The best way to ask for a link is in person or on the phone to someone you already have a relationship with. That is often not feasible however, it may feel awkward to call up someone you don't know to ask for a link or link exchange, so you should usually save this method for people you already know personally, or have met professionally.

Often you will find yourself sending an email to ask for a link, or link exchange. The easiest way to be ready do this when you identify a good candidate for a link swap is to write a template letter. This keeps you from re-inventing the wheel and gives you a jumping off point. However, you don't want to just send the template letter. You will have better results if you personalize it each time you use it. The more obvious it is that the letter is truly from a *live* person who visited the site in question, the more likely the site owner will be to respond. So only use it as a starting point. See an example at right.

Never, ever send out a mass email asking for links. This is spamming pure and simple.

Be aware that only a small percentage of people will actually respond unless you already know them. Consider asking for link exchanges when you network at trade shows, etc. so you already have credibility with the person you ask. Don’t be discouraged by people ignoring your requests. But don't ask a second time either, scratch them off your list and move on. Bothering people who do not want to be botered is also spaming.

Again, and I can't emphasize this enough, don't be a spammer! Contact people you find manually, never use a web-bot or other automated system to find people. Never use their email for anything but your personal request, and if they are not receptive, put their name on a list that says "contacted, not interested", and never contact them again.

People that already have a links or resources page are better bets for link exchanges than those who don't. However, if they have more than 50 links on their links page, then the value of your link will be pretty diluted and it's not worth your bother. You are looking for quality more than quantity.

When you get a favorable response for an exchange, add thier link immediately to your site, check back within a few days to make sure they kept their end of the bargain. Send a polite reminder if needed.

Before you contact a site owner, make sure your link on their site will be a good one. Check the page, and the source code of the page, your link will be on. If the page is not indexed in Google, or if your link is not in plain html, then it probably won’t do you any good. Look for code next to your links that says “rel=nofollow” If it does, the link will only be good for direct traffic, it will not help gain link popularity in Google.

Remember that Google likes to see natural looking link growth, so a few links appearing every month will do more for you than 100 links all at once.

A final word... this type of linking, though outdated, can still be one part of the strategy to help you build your link popularity. However, today, content driven sites that attract links are a far more effective tool than manually collecting links, and being an active and involved 'net citizen such as participating in social networking and community forums are more educational, and enjoyable, ways get your site exposure and links.

Good Luck.

Subject: From a fellow (your industry) pro, can we help each other?

Dear (name of site owner)

I own a business very much like yours in (your city), and am working to build a network of (your industry) professionals that link to each other’s sites. As you probably know, links coming into a site from another, similar site can help improve search engine rank. Your site attracted my attention because (some language that shows you actually visited their site.)

I’d like to add your site to my resources page as a professional to contact in your area, and wonder if you would be willing to do the same for me? If so, simply respond with a yes, and I will add you right away.

(You can then give them the pertinent info they will need to link to your site.)

Thank you for your time to consider my request.

Best Wishes,
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