade crafts in mixed media, I look into exchanging with sites related to art, crafts, decorated eggs, etc. I have lots of options, and I believe my customers would be more inclined to be looking for those kind of sites than a real estate site....after all, I don't run a directory or a search engine, but a reciprocal directory with "subject related sites".

Just FYI, this is my own personal choice not based on any statistical analysis, but I reject hotels, casinos, poker, tobacco, alcohol, drugs of any kinds, adult, and many others.

[edited by: martinibuster at 7:04 pm (utc) on Jan. 28, 2005]
[edit reason] spelling [/edit]