Anchor text strategy

Hello experts!

When submitting to web directories, keywords in the anchor usually
help to improve ranking for these keywords. But being linked
*exclusively* with keywords might be considered unnatural by google
and thus have the opposite effect.

I'd like to know about your experiences as to 'natural anchor text'.

Let's suppose, you'd want to submit your site to 100 web directories.
Which ratio of the following possibilities would you favour?

- main keyword / keyphrase only
- company name / official website title only
- domain name only
- domain name + main keyword/keyphrase
- company name + main keyword/keyphrase


Thanks,
Michael

__/ [Michael Sattler] on Monday 28 November 2005 08:33 \__

Hello experts!

When submitting to web directories, keywords in the anchor usually
help to improve ranking for these keywords. But being linked
*exclusively* with keywords might be considered unnatural by google
and thus have the opposite effect.

I'd like to know about your experiences as to 'natural anchor text'.

Let's suppose, you'd want to submit your site to 100 web directories.
Which ratio of the following possibilities would you favour?

- main keyword / keyphrase only
- company name / official website title only
- domain name only
- domain name + main keyword/keyphrase
- company name + main keyword/keyphrase

It depends. What you probably want in the anchor text are keywords that
correspond to SEPR's you aim for. If you sell blue widgets, you probably
want "blue widget(s)" in the anchor. If very few people ever look for
/blue/ widgets, aim for just "widget" and see if you can fit in page 1 of
the results pages. Domain names are probably unimportant. Very few people
will search for domain names. Search is in fact a simplification which
rids the user from the need to memorise or guess Web addresses.

Don't forget to diversity the anchor texts, making slight variations that
make it all appear less automated.

Roy

--
Roy S. Schestowitz | Y |-(1^2)|^(1/2)+1 K
http://Schestowitz.com | SuSE Linux | PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
8:40am up 8:24, 3 users, load average: 0.19, 0.15, 0.05
http://iuron.com - next generation of search paradigms

"Roy Schestowitz" <newsgroups (AT) schestowitz (DOT) com> wrote

__/ [Michael Sattler] on Monday 28 November 2005 08:33 \__

Hello experts!

When submitting to web directories, keywords in the anchor usually
help to improve ranking for these keywords. But being linked
*exclusively* with keywords might be considered unnatural by google
and thus have the opposite effect.

I'd like to know about your experiences as to 'natural anchor text'.

Let's suppose, you'd want to submit your site to 100 web directories.
Which ratio of the following possibilities would you favour?

- main keyword / keyphrase only
- company name / official website title only
- domain name only
- domain name + main keyword/keyphrase
- company name + main keyword/keyphrase

It depends. What you probably want in the anchor text are keywords that
correspond to SEPR's you aim for. If you sell blue widgets, you probably
want "blue widget(s)" in the anchor. If very few people ever look for
/blue/ widgets, aim for just "widget" and see if you can fit in page 1 of
the results pages. Domain names are probably unimportant. Very few people
will search for domain names. Search is in fact a simplification which
rids the user from the need to memorise or guess Web addresses.

Don't forget to diversity the anchor texts, making slight variations that
make it all appear less automated.

Roy

--
Roy S. Schestowitz | Y |-(1^2)|^(1/2)+1 K
http://Schestowitz.com | SuSE Linux | PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
8:40am up 8:24, 3 users, load average: 0.19, 0.15, 0.05
http://iuron.com - next generation of search paradigms

what a load of pish, if my companies called xyz and all anchor links link to
xyz then is this unnatural - i dont think so

same applies for keywords, in fact i propose that if all anchor links are
identical it should increase your relevancy

mark

__/ [mark | r] on Monday 28 November 2005 09:15 \__

"Roy Schestowitz" <newsgroups (AT) schestowitz (DOT) com> wrote in message
news:dmefvk$2l8c$1 (AT) godfrey (DOT) mcc.ac.uk...
__/ [Michael Sattler] on Monday 28 November 2005 08:33 \__

SNIP
Let's suppose, you'd want to submit your site to 100 web directories.
Which ratio of the following possibilities would you favour?

- main keyword / keyphrase only
- company name / official website title only
- domain name only
- domain name + main keyword/keyphrase
- company name + main keyword/keyphrase

SNIP

Don't forget to diversity the anchor texts, making slight variations that
make it all appear less automated.

what a load of pish, if my companies called xyz and all anchor links link
to xyz then is this unnatural - i dont think so

same applies for keywords, in fact i propose that if all anchor links are
identical it should increase your relevancy

Assuming that anchor text is very unifromal, this will strengthen SERP's
that are directly aimed for (maybe granting a #1 spot), but it may also
make the set of productive SERP's narrower. If your company is called 'x y
z', but you also have anchor texts 'x y w' and 'v y z', then you will be
perceived as relevant for SERP's that were otherwise uncalled for. It's a
strength/breadth ratio.

Roy

--
Roy S. Schestowitz
http://Schestowitz.com | SuSE Linux | PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
9:25am up 9:09, 4 users, load average: 1.46, 1.64, 1.35
http://iuron.com - next generation of search paradigms

On Mon, 28 Nov 2005 09:33:28 +0100, Michael Sattler
<misa4nospam (AT) gmx (DOT) de> wrote:

Hello experts!

When submitting to web directories, keywords in the anchor usually
help to improve ranking for these keywords. But being linked
*exclusively* with keywords might be considered unnatural by google
and thus have the opposite effect.

I'd like to know about your experiences as to 'natural anchor text'.

Let's suppose, you'd want to submit your site to 100 web directories.
Which ratio of the following possibilities would you favour?

- main keyword / keyphrase only
- company name / official website title only
- domain name only
- domain name + main keyword/keyphrase
- company name + main keyword/keyphrase


Thanks,
Michael

I'm curious; what makes you think the directories would give you this
choice? Normally you just get a choice of category and if they
disagree you won't get into that.
Main keyword phrase would be best, company name is what you'll
probably bet.

BB
--
www.kruse.co.uk/ seo (AT) kruse (DOT) demon.co.uk
The buffalo have gone

Big Bill <kruse (AT) cityscape (DOT) co.uk> schrieb:

what makes you think the directories would give you this
choice?

There are directories, that are tolerant as to keywords in the
title/link text.


Michael

Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups (AT) schestowitz (DOT) com> schrieb:

Domain names are probably unimportant.

For the search query, yes.

But linking to a website with the domain name is very common.
Thus, if a website is linked only with keywords and not at all with
the domain name, this could be easily detected by google and
considered unnatural.

Michael

On Mon, 28 Nov 2005 12:42:54 +0100, Michael Sattler
<misa4nospam (AT) gmx (DOT) de> wrote:

Big Bill <kruse (AT) cityscape (DOT) co.uk> schrieb:

what makes you think the directories would give you this
choice?

There are directories, that are tolerant as to keywords in the
title/link text.


Michael

Do you have examples please?

BB
--
www.kruse.co.uk/ seo (AT) kruse (DOT) demon.co.uk
The buffalo have gone

On Mon, 28 Nov 2005 12:18:42 GMT, Big Bill <kruse (AT) cityscape (DOT) co.uk>
wrote:

On Mon, 28 Nov 2005 12:42:54 +0100, Michael Sattler
misa4nospam (AT) gmx (DOT) de> wrote:

Big Bill <kruse (AT) cityscape (DOT) co.uk> schrieb:

what makes you think the directories would give you this
choice?

There are directories, that are tolerant as to keywords in the
title/link text.


Michael

Do you have examples please?

Bill,

Micheal is right, _some_ directories (niche or reciprocal link ones in
my observation) will allow a little elbow room for people to add a
couple of keywords in the anchor text. For example, a web design
directory may allow Example Graphic Design Firm - southern CA-Los
Angelos or some such wording as the anchor text. Of course, with
reciprocal link directories I've noticed some of the cut-n-paste
"code" containing a keyword or two beyond "name of site" thoughts in
the preferred anchor text.

To not have it appear spammish to people using those directories,
though, I would curb the enthusiasm and not see how many keywords I
could cram into that anchor text but be selective and pinpoint certain
keywords. Most, that allow this though, will have a cut off on how
many characters is allowed in that line.

I also noticed a directory this past week that allowed people to place
one page advertisements - around 250 words in length - if they
reciprocated by hosting a one page advertisement for the directory's
site (even specified file name people should use for that reciprocated
page). You remove thier page from your site - they will remove your
page from thier's (the file name specified helps them to keep tabs on
that, I suppose). I wish I had kept the URL of that one to show you as
an example - it was a small business/work from home type site.

Carol

There are directories, that are tolerant as to keywords in the
title/link text.


Michael

Do you have examples please?

BB
--

yep, http://www.friendly-directory.co.uk/ is an example

Just search for "SEO friendly directory"