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Aggressively Seeking Links: How Much Is Too Much?

By Eric Ward
August 27, 2007

When it comes to link building, how much is too much? How fast is too fast? Neither of these questions would have been asked in 1997, because their was no such thing as too fast or too much. But it isn't 1997 anymore is it? And since link development now plays a prominent role in web success and failure, these questions deserve answers.

Question:How much linking is too much linking?

Answer: I could take the easy way out and say "it depends," and I have done that for years, because it's true. But, let's dig a little deeper.

First, the site is so useful to so many people that everyone naturally links to it. See this obvious example.

Second, a site is dedicated to a topic that suddenly and without expectation generates massive amounts of natural news coverage, like Hurricane Katrina did.

Third, someone is actively seeking links for a site far beyond what it would naturally be able to obtain

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