I don’t know where to start his month it feels like so much has happened. We started out with the threat of negative SEO and sites being forced to wade through a toxic back link profile and begin the arduous task of attempting to remove spurious links. Then we had the big cookie debate. Sascon conference happened which was a fantastic two days out of the office and actually getting to talk to other human beings instead of just a computer screen. And of course we had the big industry blow-up of the iAcquire outing scandal.

Find below a selection of the best articles from the month which will keep you up to date with all the Link Building news. If anyone wants to suggest an article for inclusion next month just drop me an email or you can leave a comment below.

see you next month…
Shelli aka shellshock uk

>> Link Building Reading List: May 2012

[Read more...]

An exciting month with two great local conferences, BrightonSEO and Ion Search in Leeds setting the standard for out-of-London events. The  news I have been focusing on this month has been rel=author tag, suddenly everyone seems to be talking about it and has been featured at the conferences.

I have put together a special Brighton SEO reading list of all the best round-ups from the event and (*self-promotion alert*) you can see a digital version of the souvenir poster from Brighton SEO that I was commissioned to produce for the show. Only 50 copies were made and sent to the speakers and a few select industry leaders.

Enjoy the reading and maybe see you at Sascon in Manchester next month.

Shelli aka shellshock uk

>> Link Building Reading List: April 2012

>> Industry commentary:

The New Google Link Algorithm
by Patrick Altoft
The online armageddon that the latest round of blog network de-indexing has caused is sending huge ripples and implications through the agency. Moving forward we are going to see a lot of second rate agencies who can’t deliver fall away. If you have been relying on blog networks for links then you are in trouble. Patrick from Branded 3 gives an interesting insight to actual stats about what he has seen on clients sites during the snowfall of GWT unnatural links warning messages. [Read more...]

linkpreneur – an individual who has the ability to secure link opportunities that others could not even conceive.

I recently wrote an article at Econsultancy defining the term Linkpreneurs. The article addressed how link building has changed dramatically in the last few months and where we need to focus our attentions moving forward as quality link builders. You can read the full article here: Linkpreneurs: the new school of link building. [Read more...]

Incredibly in the online space of millions of blogs very few people have something of value to say; I read hundreds of articles every week and come across way to many me too posts. I find it amusing/depressing to see a story break and watching the wave of how the word is spread from blog to blog with each writer reading the other and producing a basic rewrite with nothing personal to add. When assessing what to keep or ditch I will only include a link if I feel the article has something of real value to say, has a unique opinion on a subject or breaks a story.

Next month coming up I am looking forward to Brighton SEO and ION search on my doorstep in Leeds. If any of you are going to either event feel free let me know and we can catch up on the day.

Thanks
Shelli : )

Big news this month:

Blog networks deindexed
Over Optimization
Schema – semantic mark-up

>> Link Building Reading List: March

Assessing Link Signals in 2012 – Has Anchor Text Had It’s Day?
by Tim Grice
Right back at the beginning of March when there was plenty of discussion about the 40 changes to search quality signal by google and what the changes to the way they evaluate links was. Tim offers a great insight with the conclusion that anchor text appears to be devalued and a focus on brand building is recommended. [Read more...]

The following is an essential link building reading list of curated articles by Eric Ward. If you want to keep up to date in the industry you will know it can be overwhelming trying to keep on top of your google reader list or tweet stream. I am constantly reading EVERY day and still find it hard to get through everything I want to – so a bit of help goes a long way - Having an expert like Eric Ward send you his article suggestions is something worth paying for. I am signed up to many newsletters but will only part with hard cash for one of them: Link Moses Private – rumour has it the doors are shutting on this soon so I would get in while you can.

If you only have time for a few articles a week this is the link building reading list for you. [Read more...]

Link Building Monthly (a curated reading list of link building articles) launched and hit in-boxes last week. I am posting the first few editions so that readers can get an idea of what is contained before they sign up. The newsletter is free and 100% spam and advert free. I respect every sign-up and don’t allow anyone to have access to your details – so you won’t suddenly end up receiving emails from a random company selling cheap seo or little blue pills. After a few months access to the reading list will only be by email newsletter: sign up now and then you don’t miss an issue. Check the Blue box to the right.

BTW any article suggestions and feedback of what you would like to see in here is much appreciated, just leave a comment below and I will respond.

>> Link Building Reading List: February 2012

Non-google Link Strategy: An Example of Stealth Link Marketing
by Eric Ward
Link building has evolved so much and IMHO good link builders are now link PR people – looking for promotional opportunities and strategic partnerships wherever they may be. This great, quick read article gives an example of a Florida scuba company and how they looked for link opportunities outside of the SERPs for brilliant payback results. Think outside of Google for link opportunities for long lasting results.
(861 words – 3 min) [Read more...]

Link Building Blogs to Read and Tweets to Follow

You have to read, LOTS, if you want to keep up with SEO and the link building industry. I recommend following a tight list of authorities on a regular basis and also having a B list of a diverse mix of sources to keep you informed and creatively fresh.

In my previous post I put together the top 20 must read sites for SEO. I then realised that I hadn’t included any specific link building blogs and so have put together the following list of the best link building blogs from the authorities in the link world. You could call em linkerati if you want.

If you follow these blogs and twitter streams you will be kept in the link loop.

THE Link Building Blogs and tweets to follow:

Paddy Moogan
Works at Distilled in London, for anyone living under a rock Distilled have become one of the world leading SEO companies after SEOmoz retired from client work and partnered with Duncan and Will recommending their agency. Paddy is an SEO consultant but writes a lot of articles about link building, his articles are always well informed and a great source of information. Paddy writes for SEOmoz and Distilled. [Read more...]

Keeping up to date with the community is an essential part of the link builders/seo role. The mercurial nature of the internet means change and innovation on a constant basis. I spend a few hours every single day keeping to date with my google reader list and via social news sites, I also have to put in extra time at weekend to keep up to date with my Instapaper reading list and any in-depth articles I want to take time thinking about.

Just like an art director a good link builder must keep a good grasp of current affairs and a diverse mix of intellectually stimulating and sometimes controversial opinions and free thinking ideas. For creative ideas and link strategies that think out of the box you have to be resourceful and knowledgeable. Basically you have to know a little about a lot. [Read more...]

by Shelli

This is a long and comprehensive list (5,256 words) of the best link building strategies for 2012 onwards. Search is changing and so is link building. Half assed link building projects just won’t cut the mustard anymore, you have to be putting in the extra effort to get on ahead of your competitor. This list covers all the tried and tested white hat, long-term stable link building techniques there are. I spent a long time combing for ideas and listing all my own pearls of wisdom for a full set of link building ideas. This isn’t the first how to link build list and definitely won’t be the last but you can be sure that this gives you all the BEST and most recommend ways to collect links without risking another google fallout like Panda. There are plenty of examples and links to additional reading to fully illustrate the strategies.

This is the list I wish I had when I started link building but had to learn the hard way. : ) [Read more...]