Walking the Rio Pueblo Gorge trail in Taos, NM today, I was listening to the audio version of the book "What Would Google Do?" I'm only into the first hour or so, but liked one section where the author Jeff Jarvis discusses linking and our blog posts.
He says to "do what you do best and link to the rest." It's in a discussion of the new ways in which people communicate with the Web, and blogging in particular. An example from our real estate business world might describe it best. If I see a great article by an expert on staging a home, particularly proven ways to make the kitchen and dining area stand out, what do I do? Rather than trying to write the content with paraphrasing to get some SEO clout, why not write about this article and link to it, giving my thoughts on how it could apply to my very rural market and our Southwest styling.
I want to be perceived as the real estate expert in my area, but I'm not a staging expert, though I've taken classes. What I can do is add some expertise based on local styling and design, as well as examples I've seen in showing local staged properties. Then, linking to the expert's article, I'm providing a service to my readers. If they were interested enough to read my thoughts on staging, they should appreciate my link to an expert with more information. And, that highly relevant link will get me some SEO clout anyway.