Link Vault and vBSEO

Welcome to this fab world. With SEO you have to get everything right to rank top. Getting the site package SEO'ed with vBSEO is one thing, getting links is quite another.

The Link Vault is a fab system of getting links for your websites, in as Google friendly a manner as possible. It has both a free version, and more optioned paid versions. Like with vBSEO, I champion the Link Vault. I have helped and am helping both, but not part of ownership etc of either.

I have been working for sometime with both the Link Vault and vBSEO to make sure that the two are compatable. I have the LV working very successfully on my forums - see the next post for setup recommendations.

So what is the Link Vault - the basics:

• ASP or PHP programs running on your servers and on the LV servers
• Up to 5 links are placed on your pages - you choose which pages, but preference for the majority of pages.
• You get credit "Vaultage" based on the number of links possible to have placed on your pages, and the Google PR of those pages.
• You use up that Vaultage by getting inbound links for your pages - the cost is based on the Google PR of those IBL's

There are many parts to the formula to make it as Google friendly as possible:

• adding links slowly
• having multiple versions of link text for one url
• only 5 of one link placed onto any given website
• and max 20 on a domain for a domain.
• ... around 16 inbuilt "rules" governing link placement

Affiliate Scheme

Depending on your level of subscription - free to top paid level, you get 5 to 10% of the vaults of the people referred from your links. Thats 5-10% that is not reduced from their vaults, but is added to yours.

So here is my affiliate link
http://www.link-vault.com/?ss=820

Or the normal link for those not so generous :(
http://www.link-vault.com/

vBSEO rewrites url's - therefore visible PR is zero till next update

With vBSEO, you are rewriting your urls. This means that any visible Google PR on your pages is reduced to ZERO until the next Google PR update.

Since the Link Vault is based on the Google PR of your pages, you will have low Vaultage until the next Google PR update - around 3 monthly. We are due a PR update in the next couple of weeks, and so it is likely that you may just miss out on this round of updates.

However, the Google PR of your archive pages can be rather fab (if there is Google PR on them, best to not rewrite them).

And for PR0's you get 0.33 vault for one link, 1.27 vault for 5 links on a page, so the max pages of 5000 x 1.27 = 8750 is still not a bad number of vaults.

Specific Setup Instructions

Please see following post.

There are a few mods needed in order to have vbSEO with the Link Vault. My recommended setup is as follows (please replace the with the actual file name for your setup):

vBulletin 3.5.4 onwards

• Download and save the appropriate xml product plugin - attached.
• Note the two plugins - for prior to 3.5.4 and 3.5.4 onwards. vBulletin 3.5.4 puts the archive into the string $output.
  
• Go to Plugin System/Manage Products, and add/import the product file
• It adds the two parts as per above - main forum for footer, and archive plugins
• Go to plugin manager, and edit both of the plugin files - to replace the lvxxxxxxx.php with your own named lv file.
• Add $lv to an appropriate place in the footer template of your vBulletin (per the pre vBulletin 3.5 instructions).
• Make sure that you have plugins enabled - the vBulletin options, Plugin/Hook System enabled

for vBulletin version prior to 3.5

add to phpinclude_start

PHP Code:

$xx = $_SERVER['REQUEST_URI'];

if(ereg("forum",$xx) or ereg("showthread",$xx) or ereg("^/$",$xx) or ereg("search",$xx) or ereg("poll",$xx) or ereg("calendar",$xx) or ereg("members",$xx))
{
ini_set ("include_path", ini_get ("include_path") . ':../:../../:../../../:../../../../:../../../../../');
include ('lvxxxxxxxxxxxxx.php');

$SaveRequestUri=$_SERVER['REQUEST_URI'];
$_SERVER['REQUEST_URI']=$_SERVER['VBSEO_URI'];
$lv= DisplayLinks(5,'',', ','','');
$_SERVER['REQUEST_URI']=$SaveRequestUri;
 } 


Add to the footer in the position you prefer:

PHP Code:

$lv 


archive/index.php file -

at the bottom just before:

PHP Code:

echo "<div id="copyright">[vbulletin_copyright]"; 


add:

PHP Code:

ini_set ("include_path", ini_get ("include_path") . ':../:../../:../../../:../../../../:../../../../../');
$SaveRequestUri=$_SERVER['REQUEST_URI'];// required for vBSEO installs
$_SERVER['REQUEST_URI']=$_SERVER['VBSEO_URI'];// required for vBSEO installs
include ('lvxxxxxxxxxxxxxx.php');
echo DisplayLinks(5,'<center>',', ','</center>','');
$_SERVER['REQUEST_URI']=$SaveRequestUri;// required for vBSEO installs

echo "<br />"; 


Comment

The script of the following ensures that the link vault is only called for the pages that will likely have Google Page Ranking on them and be cached by Google. This keeps the system nice and clean.

PHP Code:

if(ereg("forum",) or ereg("showthread",) or ereg("^/$",) or ereg("search",) or ereg("poll",) or ereg("calendar",) or ereg("members",)) 


The following is needed since the vBSEO package changes all the _SERVER etc variables to equal the underlying proper showthread.php style url's even though the url in the address bar is the rewritten url. Without the variable, the showthread.php style urls would show up - able to be see when you have the Link Vault test mode on.

PHP Code:

$SaveRequestUri=$_SERVER['REQUEST_URI'];// required for vBSEO installs
$_SERVER['REQUEST_URI']=$_SERVER['VBSEO_URI'];// required for vBSEO installs 


NB: In your vBulletin 3.0 and prior modification you are suggesting that we should be moving our Link Vault files into a seperate /lv folder. I dont recall this being mentioned in the Link Vault installation guide, perhaps you'd be best to remove the lv/ in

include ('lv/lvxxxxxxxxxxxxx.php');"

now updated

T2DMan,

Sounds like LV is working for you, but...

http://forums.searchenginewatch.com/...ead.php?t=7199

In this thread, the original poster said his/her client's site was banned because of LV.

Your comments are welcome, I was/am interested in LV, but after reading this thread...

Just a quick note: I'm not accusing/attacking the LV system, just asking more info from an existing LV user and experienced SEO.

For some reason my $lv is no longer showing on nzboards.com. :(

I am intrigued with the link you mention.

While it is totally possible that the Link Vault was the cause, I consider than any agressive linking campaign can have the side effect of problems on Google. Or for that matter many other potential issues. With a small site, instantly adding 20 links per day each of your sites pages will be an overkill that gets noticed by the Google algos.

The Link Vault is a system that when used carefully has proven many times to be able to get pages to the top. But when overused, it can fall foul of filters.

When you have a powerful site already, with many links gained over years, adding a few LV links to a page can be enough to get it to the top. For more competitive phrases, you need to slowly add links, and not get too enthusiastic. Google often eases you into the top even though based on onpage, links, PR, you may deserve to be there earlier. So if you keep powering links into it, you can do harm

In addition, you need variety of link text. Just the three options can be insufficient. Have others as well.

The LV is just a method of getting links - you can get links via reciprocal arrangements etc, but so often those reciprocal pages have next to no Google PR, and are not well spidered. Using the LV each page that has your links must be cached by Google and it costs you whatever PR is on the page. Thats real fair link trading.

Originally Posted by kall

For some reason my $lv is no longer showing on nzboards.com. :(

Kall, are you using the script above?

Are you using the most recent edition of vbseo?

Thanks T2DMan, i will install LV immediately after upgrading to vB 3.5 Gold

I am using the setup file xxxxxxxxxxxxx.php which was created during vb3.0.x series and was not used for 2-3 months. Would that file still be useful or i should recreate the file again.?

Changed the LV filename in the xml file... Ok

Installed the plugin... Ok

Added $lv in the footer template... Ok

Checked setup and activate link... test says This Page --> http://www.sikhphilosophy.net/sikhph...php/f-120.html should contain link to Sydney Hotels. Clicking the link takes me to blank page, however, the setup says passed.

But, nothing is showing up in the footer... ??

Originally Posted by T2DMan

Kall, are you using the script above?

Are you using the most recent edition of vbseo?

Yes and yes.

Tried disabling ALL plugins except vbSEO and your script. No dice.

Also, my links showed in my archive briefly last night, then when I moved the code slightly they vanished, when I moved it back, they were still gone. Only the <br />s remain.

Will your instructions still provide effective functionality for the newer versions of Link Vault which have been released? Or do they need updating?

Seems like some investigation is needed.

Thanks, because i have noticed that the Link Vault (.php) file contents have now changed since i was last using LV.