You can also use free-standing services set up for precisely this kind of search, such as linkpopularity.com, which provides easy access to links turned up by Altavista, Hotbot and Google.

Now once you've identified sites you consider likely to add a link to yours, how should you approach them? I'm not a big fan of a "you link me, I'll link you..." overture. To me that implies that your site lacks intrinsic value and that you have to add an incentive to become worthy of link. Also, you'll often find sites you don't want to link to (because they're amateur-looking or contain nothing distinctive, for instance) but still want links from. Instead, I tell Webmaster or site owner that I'm writing to tell them about a new resource on ___ that would make their list of links even more valuable, or more comprehensive.

If you are creating a master list of topical links for your own site, it works well to say that you've linked to them and would they consider a link in return? This makes most people curious enough to check your site and reciprocate where appropriate.

Make sure your link request is patently personal, a genuine one-to-one message. And instead of merely providing a URL that you invite them to check out, provide title of your bait piece and say something about its value to their site visitors. Something in format of a press release, or any kind of carbon-copy message, will definitely not yield results you want.

I have to admit that even with strategy outlined above, quest for links is tedious and slow. Don't even get started with it unless you feel relaxed, with a long evening ahead of you. You'll encounter frequent frustration when you find a perfect link candidate and comb site in vain for Webmaster or site owner's e-mail address -- indeed, any contact information at all.

Above all, remember that links to your bait piece are not end in themselves. You've installed your bait within your site, so that any inbound link to your information piece stimulates readers who find it valuable to explore rest of your site and buy your products or sign on as clients. That's real goal of all this work!

For example:

You charge $75 per hour for your services ime. You spend a total of 5 hours trying to catch up on your correspondence…entering information into a database, typing and re-typing your letters and preparing them to be mailed.

$75/hr X 5 hours = $375.00 of your valuable time and profit

If it would cost you less to outsource, why not do it? Why not allow a professional to handle some of your tasks leaving you with more time to generate revenue?

$25/hr (sample cost to outsource) X 5 hours = $125.00

$375 - $125 = $250 + $ of contract you signed while a professional took care of non-revenue generating tasks.

Although you are spending some of your hard earned money, you are gaining so much more. Outsourcing gives you professional assistance, which in turn saves you both time and money...the two things that most small business owners need more of.