In the backlink heyday, getting backlinks was simple. Find every directory site, submit your URL, sit back and watch your rankings move up. Not so today. You shouldn't write off directories because they've been abused in the past. You just need to be more selective and willing to hand over a little cash somtimes.

DMOZ
Ah yes, the open source directory project (ODP). Most people who submit their sites don't get in. They have strict guidelines that must be followed exactly. My guess is they have an "algorithm", much like Google, that weeds out sites based on age and topic. That means you may not be able to get in for several years. Since DMOZ is so picky, I recommend not submitting your site if it's brand new. Why? Because you only get one chance. Once you've submitted your site, and if it gets rejected, you can't submit again. You're done. If you've had a site for several years, give it a shot. If not, wait until you've established some credibility.

Paid Directories
The only paid directories I recommend are Best of The Web, Joeant, GoGuides, and Gimpsy. These are well established directories that have strict policies. I love paid directories because they are well kept and, let's face it, paying a monetary price keeps at least 90% of the rats out. And, at least with these two directories, you're not guaranteed to get in. So, even if someone can pay, they still have to follow the submission guidelines and be able to speak english.

Authority Blogs
You can get great links from authority blogs. But I have to issue a huge disclaimer: you can absolutely ruin yourself if you're not careful. I have a friend who posted a comment on a blog that the blog owner thought was spammy. Guess what? The blog owner started spreading my friend's name around as a spammer. Not good. My friend had to get clients to go to the blog and post "kudos" comments to get the guy to stop. The bad thing about posting on an authority blog is that bad publicity is going to spread a lot faster. You might be the #1 position for "your name spammer". Ouch! So, keep your comments short and focused on the post itself.

Hub Sites
These are sites that link to your competition. In a nutshell, if you can find a site which is linking to your competitors, there's a good chance they'll link to you too. You should, at a minimum, get links at the same places your competition is getting links.

Inside Jobs
If you have friends or family that happen to work at a school, in the government, or maybe a newspaper, ask for a link. Offer something for free in return for the link. You might even be able to pay a nominal fee to get a permanent link or be a featured speaker at some point.

These are just several techniques you can use to get legitimate links that will actually help you rank higher in the search engines. If it sounds like too much work, remember that most webmasters are not going to do what it takes to get ranked higher. Most people give up and resort to foolish tactics that only hurt their sites.

The search engines will reward you for putting in the work.

About the Author

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