PureBlogging

It is a continuing struggle to not only get your blog noticed by Google, but to stay in the rankings once you’ve made it there. I wrote last week about what Google likes, so now it’s time to talk a little about how to take advantage of that knowledge.

We know that Google likes quality links going back to your site. The challenge is to get enough of those links to make a difference without it costing you a fortune, or costing you every waking moment trying to build links. There are two areas you can concentrate on that have the potential to pay nice dividends without a major investment in time. Best of all, it is free.

Directories

First, it you haven’t submitted your blog to all of the directories, schedule some time to do that. In theory, the directories will find your site eventually, but you can speed that process along if you let them know that you exist, and where they can find you. There is a nice tool called Directory Submitter that really automates the process.

Sidenote: Take advantage of tools that will automate the task of submitting your site to search engines, directories, bookmarking sites, etc. Not only will it save you hours of your time, but it greatly reduces the number of mistakes you can make along the way. After 25 or so submissions you can begin to get sloppy. Gmail and easily becomegamil , and all of your work on that submission will be wasted. When you automate you need to take the time to get it correct the first time, and it will be correct every other time.

Directory Submitter is not a bulk submission tool. You will still go to each directory and individually submit your site. Some sites require different information that you will be able to enter, usually by cutting and pasting from a side bar that contains your information. The directories tend to like individual submissions much more than automatic submissions. The more they like you, the faster you will be listed.

The free version comes with about hundreds of directories that you can submit to. You just double-click any directories you want to submit to, and the software directs you to the submission page, and fills in your information. You select the appropriate category and click the submit button. Directory Submitter keeps track of when you last submitted to each directory. That makes it very easy to submit your site when you have the time to do it, and you don’t feel like you have to do it all at once.

The down side of this strategy is that it takes a while before you see results. While most directories offer to list your site for free, it can take up to 4 months before they get around to reviewing you site for inclusion. Most will do it faster than that, but don’t expect instant results. Remember though, the longer you wait to get started, the longer it will take for your links to appear.

Social Bookmarking

For faster results you should seriously consider posting your content to the social bookmarking sites. Sites like Digg, Twitter, and Technorati are easy to use, and best of all, Google likes them. There are a ton of these sites out there, so this is a good way to build a lot of links back to your blog.

There are a couple of site that help automate this process for you. Sites like SocialPoster and SocialMarker do a good job of auto-filling information into the submit pages of the sites in their databases, so all you have to do is select the category you want to be listed under, paste your keywords, and submit. I have been using SocialPoster, and I have been seeing very quick results. I submitted a blog post in the afternoon and by that evening I had 2 listings in the top 10 for my chosen keyword phrase.

I know there has been a lot of questions about posting your own material to these sites, but if you don’t do it, who will? The thing is, these sites want to be relevant, and that won’t happen if it becomes a place for bloggers to spam their own content. The trick is to share the love. A general rule of thumb is to submit 3 other pieces for every one of your own. Some of that could be form another one of your blogs, but all of your submissions should not come from the same domain.

Make it a habit to submit your favorite sites. When you are at the social bookmark sites, vote for a few articles that you see. Take part in the community. The more you are involved, the more the sites will like you and pay attention to what you submit. Take advantage of the Love Karma – the more you give, the more you get.

The key is to get as many quality links a you can, especially from sites that Google has ranked higher than yours. The more links you build, the more relevant Google thinks you are. It’s another step in the process of climbing the Google ladder one rung at a time.

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