Here is an Email Template That is Helping Bloggers Get Links

You spent a couple hours crafting a quality blog post. It's not your normal blog post. It's three times as long and it has pictures and even videos. You even wrote multiple drafts to make sure the grammar and phrasing is just right.

You're pretty excited for this blog post. You envision the comments, links, and traffic you will get. You publish it and wait for your blog post to build a buzz in your niche.

After a day, you get one comment from loyal reader. That's good, you think, but you were expecting more. It's just takes some time, you think. A few more days pass and you check your stats. Less than a hundred visitors to the post. Bummer.

Hm, maybe you need to wait a couple more days. Two weeks pass and the post has not received any links and only a trickle of traffic. You're ready to quit this blogging thing. You think, I thought blogging was about quality content. Oh well, maybe the big bloggers just got lucky. You've been trying to produce quality content but your blog goes nowhere.

The above situation has played itself out many times in the blogosphere. What did the blogger do wrong?

He didn't realize that blogging for bucks is a three part process. There's content, marketing, and monetization. He only did the content part.

He thought, "If I build it, they will come." However, in today's overcrowded blogosphere, you have to do a lot of marketing to get your content noticed. One of the best ways I know of to market your content is to ask other webmasters to link to it. This strategy kills three birds with one stone.

First, the links will send traffic to your site. Second, the links will increase your search rankings, which will lead to higher search traffic. Third, you'll be networking with other webmasters. Networking is crucial on the internet just like it is in offline business.

So, what do you write? Many bloggers get stuck with how to word their email messages. Here's what not to write:

Hi,

My name is Dee. I just wrote something awesome. Here is the URL:

http://mysite.com/awesome-post/

Can you link to it? I don't have much traffic and your link would really help.

Dee

No, email messages should not look like that. Let's build a email template step by step. This template will make you look less desperate while still getting across your desire for a link.

Step 0: Find the contact information

I bring this up because you'll come across some sites where the contact information is hard to find.

Usually the contact link is on an easy-to-find place like the header or sidebar, but some sites put their contact link on the footer. If you still can't find the contact, check the about page. Oftentimes webmasters include their contact info there.

For blogspot.com blogs, click on the link with the anchor text "VIEW MY COMPLETE PROFILE". It's usually on the top right or left sidebar. Sometimes the profile page will have their email address.

Occasionally you'll have to do some extra work for some sites. One blog I visited didn't have their contact information posted. However, I noticed that the site also had a forum. The blogger was registered on the forum. I registered on the forum and sent the blogger a private message through the forum. She liked my content and gave me a link.

Another time I came upon a blog that didn't have a contact page. However, he had a link to his myspace page. I opened up my myspace account and sent him a myspace message. He too linked to my content and even added me as a friend :)

Step 1: Subject Title

Interesting article: Top 10 Mistakes New Homebuyers Make

I like to use this format "Interesting article: [title of your blog post]". I add the phrase "Interesting article" so the title doesn't look like a spam title.

If they have an email link with the subject filled in like this link, use that subject title to get your message read.

Step 2: The Greeting

Hi [blogger's name],

The main thing about the greeting is to find the name of the blogger. Blog posts usually have the author's name. For example, if you sent me a message, you could greet me as "pholpher".

However, I like to try find the author's real name. Oftentimes, you can find this on the about page or profile page. If you read my profile, you'll know that my name is Dee Barizo.

Many bloggers don't go by their real name. Sometimes they'll go with a nickname like DogLuvr or GamingFreak.

Finding and using their real name is a small thing, but I think it makes a difference. In real life, we're impressed when someone remembers our name. Do the extra work to find out someone's name.

Step 3: Introduction

My name is Dee Barizo. I write at Real Estate Blog, found at http://www.mysite.com/.

Briefly introduce yourself and your site.

Step 4: Tell Them About Your Content

I recently published an article I thought you and your readers might be interested in. Based on my experience as a real estate agent, I covered the top 10 mistakes new homebuyers make. Here is the URL:

http://www.mysite.com/top-10-new-homebuyers-mistakes/

Again, keep this short.

I like to use term "article" instead of blog post because article has the connotation of a longer, more comprehensive piece of content than a blog post. Also, some non-blogger webmasters still think blog posts are journal entries by angst-ridden teenagers.

Give the blogger the benefit of reading your article. Tell them you think they and their readers would find the article interesting, entertaining, or useful.

Don't forget to leave the article URL.

Step 5: Ask For a Link

If you like the article, I'd absolutely love a mention on your site.

In my experience, many bloggers are hesitant to ask directly for a link. They think it makes them comes across as too forward or demanding. However, in my experience, webmasters don't mind if you ask for a link.

Here are a two things to consider so that you don't come across as desperate or demanding.

Ask them to link only if they like the article. This gives them a reasonable choice.

Don't use the word "link". Tell them it would be great if they could mention it on their site. I think the word "link" has a worse connotation because of online marketers that spammed the internet with their link requests. Also, there's the common SEO term "begging for links".

Step 6: Compliment Them

In any case, you've got a great site. Keep it up.

You're choosing quality sites to market to, right?

By complimenting them about their site, you further take the edge off of your request for a link. Plus, compliments are a great way to start off a business relationship.

The phrase "In any case" keeps you from looking desperate.

Thanks to Ryan for giving me this advice.

Putting It All Together

Here is a sample email template:

Subject Line

Interesting article: Top 10 Mistakes New Homebuyers Make

Message

Hi [blogger's name],

My name is Dee Barizo. I write at Real Estate Blog, found at http://www.mysite.com/.

I recently published an article I thought you and your readers might be interested in. Based on my experience as a real estate agent, I covered the top 10 mistakes new homebuyers make. Here is the URL:

http://www.mysite.com/top-10-new-homebuyers-mistakes/

If you like the article, I'd absolutely love a mention on your site.

In any case, you've got a great site. Keep it up.

Best,

Dee Barizo

I've sent hundreds of emails for an internet marketing firm that was creating linkworthy content for a couple of clients. This email template has helped me get links from high quality sites like:

• blogs on the about.com domain
• a local newspaper site of a big metropolitan city
• a blog on the time-blog.com domain
• numerous high traffic and high PageRank blogs

Feel free to modify the template to fit your personality and the site you're targeting. Sometimes I'll change the tone of my email message. Certain niches and sites require a more formal tone. Others are more informal so you can use a more conversational tone.

If you try the method, let me know how it goes.