Links - why?

[tony1999]

Hi
I've developed a "business" website; hopefully it will provide a worthwhile service, and, through subscription, cover its (my) costs.

If I supply links then I don't want my "viewers" to go to providers of similar services, therefore who (which services) do I provide links to?.
In fact if you have a fee/subscription service, should you provide links at all since any worthwhile links will be to someone in the industry, and therefore a likely competitor?.

Sorry to be so capitalist about it.

Any advice accepted, please.

[Birdman]

As long as you make your site useful to your users and "sticky", they will most likely stick around and maybe "subscribe". Plus, you don't have to put your reciprocal links right in thier face. Personally, I only visit "links" pages to add my link, not to find another site. I prefer engines for that. And, as long as you make your outgoing links open in another window they won't "really" be leaving. Hopefully, after seeing what else is out there, they will appreciate your site more. Just my 2 cents though.

[tjcali]

You should use links sparingly if you are trying to sell a service. A good use of them is integrated into the content of your pages especially to online references that may further illustrate your selling point. Use extreme common sense, you don't want to confuse your audience or give them too many options to follow the world of infinite sublinks on sites you link to.