Forum Moderators: martinibuster
I'm trying to get some inbound links from .edu sources. What's the best way to go about this?
My main competitor has a couple of .edu links, they're clearly clued up about SEO. I believe the .edu links are what's keeping them on the top spot right now.
I know inbound links aren't everything, but I have all other angles covered really.
Any advice is much appreciated.
Paul
Syzygy
Education sites always had and still have a reputation of not handing out links to everybody, and the reason is Control. The answer of creating content isn't enough, the solution goes way beyond adding content, and is one of 'exception' - having such a site is too difficult and lengthy to comment about, but it's true.
Yes, I may have one educational link to my site - but chances are it's my lot for a very long time. It's a demotivating way of seeing things, but sadly a fact for now that edu sites don't want their resources cluttered with muck, and they can't be forced, bargained with or anything. You know, you aren't dealing with a 'normal site' here - these edu sites are first class resources with massive budgets, their own methods of generating profit and therefore aren't desperate for links. So can afford to call the shots.
I know of several real, pure quality resources, and they only have maybe 2 or 3 .edu linkbacks to their name, and one resource is a PR 7, it has 10'000 links to it etc etc, yet only has a few edu links from all that hard work creating content. It's very tough to get edu links.
[edited by: Maxnpaddy at 12:03 am (utc) on Sep. 6, 2007]
Easier/spammier methods:
You can look for sponsorship opportunities. Student clubs, academic projects.
School newspapers sometimes have ways to get into print as well. Get published, then reprinted online which includes a link.
Even rougher methods:
Look for forums/blog footprints on .edu's and spam away :). Bleh, I don't do that stuff, but I've seen abandoned forums almost as active as webmasterworld.com :) as everyone with a pharmacy or casino to sell posts full page ads and links.
The magazine and site specialises in graduate recruitment, careers abroad, and post-graduate study abroad. Stating the blatantly obvious - it's relevant!
All the links are to be found in the online resources of university careers departments. At the inception of the site in '97 or '98, we actively canvassed for links from uni's - it worked.
Trying to get academic links just to boost your ranking is futlie. Offering a genuine service is the only way to go.
Syzygy
Trying to get academic links just to boost your ranking is futlie. Offering a genuine service is the only way to go.
Absolutely!
I manage a .edu (Accredited US College) and control all OBLs. Its odd because I can't recall the last time I saw a request come in for a link. No automated requests either. I guess they can tell from our site that we're not going to get involved with the link craze.
The .edu TLD is gaining more trust as time goes on. Educause is the sole Registrar and they are slowly but surely cleaning up the mess that was created years ago when .edu's were up for grabs. That is no longer the case. If you are not an Accredited U.S. Institution, you're not getting a .edu and existing .edus cannot be transferred.
And, for those who manage a .edu and get involved with the link craze, you may putting your institution at risk from a variety of standpoints with Brand being the most important.
So, unless you have something that is of extreme value to our visitors, don't even bother asking. ;)
P.S. It is possible that we "may" have a job board. Do you have a position open that might interest one of our students?
It is possible that we have a spot open for a team sponsor(s).
It is possible that we are looking for donations to make improvements within the school. Our large donations get special attention.
It is possible that we are in need of some "free website advice". In exchange, we may allow you some exposure on the site.
There are all sorts of possibilities. :)
[edited by: pageoneresults at 2:40 pm (utc) on Sep. 6, 2007]
Some existed on the internet prior to the web being invented. One such resource that became a website later was molecular lab protocols. Sometimes i miss listserv!
Other websites I have been involved with included things like antibody or protein databases, biotechnology topics, translational medicine, genomics and all very heavily linked to by academics.
Some of the easier bait targets ever are those with huge egos. They can't pass up tasty ego bait. One thing is true about academia - egos run rampant on the university faculty. Much of the political posturing and movement on university staffs is directly attributable to stadium sized egos of professors.
I have seen a couple of well orchestrated linking campaigns that used eqo trolling through Digg. They resulted in a few dozen fresh edu links to essentially a blog.
The controversial troll is another good one. It can be used in conjunction with ego trolling quite effectively. Think about what would prick the ego of academia? Examples:
"College Professors to be Replaced by Core Pentium's by 2010".
"College Professors found to be overpaid by 75% in 2007".
"University Professors Aging Early due to Over Work"
"Work Load Increases on Faculties as SAT Score Fall"
"Colleges to Cut Professors out of Curriculum Building Process"
"95% of all Students Subject to RIAA Supeneas"
"All College Students Internet Surfing Under Surveillance"
Sprinkle with your favorite inflammatory adjectives and you can see the possibilities.
Rethink bait=troll. Remember the old "don't feed the trolls" tagline from the 80's? SSDY (Same Stuff Different Year).
Not sure how useful this is for the original poster. I certainly did nothing specific to attract such links, they came naturally from the site's content.
A PageOfText(tm) on Widgets is unlikely to be of much use to a Widget Lecturer who knows the subject much better than you do and could better your text blindfolded having just returned from an evening in the pub. The only reason you'd get a link for your PageOfText(tm) is if the lecturer is hard pressed to find any good recommendations to pad out a list of suggested reading sources.
Given that your target lecturer could write a PageOfText(tm) easily, provide something he can't create easily. Expert in his field he might be, but can he draw well? If you include top quality exploded parts diagrams for Widgets you can guarantee that the widget lecturer who wants to explain the parts of a Widget will be in touch about reproducing the image (for which you request only a link). Push the concept further and provide data which would take a long time to collate; e.g. a comparison table of Widget specifications under all the major national and international standards. If you've got the skills and the budget, get some video on there - either filmed or animation.
Equip them all with a nice link 'Copyright permission requests' just below, going to a nice page explaining how you are delighted to allow any legitimate educational establishment reproduce the content provided that they link back to the original source.
mark
[edited by: jatar_k at 12:53 pm (utc) on Sep. 20, 2007]
[edit reason] no sigs thanks [/edit]
[edited by: engine at 3:29 pm (utc) on Sep. 20, 2007]
[edit reason] No urls, thanks. See TOS [webmasterworld.com] [/edit]
<added> I was fortunate enough to visit the link before it was snipped. That site is the bane of every .edu Webmaster who is following the guidelines for maintaining their .edu properties.
I'm trying to get some inbound links from .edu sources. What's the best way to go about this?
Just trying to help......better than scamming the universities with false job postings
Just trying to help......better than scamming the universities with false job postings.
Actually what I saw at the link you provided was a bit more severe than posting jobs on .edu websites. Ever wonder why that site is "grey barred"? The SEs don't want to see that crap in the SERPs. And neither do EDUCAUSE.
I do know I now have quality one way links from several Universities and have added value to their websites, the honest way.
Im not in charge of any EDU accounts, and this information is very useful to me. More than anything, the information makes alot of sense.
Brett - very nice bait statements, I can see the professors going nuts over those!
