Link acquisition is an important part of any website’s online optimization plan. With the recent emphasis Google and the other search engines have placed on high quality, relevant links, many companies face the challenge of determining whether link acquisition should be done through an in house team or be outsourced to an expert agency.

1. IN
HOUSE
{
}
VS.
AGENCY
Are
you
making
the
right
choice
for
your
company?

2. I N
H O U S E
O R
A G E N C Y ?
I n
H o u s e
v s .
A g e n c y
In
House
or
Agency?
Link
acquisi?on
is
an
important
part
of
any
website’s
online
op?miza?on
plan.
With
the
recent
emphasis
Google
and
the
other
search
engines
have
placed
on
high
quality,
relevant
links,
many
companies
face
the
challenge
of
determining
whether
link
acquisi?on
should
be
done
through
an
in
house
team
or
be
outsourced
to
an
expert
agency.
When
determining
what
works
for
your
company’s
business
goals
and
budget,
it’s
important
to
take
into
considera?on
several
factors
that
can
make
or
break
your
link
acquisi?on
program.
From
the
?me
it
takes
to
build
a
quality
backlink
network,
to
understanding
the
algorithm
updates,
managing
and
mi?ga?ng
the
risks,
and
everything
else
in
between,
this
eBook
will
help
you
understand
what
is
right
for
you.
Time
is
Money
You
Get
What
You
Pay
For
MiEgaEng
Risk
and
Understanding
Penguin
Quality
over
QuanEty

3. Time
is
Money
Time
is
money,
as
the
old
saying
goes,
and
the
same
holds
true
with
link
acquisi?on.
Building
a
strong
backlink
network
takes
?me;
from
researching
poten?al
sites
to
link
to,
nego?a?ng
link
placement
and
details,
to
managing
the
results
and
understanding
the
impact
on
your
overall
SEO
strategy,
there
is
no
quick
shortcut
(and
anyone
that
tells
you
there
is,
isn’t
following
white
hat
techniques).

4. T I M E
I S
M O N E Y
I n
H o u s e
v s .
A g e n c y
The
challenge
with
?me
is
that
most
of
us
rarely
have
enough
of
it,
especially
when
it
comes
to
our
responsibili?es
that
we
need
to
fit
into
our
workday.
If
your
company
has
an
SEO
expert
on
staff
that
has
the
knowledge
and
experience
to
handle
link
acquisi?on,
it
can
certainly
be
more
affordable
than
looking
at
an
outside
agency.
The
problem
is
that
many
SEO
experts
have
a
broad
range
of
responsibili?es
within
the
company
that
extend
above
and
beyond
link
acquisi?on.
Staffing
up
with
cost-­‐effec?ve
resources
at
a
lower
level
to
support
the
SEO
expert
can
also
be
an
affordable
op?on,
although
oYen
can
prove
to
be
a
risky
one.
Remember
that
much
of
the
link
acquisi?on
communica?on
is
done
online
which
means
via
wri[en
word.
Anything
that
is
wri[en
can
be
shared,
posted,
and
tweeted
(for
example).
It’s
important
to
consider
just
who
is
doing
the
wri?ng
and
corresponding
on
your
company’s
behalf,
and
how
it
makes
your
company
look.
One
mistake,
one
wrong
email,
or
one
slip
up
can
have
a
vast
impact
on
reputa?on
as
well
as
rankings.
Even
the
best
SEO
expert
can’t
manage
every
detail
of
every
intern
or
entry
level
employee
otherwise
they’d
be
doing
the
work
themselves.
{
}
The problem is that
many SEO experts
have a broad range of
responsibilities within
the company that
extend above and
beyond link acquisition.

5. T I M E
I S
M O N E Y
I n
H o u s e
v s .
A g e n c y
From
an
agency
perspec?ve,
they
have
(or
should
if
they
are
a
reputable
white
hat
agency)
in
house
staff
that
is
trained
and
dedicated
to
link
acquisi?on.
They
understand
the
algorithms
from
the
search
engines,
have
a
clear-­‐cut
process
and
methodology
to
review
websites
and
blogs
for
quality
and
influence,
and
set
communica?on
guidelines
for
each
company/brand
they
represent.
The
benefit
here
is
they
have
the
ability
to
work
in
a
much
more
focused
capacity
with
years
of
experience,
oYen
at
a
significantly
reduced
cost
than
if
you
were
to
staff
up
with
similar
exper?se
in
house.
Remember,
if
the
agency
outsources
their
work
(especially
to
anywhere
outside
of
the
United
States
for
domes?c
programs)
that
should
raise
a
red
flag.
The
most
important
thing
to
keep
in
mind
is
that
you
are
considering
an
agency
for
their
?me
and
experience,
so
be
sure
they
have
both
of
those
things
in
spades.
An
experienced
marke?ng
agency
will
understand
that
link
acquisi?on
is
a
manual
process.
They
will
u?lize
the
most
up-­‐to-­‐date
technologies
executed
by
experienced
employees.
Link
acquisi?on
success
is
about
building
long-­‐term
rela?onships;
this
cannot
be
automated
and
any
company
that
says
it
can
is
selling
you
–
and
your
company
–
short.
From an agency
perspective, they
have (or should if
they are a
reputable white
hat agency)

6. You
Get
What
You
Pay
For

7. Y O U
G E T
W H A T
Y O U
P A Y
F O R
I n
H o u s e
v s .
A g e n c y
Whether
you
choose
to
do
link
acquisi?on
in
house,
or
through
an
agency,
always
remember
you
get
what
you
pay
for.
Lower
level
resources
yield
lower
level
and
oYen
riskier
results.
The
higher
the
amount
of
exper?se
and
experience,
the
more
you
can
expect
to
pay,
but
within
reason.
When
reviewing
in
house
capabili?es
vs.
poten?al
link
acquisi?on
agencies,
keep
in
mind
that
teams
with
varied
marke?ng
responsibili?es
generally
do
not
have
?me
to
analyze
their
company’s
website
rankings
for
key
terms
or
perform
an
in-­‐depth
analysis
in
Google
Analy?cs
to
show
the
value
or
success
of
link
acquisi?on
over
the
long-­‐term.
A
good
link
acquisi?on
agency
will
communicate
the
value
of
their
links
to
the
client
via
in-­‐depth
repor?ng.
Reports
and
presenta?ons
should
be
easy
to
hand
off
to
key
people
in
the
company
that
need
to
see
the
ROI
from
link
acquisi?on.
A
quality
agency
will
be
well-­‐versed
in
the
latest
tools,
strategies,
repor?ng,
and
processes
for
the
highest
level
of
produc?vity
and
success
at
the
best
cost
for
your
company.
Lower level resources
yield lower level and often
riskier results.
Always remember you
get what you pay for.

8. MiEgaEng
Risk
&
Understanding
Penguin
Link
acquisi?on
is
risky;
perhaps
the
riskiest
area
of
SEO
in
light
of
the
recent
emphasis
Google
Penguin
has
put
on
it.
Penguin
updates
have
been
devaluing
sites
that
engage
in
black
hat
tac?cs,
and
it’s
important
to
know
what’s
white
hat,
what’s
black
hat,
and
what
falls
in
the
vast
expanse
of
gray
middle
ground
that
Google
Penguin
is
taking
an
increased
aim
at
cleaning
up.

9. M I T I G A T I N G
R I S K
&
U N D E R S T A N D I N G
P E N G U I N
In
House
vs.
Agency
With
the
ongoing
focus
on
Google
Penguin,
companies
con?nue
to
get
hit
by
these
updates
and
many
see
drops
in
their
rankings.
As
many
as
94%
of
businesses
hit
by
Penguin
have
s?ll
not
recovered
(Search
Engine
Round
Table:
May
2013
h[p://www.seroundtable.com/google-­‐penguin-­‐poll-­‐16788.html).
Ranking
decreases
have
a
major
impact
on
company
revenue
and
reputa?on,
and
shouldn’t
be
taken
lightly.
A
junior-­‐level
employee
or
quick-­‐results
promising
agency
that
is
striving
to
for
fast
results
can
easily
fall
into
these
traps
and
put
your
company’s
online
presence
in
jeopardy.
Choosing
to
work
with
a
high
quality
agency
can
mi?gate
these
risks
and
provide
your
company
with
peace
of
mind.
From
reading
industry
news,
following
trends,
and
closely
tracking
algorithm
updates,
they
can
help
your
company
stay
ahead
of
the
curve
and
in
the
top
of
the
rankings.
With the ongoing focus
on Google Penguin,
companies continue to
get hit by these
updates and many see
drops in their rankings

10. Top
ranked
organic
keywords
when
worked
on
ethically,
can
hold
their
posi?on
and
con?nue
to
drive
traffic
with
some
regular
maintenance.
It
is
important
to
always
track
all
important
keyword
rankings
in
order
to
understand
where
your
company’s
website
is
posi?oned
and
what
keywords
are
contribu?ng
to
your
website’s
traffic
and
revenue.
An
experienced
link
acquisi?on
agency
can
deliver
these
las?ng
results
while
reducing
the
risk
of
any
nega?ve
impact
from
the
Penguin
updates,
and
in
many
cases
you
can
even
see
ranking
benefits
when
your
link
acquisi?on
is
done
right!
An experienced link acquisition agency can
deliver these lasting results while reducing
the risk of any negative impact from the
Penguin updates
M I T I G A T I N G
R I S K
&
U N D E R S T A N D I N G
P E N G U I N
In
House
vs.
Agency

11. Quality
over
QuanEty
All
links
are
not
created
equal,
and
all
link
builders
are
not
the
same.
A
lot
more
goes
into
the
link
acquisi?on
process
than
most
companies
realize,
and
the
days
of
obtaining
any
100
links
per
month
to
reach
#1
in
Google
are
long
gone.
Whether
you
choose
to
manage
the
program
in
house
or
through
an
agency,
make
sure
whomever
is
in
charge
of
your
link
acquisi?on
is
aware
of
all
of
the
factors
that
can
impact
success.
The
SEO
landscape
is
an
ever-­‐changing
one,
so
working
with
a
team
or
agency
that
has
the
experience
and
exper?se
to
understand
the
detailed
ins
and
outs
is
key.
In
many
cases
you
will
find
that
for
the
amount
of
knowledge
required
for
long
term
success,
an
agency
is
the
way
to
go.
If
you
are
one
of
the
lucky
companies
with
a
budget
that
supports
a
full-­‐scale
in
house
team,
then
by
all
means
go
for
it!
Just
remember
that
at
the
end
of
the
day,
quality
will
always
win
out
over
quan?ty
and
be
sure
whomever
is
in
charge
of
your
link
acquisi?on
program
has
that
in
conjunc?on
with
the
bo[om
line
in
mind
at
all
?mes.

12. Teknicks has pioneered the art of link acquisition, engaging, and increasing quality
search engine rankings, traffic, and ROI since 2004. The company’s portfolio of
clients includes some of the most well-known brands in the world. The ever-
evolving, dedicated team of SEM experts at Teknicks is always learning how to stay in
lock-step with search engines, like Google, in order to implement the latest white hat
strategies before algorithm changes take place.
About Teknicks
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