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Understanding The PageRank Numbers Game

By: Jeff Alderson A lot of web publishers think the fastest way for them to obtain a good PageRank or PR ranking is to entice websites with higher PageRank to link to them. The notion is that if a page with a higher PageRank gives a link, its PR will be passed on. Although this is true in theory, the actual process is much more involved.

The fact of the matter is that Goolge's algorithm that determines PageRank sets a different formula for how much PR can be passed on. It states that a page can only pass on its PageRank divided by the number of outbound links it has. This basically translates into the results expected from gaining links not quite being as beneficial as a lot of publishers might think.

This, in a nutshell, means that if you managed to get a site with a PR of 8 to link to you, you won't get a ranking of 8 or even close to it. For example, if this site already has 3 outgoing links and you make 4, the PR passed to each site would be 2 units, rather than 8. On top of this, the high PageRank is very likely on the site's home page, not its internal links page, where your link would appear. The PR that's passed on depends only on the PR of the page where the link appears.

Since a lot of higher PageRank sites also happen to have a lot of outbound links, the truth of the matter is these are not always the best places to turn for reciprocation.

There is a better path to take. The strategy here involves going for sites that have more modest PageRank numbers. Look for those that are relatively new, but show signs of getting better over time. If these sites have good content and seem to be reputable, they can be very good PR generators. Going after lower PageRank sites might not seem wise, but it really can be a good long term strategy.

The reasons these sites pay off better for long term strategy are many. One of the top is the fact it is generally much easier to get a newly ranked site to place outbound links. Plus, they are also more likely to put links on their front page. In addition, these sites don't tend to have a lot of links in place and good ones will have topic-related keywords that can help with Google. Also, it is much more likely to get these folks to use a keyword phrase in the link. All of these reasons are good, but the best for targeting these sites is that they tend to grow in PR over time. As they do, so will you.

When selecting sites to target, avoid those that have a PageRank bar that's white or gray. This is an indication that the site has no ranking whatsoever or that is has been banned. Gray sites can actually have a negative impact.

Should you still be on the fence about this strategy, look at the numbers. If an incoming link comes from a page with a ranking of 8 and only has one other link, you'll get a PR boost of 4. A page with a ranking of 6 with a total of 30 links, yours included, will give you .2. The math clearly indicates that the lower PageRank strategy is best.

Article Source: http://www.lifeweightloss.com

Author Jeff Alderson develops pay-per-click and search engine program. He is an expert on boosting traffic and sales. Jeff suggests building a profitable keyword list using his Ad Word Analyzer program to increase website revenue.
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