Don't Be a Backlink Leech!!

Believe me, I love the effect of adding backlinks as much as the next Warrior, and I realize that it's tempting to create that userid, go to the section you can put a backlink in, slam it in, close the window and off you go.

But here is the problem.... the dramatic rise in popularity of backlinks has not gone unnoticed by Forum Admins and website owners. Here is what the admins are seeing: user profiles where the bio is not even a complete sentence... I mean really, do you want Wholesale Plumbing Supplies to be your complete bio? or Vacation Rentals in Florida or worse yet, links to sites that readers may find offensive or objectionable.

How do I know this trend is getting noticed? Because I'm a little slower in getting around to putting my backlinks on these websites and I've seen the following evidence

- a website whose Registration page said it was temporarily closed due to a dramatic rise in SPAM and whose owners were evaluating how to control it

- a forum where last night there was a discussion in their main "lounge" section about the increase in SPAM, particularly in User Profiles. One of the suggestions was that senior members be given the option of deleting profiles they considered SPAM.

So here are some possible outcomes if you and others are backlink leeches

-- Your profile could be deleted
-- The website where you added your backlink will be converted use nofollow links throughout the entire site
-- Perhaps many forums and member sites would convert to nofollow to control SPAM
-- Admins will run a tool like akismet that will separate out profiles or posts that look like SPAM from ones that appear to have some redeeming value

So how to avoid being a leech? Let's look again at the definition of a leech, a leech takes "without giving anything in return." If you actually LOOK at these websites that you are posting to, you often will see something that you can give. Some of these websites have a question section, go and answer one with a helpful answer. At least make a bio that is coherent and MIGHT interest a long-term member of the website.

In addition to making it more likely that your backlink continues to exist, you could reap other benefits. A helpful answer followed by a link to your related website, might make a real person go to your website, just the way a resource box at the bottom of Ezinearticles does. I actually got a gig based on posting a full profile on one of these backlink websites.

Just as it is not cool to post on WarriorForum simply to boost your post count. It is not cool to pollute the backlink waters by being a backlink leech and posting spammy links with no content value.