Using Yahoo to build links
Yahoo’s SLURP is a link-affecting search bot you should be aware of if you are analyzing Google and its link preferences. SLURP uses what are termed as “graphs” by its creators instead of search algorithms. These graphs analyze and boot out linked spam, irrelevant pages, mirror sites and unrelated links.
Inadequate results from Yahoo are often just a reflection of the different approach taken by this search bot. Unlike Google, less importance is placed on cross-site and comment links by SLURP. In fact, links to social media and Yahoo sites which have high page ranking are given more importance by this program. It also gives less weight to backlinks.
One of the biggest differences between SLURP and other robots is the way it indexes your complete text, rather than just the first couple of paragraphs. Another unique peculiarity of SLURP: it indexes “dynamic pages” – which means all your .PHP files will be crawled. It’s an active little bunny, looking for new material on your site at least twice weekly, if it likes you.
Studying your server logs to see how much SLURP crawls your sites is an important tactic. If it does not appear in the server logs you may have to make your site more attractive to it by using your links. SLURP begins to access your links when it has finished with your Metatags and site content. Links that point to its favorite sites and directories are particularly sought after so it makes sense to submit to Yahoo directories as much as possible. By making sure that links are placed on all pages, your site will rank better with Yahoo.
A typical syntax example of how to display specific page links for Yahoo: linkdomain:www.sitename.com.
People-friendly content is what Yahoo and SLURP are all about. This should be kept in mind so that keywords included in your titles and links do not feel forced. You have to straddle the line between maximizing use of your keywords while keeping the content natural and relevant.
Understanding how SLURP works, focusing on the content and not being too “clever” are important strategies for dealing with Yahoo’s somewhat different search bot. If you are not completely comfortable with analysis and programming code, optimizing pages for various search bots is a recipe for disaster.
You can optimize for SLURP by creating a presence on Yahoo! Answers with inclusion of your websites anchor text and URLS. Include the link to your site in your answers whenever possible and as naturally as possible without overdoing it. This is particularly important because on this site the members police themselves and are zealous reporting anything that resembles spam.
If it feels natural, other social sites with web presence and page ranking such as Twitter, StumbleUpon and Digg can also be linked to your Yahoo answer.
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