This is the spreadsheet I want you to set up which will contain all the target sites you want links from.

They will be many categories in this eventually – directories, blogs, social bookmarking sites etc – but at the moment I suggest you focus on the categories listed below.

There will be more information in the columns of this spreadsheet as we move forwards but for now just use one column to record the website address.

These should be quite valuable links and also some which you can get easily. You may already have some of them. Here are the categories, think a bit laterally and possibly brainstorm with other people in your company….

– Your Customers

– Your Suppliers

– Other group companies

– Companies you have an association with – eg companies you know, and have personal relationships with

-Professional bodies you or your company belong to – eg CIM, Federation of Small Business etc

-Local memberships – eg chambers of commerce

-Networking groups you participate in – eg BNI

Check your competitors links (using Yahoo Site Explorer) – can any be replicated?

This should get you started – next time we’ll discuss the best way of getting links from these sites.