Is the value of a backlink going to diminish at some point? Paid links are frowned upon by Google (just read www.mattcutts.com/blog for more) and yet we have major companies pitching the value in selling you a back link.
DirectoryM is one such company. I received an e-mail a short time ago that pitched a backlink and the SEO value that it would provide your site. Link Selling.
Contextual Backlinks
Single Region: $9.95 per month
All Regions: $147.75 per monthThese premium links are designed for maximum SEO benefit through:
* Contextual Focus
* Regional Orientation
* Trusted Branded Directory Origination
* Flexible 30-character display… Match the display link text to the key word/phrase of your choosing
* Direct link… Link directly to any page on your website
Will this hurt DirectoryM? How about Businessweek or BizJournals. This is a clever way for the companies who use the DirectoryM listings (businessweeek.com and bizjournals.com to name a couple) to insulate themselves from link sales. At least that is what you might think. At the end of the day, a web site is responsible for their own site.