Webmasters quickly discovered that getting more and more exchange links could influence their results on the Google search engine, so of course people abused the method. Suddenly sites about jewelry would have a hundred pages of exchange links from sites about viagra, gambling, loans, and whoever else requested an exchange link. Google became wise to the whole fiasco and began devaluing link exchanges, particularly between unrelated sites.

That doesn't mean that exchange links are no longer of any value, it just means that it should be done properly, and it should benefit your visitors. A small collection of related exchange links can add value to your website and can be a great place to share some good Internet resources with your visitors.

Asking other webmasters to exchange links with you can be quite frustrating though. Webmasters often delete link exchange requests without even opening the e-mail!

Here's a list of ten reasons why I delete requests..

ONE - Unrelated Websites
Seriously, what value would I be adding to a jewelry website by exchanging links with casino websites? Would a visitor come to to an wrist watches website to look for gambling information, and vice versa? If you have a website that is about jewelry, at least make sure link exchange requests are sent to other jewelry or craft related websites!

TWO - You are no longer accepting link exchange requests
If it says on the website that they are no longer accepting exchange links, it usually means they are no longer accepting exchange links! It sounds commonsense, but trust me, it doesn't stop people from sending requests.

THREE - Generic link exchange request
If you receive the same link exchange request that a thousand other webmasters have just received, it makes it so much easier to just click the delete button.

FOUR - Excessive flattery
Politeness is good, but obvious excessive flattery can become tiring, especially when it is the same flattery as the last 5 link exchange requests you have just received. The technique probably worked on webmasters the first few times they were given a pile of praise about their website by an excessive link requester, but people grow wise quickly.

FIVE - Unfair link exchange request
If your website has a small collection of 10 categorized quality links and the person requesting a link exchange with you has a free for all collection of 100+ uncategorized spammy sites, where do you think the link request is going? Exactly, straight into "deleted items".

SIX - New or under construction site
Asking an established website that has worked hard over many months or years to build a reputation and steady stream of traffic is not going to be interested in exchanging links with a site that is still being built or just finished. At least take the "under construction" banner off your site before sending out link exchange requests.

SEVEN - "Please add my link first"
If you are asking to exchange links with another Webmaster, make sure you have at least added their link first. Telling them to add your link first is just rude.

EIGHT - Hidden link pages
Hiding your links page while mine is prominently placed on every page is not fair.. "Delete"!

NINE - Requested title is long and spammy
Opening a link exchange request and seeing that they are expecting you to add a title like "Best Website Designer and Developer in Australia!!!" means you shouldn't even have to check their website, as the request is being "deleted".

TEN - Why link exchanges are good
If the first couple paragraphs is telling me why link exchanges are great and how I could increase my Google PageRank by linking to them, the e-mail is immediately deleted.

Link Exchange Conclusion?
Any Webmaster with a moderately successful website will get plenty of link exchange requests and they also probably don't have a lot of spare time to waste. If you take the time to write something very brief and personal about the site you want to exchange links with, and it seems like an equal exchange, you will probably have a much higher success rate with exchange link requests. If you use any of the techniques listed above, there is a good chance they will be heading straight to someone's "deleted items".

Although we at Biz United no longer accept exchange links, we may change our minds if your site is a very useful resource that very few other sites have. It would have to be a very established and very useful resource though, as exchanging links is not one of our favorite activities.

Browse guides related to this Exchange Links Article on the Biz United Web Directory..
Submitting to Web Directories
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Getting Started with a Website

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