PageRank is Google's measure of importance of an internet page, based on its number of incoming links, often referred to as backlinks.
Blog Business World is showing a total of 472 incoming links from the Google Toolbar.
For those of you who don't have the Google Toolbar, which incidently only seems to work with MS Internet Explorer, and not on Mac computers, is available to download (free) from Google:
Google Toolbar Download
The PageRank indicator is in green and white on the right hand side of the toolbar. Mouse over it and it will give the PageRank (mine says 6/10). The more green, the higher the PageRank.
My other roller derby blog is also a PageRank 6, and shows a total of 556 backlinks.
To view your incoming links from the Google Toolbar, click on a blue oval with a white letter i in the middle. It opens up a dropdown menu. Click on "backward links", and your Google recognized (PR4 or higher) backlinks will appear.
Keep in mind that Google does not list all of the available backlinks; only a sampling, and only PR4 or higher links. That doesn't mean the rest are not counted, however. They are.....mostly.
For another fun exercise, in finding incoming links from blogs, check out the Truth Laid Bear Blogoshere Ecosystem.
Listing blogs in a pseudo-Darwinian hierarchy, from "Higher Beings" at the top to "Insignificant Microbes" at the bottom, the Ecosystem is based on incoming links.
The more unique incoming links to a blog, the more highly it ranks on the Blog Ecosystem.
To find out where your blog is placed in the Ecosystem, type your blog title into the Search box, found on the right hand side of the page.
Your blog will appear on a page, along with its numerical ranking in the system. Click on your blog's title for its "level of evolution" in the Ecosystem. If your blog doesn't appear, click on "Add Your Blog" and fill in your blog title and URL, and enter it.
According to the Ecosystem, Blog Business World is a "Flappy Bird".
For more Ecosystem fun, you can add a bit of code to your blog, that lets you know your status in the Ecosystem hierarchy of creatures. Your status will be displayed right on your blog.
To rise in the Blog Ecosystem, you need to get more links coming into your blog..
To get more incoming links to your blog, there are really only two reliable techniques. In fact, they are really one and the same.
You have to keep adding fresh, informative, and interesting new content to your blog. If you ail to do that, you'll simply have very few readers, and not many people wanting to link to your blog.
With quality content, you'll gain links in two ways.
Many other bloggers will simply link to your blog, and to your posts, because they are interesting to them and their readers. Other bloggers will be more than happy to exchange links with you as well, if you have a great blog.
Neither will happen if you don't update your blog regularly, with fresh and interesting posts.
Backlinks are important, but content is king.
Fresh blog content is even more royal!
Provide great fresh content, and the backlinks and PageRank will follow.
In that order.
