Wednesday, May 7, 2008

Link Baiting, The Good, The Pretty Good and The Unforgiving

Hey everyone. First I would like to say thank you to all my readers and visitors. We will all come together and make it happen for all of us in the long run, again thank you for all your support. OK, now on to the subject for today.Let's talk about "Link Baiting" and what it is exactly.

Link baiting is, in simple terms, having a article or blog post worthy of being posted on another website by the owner of that website. As this happens, your link gets spread around from site to site and the readers of that site get a closer look at you and have found respect and trust in you because someone they trust have added you to their site. This is considered "Viral" marketing. It works well in forums or places where discussions are taking place about different topics or subjects. Link Baiting is sort of like "Fishing" (And I mean at the lake, not phishing peoples info). There are what we consider several different types of "Hooks" or "Lures" that make link baiting possible. This kind of marketing is also good to promote any product or niche you have a campaign on as well as Brand yourself along with it. This will eventually have a good or even great impact on your affiliate marketing business. So let me explain each one in detail: The Hooks:

The first "Hook" is called the "News Hook":

If you read an article or news bulletin and do your research about that article and can disprove it ethically with facts and being respectful in doing so, then you can become an Authority Figure on the subject, thus, gaining trust and respect of your readers. Also I need to mention another form of "News Hook". If you were to find an article or several that relate to your niche, make sure they are interesting and catch the attention of your readers and be the first to link to them, this also is a way to brand yourself and promote your niche, your affiliate marketing business.

The second "Hook" is called 'Resource Hook"

This "Hook" is an exceptional one. The "Resource Hook" is a helpful article, post or resource that you, yourself write or give freely that helps your readers along in their life, whether it's a recommended program, free software or tools or a list of other resources you have gathered yourself. As long as it is useful and helpful to your readers and possible consumers, and you give it freely, this will instantly boost your credibility and reputation amongst them. And you feel good to be able to help out others. And you will receive links back to your article and your site. Like I always say, "Giving is generosity that all people should practice".

The third 'Hook" is called "Humor Hook"

This hook is strictly for a niche or product you may have a campaign on. Lets say through your searching or researching you were to come across something extremely funny that relates to your niche. Like a picture, video or even an article. Posting this up on your site could gain you popularity because they say "Laughter is the healer of the Soul", right. So now you post it up on your site and people are happy to see that not only are you a serious business person but you also have a sense of humor and they get a kick out of it enough to link back to you and your humorous post. This is where showing your personality builds your character.

The fourth "Hook" is called "Excited or Belief Hook"

If you find something that really gets you excited, makes you feel happy or changes your life. This is a hook that is easy to promote because you believe in the product. This is my favorite "Hook" because you feel good about what you are promoting. And if you feel good it will translate into your writings, trust me. Not just that but you can talk or write about it with conviction. It is the ultimate high feeling so good about something and being able to share it with your friends, readers and everyone. Knowing that you will help people is the ultimate reward. This will get your readers excited and you will again instantly gain respect, authority, trust and build your character as a person fast.

The fifth "Hook" is called "Comment Hook"

I like this one a lot as well as number 4. This "Hook" is a BIG respect hook to the author you post a comment to, which will get you your respect back. They say "To Get Respect you have to Earn it", right. Well this is the way to earn it. Now don't go spamming blogs, post or articles just to gain popularity. There is a ethical way to do this. If they have written about a niche or subject that relates to yours and it is a good article, then kool, go ahead and leave a comment telling them why you liked their article. You can, in some cases leave a link to an article that you have written or a way to get in contact with you. But spamming your information is not a good idea. What this will do for you is gain the respect of the people and the site for which you left your comment and most likely gain their interest and the interest of their readers as well. Pretty soon you may have your links on their website posted by them. Ahhhhh, the Ethics of online marketing and affiliate marketing. Feels good, doesn't it.

These are the five I recommend. There are two others that I don't recommend and if you use them, us them with extreme caution.

The sixth "Hook" is called "Attacking Hook"

This "Hook" can be dangerous and hurt you along the way. This is where you accuse or try to discredit an article or post about a niche or certain subject. When doing so you tell your readers and theirs that this article or post is basically a lie and/or a scam which could cause hard feelings between you and the author of that post. If you choose to go this route, I HIGHLY recommend that you do thorough research on the subject and make sure that what you say can be justified not just by you but others. Also you may create a mob of angry bloggers that could link back to negative posts.

And the seventh "Hook" is called "Contrary Hook"

I know that all of you have heard the term "According to Contrary Belief". In other words, what many other people may believe and have written about but are not necessarily true or with holding certain information that can be critical or misleading to the readers. Well this is a form of that but through article and post writings. This is where you become very controversial in your article or post about someone else's article or post. Either trying to disapprove it, disagree with it or simply saying they left out to much information as if to have their readers walking around with blinders on to hide what is lurking within the walls. Again, this is also a dangerous tactic and could hurt you. They say that "Honesty is the Best policy" but they also say "Good guys/girls finish last". Get my point. I personally don't believe that "Good guys/girls finish last" but be cautious. Controversy can also cause hard feelings. If you choose this route again, "DO YOUR RESEARCH".

Link baiting is one of the most successful ways to promote yourself, your niche and gain trust, respect and authority amongst all people. It will benefit your online business and boost your affiliate marketing sales 300% and more. So remember that ethics, respect and research are all KEY factors in "Link Baiting" and that it is possible to hurt yourself as well as promote yourself with this type of marketing. Good luck in all your endeavors and always keep smiling. Peace and GOD speed.

About the Author: Geronimo Rubio is a Affiliate marketer/Author in the business of Online Marketing or Affiliate Marketing. His website is a gathering of information for beginner and advanced marketers showing them the techniques being used in todays Online businesses. He offers links to FREE software, eBooks, his personal articles and his collection of information to help people along in their endeavors. He also makes available New and Older softwares and programs for purchase that have had success in the World of Affiliate Marketing and with work and persistence will help your Online Business grow. You can find his website here: http://www.geronimorubio.com or contact him here: info@geronimorubio.com

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