Link Exchange Requests: Don't do them like this!

I found in my inbox a request for a link exchange this morning. I was pleased initially that someone valued my www.allthingsweb.co.uk site enough to make the request.

The experience soon soured and here's why:

Dear webmaster,

Good start there, Shiva (the "person" who emailed me), a really great start. You've bothered to find out about my name as the owner of the website so that's really appreciated and warms me up to your link exchange proposal.

Ok, next line:

Please consider exchanging links with this financial site.

http://www.cred*t-car*-cape**.com/

So you visited my website and found it concentrated on internet marketing (primarily on SEO) and thought it was on target and relevant enough that a link to your financial site would benefit my website's users if they saw it.

'Cause finance sites and internet marketing go together well (in a really warm kind of fuzzy way you know?)

There's more (below covers off the bases where I might not be interested in a credit card website.... but tries to work to arouse my curiosity with other sites)

I also have 2 other financial sites (1 PR5 and 1 PR3) and 1 internet marketing (PR3) site to exchange links with. Reply, and I will send you the urls.

If I reply I expect you will then include me on an active email list which you will use to quite happily spam me with more of your wonderful requests. I am also so looking forward to those urls you mention.


The excuse...

The reason for you getting this email is that either you are on my private contact list, you have sent a link exchange request to me or we are registered in the same link exchange site.

I'm HONOURED that I might be on your private contact list. I've sent you MULTIPLE link exchange requests all of which you have ignored which left me gutted for quite some time. And I am registered on EVERY link exchange site IN THE WORLD. I'm surprised you have not emailed me before seeing as we have that much in common!

The time limited call to action...?

This is a one time send out and will not be repeated.

Ok, ok I will act NOW. My agreement to a link exchange request is on its way even as I write this blog.

I am also not sharing my contact list with anyone, so don't worry.

I appreciate you won't be sharing your contact list. You know I get a really good feeling about you and therefore will not worry.

If you don't reply your email address will be deleted from my contact list.

That, Shiva is really nice to know.

If you like to receive links from one or more of the above mentioned sites, please reply to this email with your linking details.

I will then put up your link and send you my own linking details.

Looking forwards to hearing from you.

You know I am so desperate for traffic to my website I desperately need your links. I cannot wait to hear from you. I'm really looking forwards to it.


Ok. As you have guessed I'm being sarcastic. If you receive an email like this then think carefully about replying - especially if they want you to link back to them and the search engines consider them to be a bad neighbourhood. It could ruin all your online marketing efforts so do not accept reciprocal link requests from just anyone.

Finally Shiva, I did not look at your website and I do not want to exchange links with you (just in case you didn't get my sarcastic blogging above)

Cheers

ukdaz