Create Content that people Want to link to

Whether you just pushed the launch button or you've been live for years you've probably asked yourself "How am I going to get my site out there and bring in more traffic?"

The problem is, no matter how fancy your website is, unless it's loaded with exciting, fresh content, or you sell a remarkable product then people probably wont want to share your site. A site without interesting content or people spreading links is likely to be a site that doesn't get close to the coveted first page of Google.

Luckily with a little bit of research and hard work you bring in more customers from a wider audience and keep them coming back for more.

If you still need convincing to start Linkbaiting...

• Bring in more traffic from many diverse sources. When other sites link to you. you expand your audience, growing sales, leads and brand awareness.
• Improved search engine placement. Having lots of people link to your site tells Google that you've got something valuable to say. Getting higher up the search list is a huge boost to your traffic.
• Get your site indexed by Google more often. The more links your site has the more ways the Google spiders have to reach your site and evaluate your content

Come up with a strategy 

The idea is to create content which is focused on a specific group or goal..

• Who do you want to relate to?
• Why would they care?
• What would make them likely to spread your idea?

You don't need to blog about the latest celebrity gossip to get people linking to you. Even the "driest" subjects can become exciting with the right content. If you run a local finance company your site doesn't have to be limited to a few dry sentences and a Contact Us form. If you're an expert then show it! Blog what you think about the latest start up company, share market predictions and offer practical advice.

Tips to get you started

• Make sure you content is useful! People come to your site because they have a problem, make sure you answer it!
• This means providing good quality information. Give your content more authority by linking to other sources.
• Be controversial! If everyone in your industry is saying the same thing try saying something different. Some of the most linked to blogs discuss contentious issues and fire people up.
• Stay relevant and fresh by posting regularly. There is something huge happening in your industry every week, make sure your opinion is heard.
• Become indispensable - With regular, valuable content your audience will rely on you and want to share your website.
• A few quality articles can be better than a hundred fluff pieces. If you're site has the best step by step guide on the Internet to re-financing your loans, or building a pizza oven in your back yard, it's like you've created a highway to your website that people will keep using for years to come.

Putting the word out

There's no point creating great content without promoting it. Once you've posted something new you need to get the word out.

• Share it on all the common social networking sites e.g. Facebook and Twitter
• Post it on social bookmarking sites e.g. Digg, StumbleUpon
• Promote within you blog, if you're article has some cross over make sure you link to other relevant posts you've made.
• Send out a email marketing campaign
• Contribute the post to relevant online forums -  if you've followed our guidelines your content should be useful and on topic. You don't want to look like you're spamming.

One step closer to a winning website

Once you've created content that people read, enjoy, and link to, you have generated an inbound link which is like a "vote" for your blog in the eyes of the search engines when they come to rank your website.

Because of this it is a good idea to setup your blog on the same "domain" or address as your business website. For example www.zeald.com/blog or www.blog.zeald.com. If you want more freedom to post and publishize your articles then you should look at getting the Blogs and Social Networking Add-on.