As a personal blogger, I’ve found myself the target of many link building strategies. Random companies or marketers will email me and ask if I’d like to place a text ad in my sidebar with a link to their web site, in the hopes that inbound links from my blog will help boost their own search engine ranking.

It’s a smart strategy if they can get me to agree to link to them. Unfortunately (for them), more often than not I decline their offer. Why? Because they’ve made one (or all) of the following mistakes.

4 Ways Not To Purchase A Link On A Personal Blog

1. Address me as “blogger”.

I have a name. It’s Britt. If you spend 2 seconds reading my blog, you’ll know that. Sending me an email addressed “Dear Blogger” or “Hello Webmaster” is a sure fire way to get your email kicked to the trash. If you want something from me, take the time to figure out my name.

2. Offer me products instead of cash for inbound links.

The space on my site is valuable – to both of us. Offering me a free product sample that I could pick up at Wal-Mart for $20 in exchange for a year of inbound links on my site is ridiculous. Bloggers, even personal bloggers, are much more business savvy than a lot of marketers give them credit for, and you’ll get much farther along in your negotiations if you treat them like potential business partners.

3. Pretend like you’re doing me a favor if you purchase links on my site.

The worst emails I get are the ones trying to convince me that allowing someone to purchase links on my blog (for little or no money) is a great service to my readers. Show me your link is relevant to my content, sure. But please don’t insult me by suggesting that a text ad for your website will enhance my blog.

4. Contact me without specifics.

When you purchase links, even on a personal blog, it’s a business transaction. You should be prepared to discuss pricing, visitor numbers, and how long you hope to have the text ad displayed. Don’t expect to get a permanent link in a sidebar without ongoing payment plans. Do be prepared to tell me how you plan to pay for the advertising and what kind of system you’ll be using for renewal.

Remember that the most beneficial inbound links will come from sites that are aware of their own market value. Expect to pay what the link is worth and to treat the blogger with professional courtesy at all times.  And above all, keep in mind that bloggers talk to other bloggers.  Treat one poorly and news will spread before you get to Step 2 of your link building strategy.

Britt Reints is a freelance writer available on WriterAccess, a marketplace where clients and expert writers connect for assignments. WriterAccess is powered by ideaLaunch, a full service content marketing agency serving hundreds of clients and thousands of writers since 2000.

Image courtesy of http://gfhoesch.wordpress.com

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 15th, 2009 at 4:45 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.