Determining the Quality of Links

All links are not created equal. Being able to determine the quality and thus value of a link is an important step on your way to creating and implementing an effective back link strategy.

Is it black listed?

The first thing to decide upon is whether or not a site is blacklisted. You check check wheter a site is blacklisted by searching for the domain on Domain Tools and doing a WHOIS lookup.

The response code should be 200 and the black list status should be clear.

How many links on the site

The value of a link in terms of PR and weight passed is proportional to the amount of links from a site. A powerful domain with just a few links is a far more valuable link than one from a new site with 1000's or links on it.

How many Back Links

A site that has lots of links to it has more authority and weight to pass on. If you are getting a link from a site with lots of established back links this will be much better than a link from a site with very few back links.

How relevant are the back links?

When searching the back links of any particular site it makes sense to pay attention to the relevance of the back links rather than just the number. 10 highly relevant links will be much better than 100 non relevant links. Take this into consideration when analysing the value of a back link.

Content where the link is coming from

The location of a link on a page has a high degree og significance to the value of that link. A long string of links one after another is less valueable than a link from within a relevant paragraph and part of a sentence. This also effects clich through rates quite substantially, another consideration of natural traffic when analysing the value of a link.

How old is the domain

Domain age is an important factor as the older and more established a site is the more authority it has and thus the more weight a link from that site passes. New sites offer very little in weight from links.

Is it relevant? Make sure it is deep linked

Don't just get links to your home page. The best kind of link is one that is on a relevant page, within relevant content, that has relevant keywords in it and links to a specific page on your site, not just your home page.

The SEO Files Recomends

Take care and consideration when analysing the value of a link. As you have seen from the above sections, there are many conditions and parameters that need to be considered when looking for links.