Cross linking to other sites is a great way to promote your business online because it generates more traffic. Also, your listing in search engine indexes will improve.

The trick to making this marketing tactic successful is to only accept relevant links to your website and vice versa.

The key to keeping people coming back is to keep updated information available on your site.

Here are some helpful tips to follow when it comes to link requests:

1. When you’re asked to accept a link request be very selective in accepting them. Never accept a request from a competitor’s website otherwise you’ll risk sending your business their way.

2. Always visit the sites that are sending the requests. Make sure they are relevant and compliment your own.

3. If you don’t want your business listed on their website, deny the request. Stay away from sites and businesses that you don’t want associated with your own.

4. Refrain from linking to sites that already have too many links. Yours will easily get lost among the many. The fewer cross-links on the site, the more likely yours is to get clicked.

5. Only link to popular sites.

6. Stick to linking to sites with a relevant links directory. If you’re in the construction business, you don’t want to link to a site with a bunch of unrelated links. (i.e. baby clothes, beauty products)

There are two types of linking to consider, passive linking and content linking. Remember, when it comes to cross-linking, always think in terms of quality rather than quantity.

Passive Linking

This type of linking makes it easy for people to cross-link to your site as it involves cutting and pasting.

Create an HTML code that can be easily transferred to another site. The link can occur in the form of a button, text box or a simple text link.

Content Linking

A content link is when the name of your business or a product you sell is mentioned and linked within the content. This method helps add credibility to your business.

You can also write industry related articles and allow others to post them for free. Your byline should contain a link back to your site. When it comes to content linking, get creative.

All in all, cross-linking is a great way to lend credibility to your business, increase traffic to your site, and make a better profit.

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