Back Links, how to get edu and gov links

How to get edu and gov back links for a website?

[kmmcab]

Hi i am a small business owner who can not afford such as seo services for my website i am trying to do my self. Is any one have idea how to get .edu or .gov back links for my website.

I run a taxi service in Sacramento area,i have big completion on all search engine and i am trying to stand out.I would appreciate if anyone can help thanks.

[lucy24]

:: irresistible mental picture of www.ca.gov site headed with "Less is more. Jerry Brown uses {OP's company}." ::

You're got a taxi service in a state capital and you're talking about links? You don't need search engines, you need word of mouth.

(btw, I assume that your cat typed "completion" when you were aiming for "competition". Unless there's a technical term I missed out on.)

[martinibuster]

You don't really need links. What you need are citations. You are competing in Local Search. That's a different discipline. Study up on the Local Search Forum [webmasterworld.com]. Read the Local Search library first. You have to look real hard for the tiny link.

Good luck

[MediaGuy]

Exactly - you are a local cab firm, so its local people booking cabs that want you.

I'd forget, Gov or edu links, as some little local cab website isnt high profile enough that some Gov/Council will hand out links to it. Why would the Government do you a favour - I dont get it, its nuts and the few who do get .gov/edu links mentioned this on forums and now the world thinks its possible and can be done effortlessly - this cant when you all have the wrong type of websites.

[martinibuster]

, as some little local cab website isnt high profile enough that some Gov/Council will hand out links to it.

That is not true for this specific case. There are .edu sites that link out to Sacramento taxis sites [csus.edu]. Dot EDU sites do hand out those links to Sacramento area taxi cabs. I researched it and I found them.

I discouraged the OP from acquiring those links because those links are not what he needs. What he needs are citations that will help him get good placement on Google Local. The OP needs to do his Local Search research in the Local Search Forum. There are other considerations, like smart phones and how people access local information via smart phones and how he should optimize his site, including smartphone specific advertising.

Local Search is a whole different scene and he's not going to find his answers here. That's why the referral to the Local Search Forum. ;)

[MediaGuy]

That is not true for this specific case.

Absolutely right - a very very rare case. Where he got lucky.

Probably a slip up by the uni's admin, where others will notice this, as education staff have a reputation for righting mistakes fast.

[martinibuster]

No. Not a rare case. Not a slip up. Not a mistake. Look at the context. It's a classic hyperlink done for the purpose of communicating where to obtain a service.

That's not the only link out there to Sacramento cab companies either.

Outbound links to commercial sites are frequently done at many universities. It is done on purpose by responsible parties at the universities. Universities hand out FREE links to cab companies, hotels, motels, and even travel sites all across the United States (and the world). They are out there, they are not rare.

[Planet13]

Hi there, Kmmcab:

I would just like to offer one suggestion that hasn't been mentioned yet.

It seems that the best way to get links (and publicity) is to have something SPECIAL about your business. In short, you need to be able to answer the question:

"Why should people use our cab company instead of our competitors?"

If you have a simple answer to that, then you have to promote that answer.

If you don't have an answer to that, then you had better find one.

For example, there is Ben Franklin Plumbing, which is known as "The Punctual Plumber." Their answer is, "people should use us instead of our competitors because we show up on time."

So what can you do that your competitors can't (or won't)do?

[CainIV]

Absolutely right - a very very rare case. Where he got lucky.

You have to be good to be lucky, and lucky to be good. You miss 100% of the shots you don't take.

Both cliches and both apply perfectly here.

I definitely have a link drawer half full of edu and gov links I should have *never* gotten, but did.

[mark_roach]

I have an opening whereby I may be able to get a link from a UK university but I am unsure how to progress with it.

An academic has used my site to gather a list of people to email about participating in a survey.

I know this because one of my members has contacted me to ask if the email is genuine. The email addresses are publically accessible and we occasionally get people selling services spamming our members, but this first time to my knowledge a university has done it.

There is a contact number in the email so I can ring on the grounds of checking the validity of the request. But how do I get the conversation to a position where I can ask for a link ?

Any suggestions ?

[wheel]

Yeah, quit pretending you're the slick willy of sales and get to the point :).

Phoning people isn't about some slick technique. Be polite, brief, to the point. People can smell if you're beating around the bush.

Here's what I'd say:
-----------------------------
<Ring>
Hi, could I please speak to professor gadget?

Speaking.

Hi Professor. I'm mark_roach from Igiveawayyouremailtospammersdotcom. I'm getting some calls from my clients suggesting that they're recieved emails from you, and wondering if they're genuine.

Professor will chat on, maybe even be defensive because he's being outed as a spammer.

Tell him you know that the emails are being harvested, that's actually OK with everyone, so it's cool, you just need to know that everything's legit - that's all you care about. If it's legit, cool, you'll let your subscribers know. They asked, you confirmed, that's cool.

He'll agree that he's legit.

Then you say, listen, since I'm providing a service that you clearly find useful, any chance you can give me a hand back? you know links help, and you're in my industry, so how about a link to my site from your .edu page? Evenjust under personal links?
-------------
He'll either say yes or no. No sales techniques involved.


And chat about your niche. Tell him something cool or interesting, or just talk. Make some conversation - ask him about his thoughts on something. maybe there's a way you folks can work together on something. Maybe there's some way you can help him, in exchange for a link, i.e. YOU email all your customers with a request from him, for free, in exchange for a link. That's better than scraping emails anyday of the week.

[mark_roach]

Nice advice wheel. I have just spoken to her and pretty much followed your line of attack. It looks promising she said she will see what she can do.

[wheel]

Glad it was of some use. If you ever want to pay me back, you know the drill :).

FWIW, that's pretty much how I sell my product - call people and close the sale on the phone. Because I don't have any sales training one of the things I do is to not do sales. I just call, don't get fancy, I just get to the point and tell them why I'm calling, and offer them whatever it is I'm selling.

Once you get over the fear of the phone (takes about 10 phone calls) then it's a breeze - you're not doing anything other than speaking to people about what you know and are passionate about.

[Leosghost]

^^^ shameless but cute..:)

[mhansen]

- Spend your money on GPS locators for all your cabs.
- Have someone create an App for you that shows the location of all your cabs at the same time
- Give away the app to anyone who uses your cabs. (When they get in, ask them if they want your free cab locator app, make it accessible from the back seat of the cab)
- Put stickers on the separator window of the cab, invite Yelp Reviews (and all other user review sites) of your company.

You have hundreds of visitors willing to promote you every day... you just need to get the tool into their hands!

Just my .02

[Robert Charlton]

You don't really need links. What you need are citations. You are competing in Local Search. That's a different discipline.

Agreed that there are many differences, in the sense of extra layers and "opportunities"... nevertheless, organic rankings appear to influence Place Page rankings, particularly when the Place Page listings appear in straight organic searches as "blended" results (ie, those which combine Place and organic) on the first page of Google serps. And just from the standpoint of driving traffic, good links are likely to be helpful.

[tangor]

I'm not going to take the electronic/link/back/magic/wunderkind reply. I'll keep it simple. You're in the city. There are edu's in your area. You want them to call you (or provide links to your website so their folks/visitors/inbounds can find you. You want them to provide trust/service... so... Drive your cab to their location. Take a business card with you. Give them a ride.

Looking for local biz? SHOW THE LOCALS! Give them a good ride and they will tell their friends, and they will tell their friends, etc.

Let's not reinvent the freakin' wheel, or expect web magic (which does not exist). And if you want to call it magic, that only happens if you have shown service and THE LINK AGREES. So show it. That tank of gas is less expensive than all the web clutter/effort expended. (And guess what, if they like it, they will tell all THEIR scholarly buddies, too!)

(True story, been there, done that... was music... but what the heck, it was a SERVICE and THAT is the same thing)

[webastronaut]

Not only invest in GPS but train your drivers to learn how to use them AND make sure your dispatch and drivers communicate well. I use taxies a lot in California and I will call the night before i need a ride and give the dispatch my pick up address and drop off address then the next morning the taxi shows up late and has no clue where I need to be dropped off at. Build a good reputation and then worry about links. When your drivers and dispatch do a good job have the drivers pass out a business card then seek out travel review sites and people like me will give a good review.

[webastronaut]

And put reviews of your service on your own website I meant to add and have that info on the drivers business card.

[mhansen]

- Provide a free or discounted service from 2am-3am from local bars back to campus. Ask that it be posted online.
- Setup something with local restaurants and students to deliver meals on campus for a set delivery fee. (Students love Sushi, but its hard to get without a ride!)

Just stuff like that that will get the College or students to link back to your business.