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Email link requests
Most of us realize that the best way to get traffic while waiting to be listed by search engines is through being linked to by other quality sites.
This also assists with increasing SE rankings when search engine spiders do pay a visit.
Depending on the search engine, the "only" way to have a chance at a decent ranking is to have other sites linking to yours.
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Nowadays, webmasters get many link exchange email messages so it's more difficult to get noticed.
The reason why is simple - it's back to the WIIFM principle - What's In It For Me - the most basic of motivators in the human psyche.
A link target - the webmaster, editor or site owner who will take the decision to link to you or not - goes through three stages in taking that decision:
The inbox
You need to attract the attention of a complete stranger and sow a seed of interest that motivates them enough to open your email.
Your link request must stand out from the deluge of spam and other communications that your target will receive.
You have only two tools at your disposal: The 'From' field and the 'Subject' field.
Do not waste them as in this email that I received last week:
From: Webmaster
Subject: Link Exchange
This is bland in the extreme and will attract none but the desperate.
The "from" box
The From box is even more important that the Subject box - 65% against 35%.
The most effective from fields are (in descending order):
The sender's name, if it's known to the recipient. This can range from the well-known CEO of a company to a day-to-day contact, such as an account rep.
Company name, if it's known and respected.
An unknown sender's name, as long as it's legitimate. People are more likely to click on the name of a real person than something that says "info@xyzcompany.com."
This should be accompanied by a subject line that suggests some real benefit.
The email copy
OK, you've done the hard work and got your target to open your email. Now you've got to create a desire to take action.
The copy of your request must convince them that you have something valuable to offer them and their site visitors - and it must get them to visit your website.
Avoid puffery such as:
Dear Mr. Graham,
We have served the small business community for more than 20 years and understand the problems that they have to deal with every working day. We have distilled our practical knowledge and expertise into an attractive special report that I am sure you will find informative. The report is called Money in the Bank and we would be very grateful if you could include a link to the report from your site.
Direct is much better:
Hi Jim,
Getting customers to pay on time probably means a lot to users of your Business Start-up Advice section. Our special report, Money in the Bank addresses this problem in a practical, easy-to-read style that I am sure your users would really appreciate.
Could you provide a link to the report? I've written the linking code below that you can either copy or edit ...
Learning the art of writing good email and web copy is essential to link building.
Read more:
Learn about writing great copy
The website
To secure the link you have to live up to the promise that you've given in your email.
Ideally, you should create an attractive, action oriented landing page that addresses all their concerns.
Be prepared for rejection
If you are officially denied a reciprocal link exchange, don't get too upset - even if the response is rude, as they sometimes can be. If you do receive a nasty email back, be happy in the fact that you went about promotion in the right way, and perhaps that web master was having a really bad day as we all do at times. Leave it for a few months, then try again, outlining some of the improvements you have made in your site that are relevant.
The promotion strategies you put into action from the outset define your standing in the online community in the time ahead - don't blow it. Be careful in using the hypey marketing techniques offered by some - they may have worked for them, but they may not work for you.
More information:
Email request examples
10 email request tips
The email request copy
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