Link bait is a term that gets used a lot around the internet, but to many people it is a term that sounds a little black hat when it comes to SEO. It is certainly not black hat, not even grey. It is a strategy that many website owners, particularly bloggers, use as part of their link building campaigns.

What is link bait? There is nothing special about link bait. It is simply content that is designed to attract readers, gain comments, and receive a lot of discussion on other sites with links to the original content.

Creating content that could be considered link bait can happen totally unintentionally. Content that contains links can often attract a lot of attention. If you want to create content that attracts a lot of attention then there are a number of strategies that can work.

Humour is one strategy that has often worked, as has controversy. If you can stir up people’s emotions, which comedy and controversy does, then you may create a ripple in what is currently being discussed.

Currency is another angle that can be used to create link bait. By currency I mean something that is topical, in the news, or being talked about already. However, you do need a special take on the subject, for example, and interview, photos or a personal involvement that you can discuss.

Should you use link bait strategies? If you have material that you can publish that could be classified as link bait, use it but use it judiciously. Link bait can run for hours, days or even weeks. Let one piece of content run its course before adding another – if you’re fortunate enough to be in that situation.

It is also important to have an aim when using link bait. Remember, you will not only receive links into your pages, you will also receive visitors. Use that increase in visitor numbers by ensuring your link bait article offers more – newsletter signup; links to similar content; a sales pitch; and a call to action.

Link bait – should you use it? Most definitely!

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This entry was posted on Sunday, November 15th, 2009 at 1:22 pm and is filed under Link Building. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.