Comments on: Are You A Link Whore?

By: Rondell Jenkins

Rondell Jenkins — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 21:33:08 +0000

Yeah, this article pose some real interesting questions for sure. Speaking of question, anybody know how to fry up a big old catfish?

By: Marketing Profs Daily Fix

Marketing Profs Daily Fix — Thu, 24 Aug 2006 12:04:20 +0000

Link Penalty Anxiety?

“Help, our site was penalized by Google. We used to be ranked on page one but now we are on page 10 and it’s killing us”…….

By: Lee Odden

Lee Odden — Fri, 19 May 2006 17:37:59 +0000

Um, Eric I think it’s pretty clear you invited the comparison. If you’re going to write something like this:
“If you are going to plug your own company by comparing links to me, do it honestly, you slut.”
That warrants a reply.
It goes without saying that your skills and reputation as a site promoter are undisputed.
If you’ll excuse me, I have my own clients to attend to.

By: Tom Hespos

Tom Hespos — Fri, 19 May 2006 16:10:03 +0000

So, am I a whore for referring to Eric’s original post as “ballsy” in my own blog?
Because, you know, using controversial language like that is just a trick to get people to read it. ::rolls eyes::

By: Mack Collier

Mack Collier — Fri, 19 May 2006 15:57:50 +0000

The term ‘link whore’ is pretty common in the blogosphere. It might be offensive to someone that hasn’t encountered it yet, but since this is a blog, we have to assume bloggers are going to read it, and I think most of them have heard and possibly even USED the term ‘link whore’.

By: Eric Ward

Eric Ward — Fri, 19 May 2006 15:20:07 +0000

Um, Lee, I’m a one person business working from my house, always have been. I never ask for links for my own sites. Just my clients. Never submit my own site. My site costs me 12 bucks a month. If Google dies tomorrow I’m fine.
So please stop trying to make it look like my site is somehow “underlinked” by comparing your site to mine. The sites are not even in any way designed to compete. Your site rocks. It’s CNN and mine is a shack in the hills of Tennessee. If I had decided, back in 1993, to create a company with employees and a web site to match, my conservative hunch is I would have a 4.21 gazillion links. That anyone links to my site at all is a bonus and a miracle.
On the other hand, I have helped build over 25,000,000 links to PBS.org.
That wasn’t a typo.
See, I’d rather build links to my client’s sites than my own.
But that’s just me…
Eric

By: link_monkey

link_monkey — Fri, 19 May 2006 14:57:05 +0000

Eh, you got my URL wrong, Mark

By: Lee Odden

Lee Odden — Fri, 19 May 2006 14:23:38 +0000

Let’s not kid ourselves, “…it wasn’t just about getting attention.”.
Using a word like “Whore” is ALL about getting attention.
Did the post contain good info? Sure it did.
Could the post have been presented less offensively and still provide good information? Yes.
A post title such as “Seven Linking Tactics to Avoid” would have been just as useful to readers AND accurate.
But then it would not have received as much attention.

By: Lee Odden

Lee Odden — Fri, 19 May 2006 14:15:52 +0000

Readers of this post should know some context. I know Eric a little offline, so that makes him available for some sarcasm (from me).
Congrats on getting this blog gig Eric, I didn’t realize it was new. Now on to the fun stuff.
“That’s why I purposely did not link to my own site anywhere in the post. THAT would have made me a link whore.”
This statement makes it seem like linking to your own site within a blog post is bad, and that’s just silly. If your own site contains a resource or additional information relevant to the post, link away I say!
As far as link counts and measuring things, revenue is what it’s all about baby and from where I’m sitting things are looking very nice.
I’m glad to hear you don’t use Google numbers, neither do I. Where did you get that from?
“If you are going to plug your own company by comparing links to me, do it honestly, you slut.”
Ooh, that’s some language there. For kicks, here are the numbers from Yahoo Site Explorer.
ericward.com – 4,087
http://siteexplorer.search.yahoo.com/search?ei=UTF-8&p=www.ericward.com&bwm=i&bwmf=s&searchbwm=Explore+URL
my site – 141,746
http://siteexplorer.search.yahoo.com/search?ei=UTF-8&p=www.toprankresults.com&bwm=i&bwmf=s&searchbwm=Explore+URL
See, I didn’t even mention my site url, I’ll let Yahoo do that.
Happy Blogging!

By: Ann Handley

Ann Handley — Thu, 18 May 2006 20:25:20 +0000

“See, using controversial or strong language in a blog post is a trick to get people to read it. Isn’t that as ’sleazy’ as digging your own articles or commenting on a blog post with a link?”
I don’t think that’s the same thing at all, Lee. Eric’s post headline related to its content, and the content was on-target; it delivered as promised, in my view.
Is it strongly worded? Sure…but Eric backed up what he said. His post shed some light; it wasn’t just about getting attention.