Many people in the SEO community talk about the difference between simply getting a link back to your site, and getting an “Authority” link.

While most affiliate marketers are just interested in cranking out dozens of small sites that make $100/month (or promoting trashy CPA offers for a quick buck), this technique has helped tons of affiliates get high rankings for super-targeted terms that significantly boost their income.

I’ve seen quite a few cases where simply posting a comment on a blog that a merchant writes regularly on can boost my rankings for “product name review” from page 3 to top 3 on page 1, which is pretty sweet!

Now, it’s important to note that PageRank is NOT what it’s all about. Many times the relevancy of a website (theme) to your own can play a factor, and it can also have to do with the specific nature of the site linking to you. This is why PageRank and Authority are different, with regards to backlinks.

The key takeaway with this concept is that focusing on Quality THEN Quantity with backlinks, will help boost your rankings with less work.

For example, would it be easier to write 5 simple articles and submit them to 5 directories each, or to contact a website owner and do one value-added guest post on their blog with a link back to your site? To be honest, it seems much easier to take the first route, and it sounds like you’ll get a lot more backlinks, but the Quality is so much lower that your rankings will most likely not get the increase you’re hoping for.

BUT, and this is essential, it’s not just about getting a small boost in rankings! Sometimes the fact that your link is coming from an authority’s website can mean huge traffic & sales directly from the post, and the networking can help you get more exposure and better rankings in the longterm because of the relationship you can build with the site owner.

In the end, Google & Yahoo! want us to stick with useful, relevant content and natural links to and from our pages (that help their visitor), so the people searching will continue to search and click ads. However, by networking with authorities in your niche(s), you can “Google-proof” your business by simply playing by the rules and worrying less about rankings than adding value.

It sounds tough at first, but start with less projects, do them all the right way, and you’ll make WAY more money in the longrun.