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Break Into Your Topical Neighborhood
To make your Web site an authority, you should first seek to obtain links from topical hubs. Obvious hubs might include any niche directories or resource pages about your Web site's topic.
One way to find less obvious hubs is to do a backlink search on authority sites in your topical community. Finding authority sites is easy--they are
sites that rank highly for a search for that topic. Once you find an authority, search "link:http://www.theirsite.com." Go through
backlinks, and find pages that link out to multiple sites within your topic; a page that links out to multiple authority sites is probably considered a hub by a search engine.
Aside from hubs, it can be quite helpful to get links from
authority sites themselves. I have seen many Web sites get a significant boost after obtaining just one link from a top authority. It is implied that an authority site will link out less than will a hub, and therefore it is possible that these links are even more valuable in terms of rankings.
Obtaining links from quality hubs and authorities is easier said than done. One can however use certain methods to get links quickly. These methods include but are not limited to: offering to swap links; submitting a relevant, well-written press release; submitting a relevant, well-written article with your Web site's URL hyperlinked and embedded in
copy; offering to buy or rent a links; and, of course, writing a lot of great content (it will get noticed, sooner or later!). Conclusion
Obtaining links from reputable sources within your Web site's topical community is necessary in order for that site to be ranked highly in today's search engine algorithms. Getting your Web site entrenched within its topical community would be a good idea anyway, even if search engines did not exist--which is a pretty good litmus test for a strong, long-term SEO method.

Andy Hagans is a search engine optimization consultant who specializes in link building and risk management. Visit http://www.andyhagans.com for more information. See http://www.andyhagans.com/articles.php for an archive of Mr. Hagans' articles.