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Everyone is concerned with Google rankings. In a world where there is so much competition and there is a wide variety of companies vying for the attention of customers, ranking high in Google search is very important. There are many factors which determine the rankings of a site in Google and one of them is the domain name.

Some time ago there were concerns and there was a public outcry regarding Google’s statement that those who buy established domain names will be losing all the links to the domain. It is like purchasing a domain in 2013 only to find out that all links to the domain prior to the date it was bought will be effectively lost.  Only the links made after the purchase will have merit or credit.

What is the reason for this? A lot of companies and entities were purchasing old domains simply because of the fact that they had several links and they could use these links to boost their site’s rankings on Google.  The main reason for the rollout was because Google wanted to level the playing field. It would be quite unfair for a lot of other companies which are not buying old domain names.

No Credit for Those Who Buy Expired Domains

If you have plans of purchasing an old domain name simply for the reason of getting credit, you can say goodbye to your plans now. I do not mean to dash your hopes and dreams but doing so will not get you anywhere.

No Credit for Domains & Redirecting Links

Have you seen a nice domain with some links? Are you thinking of purchasing that domain to get the credits? This tactic is also not going to work.  Google will also look at the date when the domain was purchased and take note of the redirection. Google, I am sorry to say, are quote watchful when domains change names. Historic links made before the domain change names will not be counted when the domain change names. If you think you are clever, think again because Google is definitely cleverer.

Likely Credit for Buying Domains & Not Disrupting the Site

If you are thinking of buying an active site and then continuing the site’s business as usual, you will be very happy to know that you are likely to get credit.  Although the domain registration might have changed, there is a very good chance that credit will also continue.

Likely Credit for Acquisition

If one company is purchased by another there should be no problem at all. There is no clear cut explanation for this and how Google differentiates a transfer from an acquisition but one thing is for sure, credits will continue.

Lastly, there are some people who are asking if the length of the domain registration matters. There are rumors going around that Google tends to trust registered domain names which are longer. As a matter of fact, some companies have even claimed this. Although Google did not release any official statement about this, it seems to be true.

Linking is one of the things which you must do if you want to get more traffic to your site because the more sites you have pointing back to yours, the more credible you will be and the higher rankings you will get. So, if you want to be highly visible on search engines, you must study link building and do it right. In an effort to get companies started on the right foot, we have here a link building blueprint which you can follow.

Success in link building cannot be achieved overnight. You have to put in a lot of time and effort to get things done and get them done correctly.

Google and Link Building

As you might already have noticed by now, Google releases updates every now and then to ensure that searchers get nothing but the best possible search results.  Recently there has been a lot of talk regarding the search quality on Google. It seems that people are not very pleased with what is happening lately and they are voicing out their concerns to Google.

There have been complaints and people are letting it be known that they want a change for the better. Now Google is not the only search engine today. There also other search engines such as Yahoo and Bing which are competing for the top spot. If Google wants to remain on top, it as to listen to its users and make changes where they see fit because it will definitely not remain on top if it chooses to ignore its users.

These are just some of the reasons why Google has recently launched an algorithm change that will rank scraper sites lower because naturally no one wants them and no one will benefit from their content. Google, as well as the users, do not want sites with low quality or unoriginal content.

If your site is built upon duplicate or respun content, you had better think again. This will no longer fare well with the new algorithm.

What You Should Do

Associations

it is true that most scraper sites or sites with low quality content have a low number of links behind them. Although they can get links, these links are not from credible or trusted sources. What you can do to build your business is to always make sure that you link to credible sources such as the following:

• Better Business Bureau
• Professional associations
• Advocacy groups
• Support groups
• Trade associations
• Civic associations

Directories

People often get the misconception that when we say submission to directories we mean submission to a long list of directories. There are only few which really matter. What you can do to make things easier is to take a look at Yahoo and DMOZ. They have categories under most of their major topics. Both are also excellent resources of associations which you can link to when building your business. You also have the opportunity to join clubs which are related to your business and link up to them.

Links pointing to your website will help you earn higher rankings on search engines. Link building is important in SEO and it is always interesting to read what people think and talk about link building.  There are various link building techniques which are practiced until today and experts have said a thing or two about these link building practices.

If you are thinking of finding a good amount of link targets which you can pursue, there are some commands which will work on search engines such as Yahoo and Bing. However, this will not work on Google.

When you use the commands, you will be able to find links which are all from known quality linkers.  It is also possible to expand the list as you see fit. The commands will also work on .org sites.

After completing your list of sites, the next thing you should do is figure out which links are the most important. Check the list of pages and establish the PR of each of the target domains, as well as the linking page.

Sort out the list based on the PR of the domains. Any item which is PR 7 or higher should be on your list of high value targets. You should spend more time on your high value target list. It is essential that campaigns to these sites are hand crafted to get the best results possible.

Communication

It is a must to ensure that all communications you send out come from a real person with an email address from your domain.  Always follow guidelines of the CAN SPAM act regarding spam emails so that you do not end up wasting your efforts.

Crafting the email

You must put time and effort in crafting an effective email.  Remember that unsolicited emails are considered intrusions by recipients. They did not ask for it and it will take a good amount of their time. Have some respect for the time of the recipient and you can do this by being concise with your communication. Make your email as short as possible but ensure that you cover all grounds with your email. You should be able to convey your message in 16 sentences or less.

You want to let them know that you have been to their site but you do not want to pander on their ego. Whenever possible, cite some quality references to your site and build credibility. This will help them understand and trust you.

Give them the location of your site and the most relevant page for them to link to. You can also suggest some anchor links through links. Never ever include anything that says “This is not spam…”. This is not only distasteful, it is also very offensive.

Lastly, as much as possible, never ever outsource your emails. Although there might be great resources outside the United States, they may not know exactly what you want to do or what you want to achieve with your email. It is best that you do the emails yourself.