Lately, I have stumbled across a concept in on online marketing that I have heard before. At the time, I didn’t see a whole lot of value in it. Yet, now, I realize its importance. And, I am talking about the power of a “related” query in Google. You can see in the picture, I have done a “related” query in Google for an affiliate site of mine, www.mommyadvisor.com.

Given the constantly expanding size of the web, I believe that Google is looking for a way to get sites “grouped” together. Go ahead and try a “related” query. You can do this by going to Google. Then, type “related:”, followed by “www.[insert site].com”. If you are looking around and seeing sites compared to yours that have good Trust rank, you are probably in good shape. If you see a bunch of sites that look like spam communities, well, it is time to get some better links to improve your Trust Rank. E.g., go to DMOZ, Business.com, BOTW, etc..

Also, the related query is a great source for link building. For example, for each site that shows up for a related query, I am probably looking at a good source of links for my site. Some of these sites could be good targets for a recriprocal or triangular link building strategy - perhaps, all of them.

Similarly, do a related query on your competitors. See the guy who is ranking #1 for your “model airplane” niche? Guess what, he is probably a good example for your site. Do a related query for him and approach his relational links about getting links to your site. Because, if he is #1 for that term, you probably want to be a part of his community. And, you can’t get in a community without moving into the neighborhood. And, a good way to get in the neighborhood is to get links from those relational sites.