Benefits of Links and Link Buildings

1. Links ARE Usability

Foremost, links provide simple navigation between documents on a website. But in addition to regular site navigation, links dramatically increase the usability of site information since words within an article can be linked - or extended out in a tree-like manner - to many other documents of importance, like definitions, resources and items of interest, on-going, without interrupting the flow of the originating concept.
Links make your site - and the internet - more usable, and useful.

2. Links Create Direct Traffic

Clicking a link from a trusted source is one of the most popular ways for people to find a new website. If a user is on a website they trust, they are likely to follow links that it recommends - or at the least, users will follow links that make the destination site appear to provide some valuable information.
More links = more traffic.

3. Links Build User Trust in You

If users see a link to you on a popular or respected site, their level of trust in what you say or what you offer is likely to be higher. MySpace generates more traffic to eBay and Amazon than MSN search does - because navigating through MySpace is about trusting what 'friends' recommend. Blogs create this same link-trust factor. Blog readers have a certain 'trust' in the author.
Word-of-mouth is the best advertising there is.

4. Links Build Search Engine Trust in Your Site

There is no doubt that link score is one of the most important factors the major search engines consider when determining where websites are ranked. The reasoning is simple: if you have many links pointing to your site from other sites, your content must contain quality, important information. A link is like a vote. Although links from important 'authority' sites carry more 'vote weight', ultimately, total 'link/vote score' is one of the heaviest algorithmic factors considered in rankings.
Sites with links from trusted sites are 'trust-worthy'.

5. Links Tell Search Engines and Users What Your Pages Are About

To determine what a web page is about search engines look at a few critical elements on a web page, but just as important (if not more) is the text used in links that point to your page - from within your site and from outside sites. E.G.: If a page has 10 links from outside sites, and each link uses the word 'pizza' as the link text, it stands to reason that the page is about pizza. You could probably determine the page topic without even looking at the page. And, most likely, the link text is why users clicked the link in the first place.
If you could describe yourself in two words, what would they be?

6. Links Establish Your Site in 'Communities'

Typically, the types of sites that easily offer and create links to your site are community type sites that are updated on a regular basis, either by a main administrator, or by users themselves. Examples are; blogs, forums, wikis, MySpace, and other social networking sites. See MySpace example in point #3. Communities are based in trust.
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead

7. Links Are Free Advertising

Unless you've paid for your link - it is free advertising for you.
That was simple, eh?

8. Links Are Trackable and Provide Market Intelligence

There are a few methods of determining who links to you, and this information can be very valuable in providing market intelligence such as;
- competitor strengths/weaknesses (find out who links to them, request a link)
- consumer/user opinion (what are people saying about you/competitors on blogs/forums)
- potential suppliers (industry insiders who liked/linked to your site)
- source of testimonials
- reveals potential PR hazards (negative posts/links)
- reveals strategic partnerships (next point)

To determine who links to you, you can first check your traffic logs for 'referrers'. Once seeing who has generated some traffic for you, you can find out who the search engines have listed that link to you. Here's how you can check:
- at Goolge, search: link:www.yoursite.com
- at Yahoo and MSN, search: linkdomain:www.yoursite.com
Find out who, what, where, when, why, how - and use it.

9. Links Reveal Strategic Partnerships

Upon reviewing your traffic logs or doing a simple link check on any of the major search engines (as mentioned above) you may encounter some sites that link to you that can reveal sources of mutual benefit, such as;
- marketing partnerships (develop reciprocal ad campaign)
- service or product suppliers
- potential employees
- potential contractors
- or for support/education/help
"There's GOLD in them there hills..."

10. Links Are Assets - They Add Value to Your Property

Your website is your internet property, and it has value. What gives your website saleable value (typically) is the amount of traffic the site can generate. As we've shown, links are one of the most important factors in generating substantial website traffic, search engine rankings, trust, publicity, market intelligence and more. A substantial link network offers significant value to the overall package when determining a website's value.
The marketplace creates the asset, and its value.