Forums are the best link builders.

[jpvonline]

A lot of people use blogs for link building. I, on the other hand, use forums.
Forums are THE BEST way to link build and to get your site ranked. Why?
Most forums have a HIGH PR purely because of the content that is produced everyday. If your site is focused on cars, a high PR car forum will get you a super high backlink. Promoting your website in your signature, and making your own threads about your site will rank your site much easier than a blog post.

In 1 month, I posted on 100 high PR forums and ranked no. 1 on google for 3 different keywords, and within the first page for another 5 keywords.

I used the same 2 articles when posting threads, and found forums that best matched my sites content.
It only took me a good 6-8 hours in total to write the articles and to post the threads, but in the end it really paid out!

I did not post on one blog, and focused on only forums. I suggest you try the same and see how your results pan out!

Try researching on google for forums that best match your sites niche/content and then compile a list of 50+ forums. Post on them all and gain high PR backlinks for every thread. Once google picks the articles up you'll rank in the first 10 if you posted a good article.

Good Luck!

 

[BigBigFan]

But how are you doing it?

Are you including links in the post? These seem to be nofollow mostly.

Are you referring to profile links? Signature links? Also mostly nofollow.

Where exactly are you getting the links from on forums?

 

[jpvonline]

But how are you doing it?

Are you including links in the post? These seem to be nofollow mostly.

Are you referring to profile links? Signature links? Also mostly nofollow.

Where exactly are you getting the links from on forums?

I do a link Like This
Though not just the link, I do a 200-700 word article with it to add more keywords based on text.

Posts, not sig links. Of course they are non-follow. Have been for years!

 

[BigBigFan]

Cool. Some forum owners are so paranoid of links in threads that they forbid them. Google on the other hand wants to see them in the course of natural discussion.

Matt Cutts explained why Google no longer actively visits webmasterworld.com for example, he believes that the rule prohibiting backlinks in posts is not in the best interest of the web, or the people wanting specific examples.

 

[trentz]

There are still lots of forums that are dofollow and I also believe forusm are the best backlink source. I don't usually do blog commenting not create profiles and blogs in some web2.0 sites just to get backlinks, all I do is participate in forums and somehow get my signatures up.

 

[bauss]

Some forums have lot's of link power, but in general I wouldn't say it's the best way to get "quality links", because forum links are usually considered low quality links, because forums that have signatures have a lot of outgoing links on them, and that gives them less value.

 

[jpvonline]

Some forums have lot's of link power, but in general I wouldn't say it's the best way to get "quality links", because forum links are usually considered low quality links, because forums that have signatures have a lot of outgoing links on them, and that gives them less value.

I've ranked 3 sites in 1 month number one for 3 different keywords which were 70k per month US search results. High comp.
I would say they are pretty powerful if they ranked that fast and got to number 1!

 

[bauss]

I've ranked 3 sites in 1 month number one for 3 different keywords which were 70k per month US search results. High comp.
I would say they are pretty powerful if they ranked that fast and got to number 1!

How much forum posting did you need to do for that? I doubt you did that from only forum posting, but if you did then that's great. I've been trying to rank #1 for "poker forum" for a few months now from forum posting, and we're inching closer every month. But I also post on a lot of new forums like this one.

 

[neodoxa]

I've ranked 3 sites in 1 month number one for 3 different keywords which were 70k per month US search results. High comp.
I would say they are pretty powerful if they ranked that fast and got to number 1!

Could you please elaborate a bit more on this? I have gotten ranked #1 for a couple of my low competition keywords through forum links, but nothing of that caliber! I think the best keyword I have at #1 right now due to forums only has a monthly search volume of about 1000.

 

[moneyman]

I agree with the original poster. Forums are not only a good source of quality traffic but an excellent source to get quality backlinks. However, most of the online discussion boards prohibit posting links but I mostly put them in my signature to prevent my account getting banned.

 

[vash]

All the popular forums in my niche have nofollow for outbound links. They provide little to no juice for SEO.

The moderators there also do not like outbound links unless it is absolutely necessary and closely related to each post. Sometimes my link still got removed even when it is to an article which can contribute a lot more information to the thread... I don't spam, but many forum owners and moderators see external links to similar niche sites as competitors and they just remove it.

 

[Nymph]

I agree with the OP in regards to the claim that forums are excellent backlinking tools. However, I wouldn't consider them -the best- and the single exclusive tool to be used for this purpose. Results will vary like wildfire. A combination of article writing, directory submissions, social networking links, and other backlinks will have your site see serious gains in a short period of time. But, again, it's all in the technique. You can't just slap on a signature for a forum and expect it to raise your PR. You may need to post hundreds of times for it to be effective for your site on high PR forums. This in itself is time consuming and energy-draining when you could be mixing up your efforts for better results.

 

[BruceBanner]

I don't think that there is a "best" type of backlink, but I will certainly say that forum backlinks are the easiest to get. I mean, you can stick them in your profile, your posts and in your signature without appearing spammy. Multiply that by thousands, and you'll be sitting pretty, however you use them.

 

[deansaliba]

I currently use both and I have found blogs to be better, the reason is that quite a few forum admins don't like me linking to sites in my sig, even when the links are to niches relating to the forum.

 

[fltdude]

I'm active in many forums and I get quite positive results, but nothing spectacular either. I don't know, I'm obviously doing something wrong since I don't remember ever being in Google's first 10.

 

[Jellyfish]

Some nice information there.

It is always important to hear stories of people who have some experiences. That gives everyone the opportunity to learn something.

 

[ShadowPen]

I completely agree that forums are the best way to build some solid link backs. First, you have tons of original and topical content being generated. Second, bounces are low since many will get involved in the discussion, even if just reading. Third, many forums are on current topics that address problems people are searching for while also providing back links to authoritative sites.

With so many good reasons to do so, all that is left is to get out there and make quality contributions so you can provide links back for your site in a reasonable non-spam manner.

 

[ozadin]

I'm using forum posting as a technique as well, and it is in fact, very effective. So far, it has generated me daily visitors, and a good reputation on some forums. I highly recommend anyone who is thinking about using forum posting, do it now! It's a great source of traffic, and sure beats writing articles for article submission sites.

 

[bryce12]

Some great information in this thread! People often use shortcut methods like building profile backlinks and including links in signatures. However, it makes sense to invest more time and include links in the posts along with meaningful content so as to reap the SEO and traffic benefits for years.

 

[Murray]

See, I was wondering about this as I was looking into Link Building. If you have a blog site where your stuff is at then you could sit here and link yourself. Falling into a niche is the important part. If you're all about boat anchors finding a forum all about boat anchors might be hard. If you're all about red balloons, then I think that your target is much greater and your chance at success is greater.

This was enlightening, thanks!