Zeus Link Building System -
An Overview
 

Introduction
Linking101 Overview
Reciprocal Manager Overview
ARELIS Overview
Feature Comparison Chart

Zeus - Main Features

(for more detail, see chart)

  • build a categorized link directory

  • link verification

  • disable non-linking sites

  • filter sites before searching

  • add links manually

  • delete and edit links

  • full site customization for PRO version

  • mine potential link sites for contact information

  • get WHOIS information

  • retrieve link description text from web sites

  • preview sites from within integrated browser

  • search for link partners by keywords

  • e-mail link partners from within integrated browser

  • build and customize e-mail templates

  • batch and individual e-mails

  • "Easy", "Intermediate" and "Advanced" modes of operation

  • free ("Demo") and PRO versions

  • custom services, including set-up and "training" of Zeus


Pros

  • Enter relevant keywords and "train" Zeus to search for potential link partners at the click of a button.  Once you have your first batch, you can load each site into the integrated browser and undertake an "audit" which includes an image of the index page, email details, sites linking back etc.

  • While it doesn't have access to the Google Toolbar for PageRank, the integrated browser DOES provide information about the number of sites linking to any website selected for examination by the administrator.  This may help in arriving at a decision as to whether or not to include in your directory.

  • Since it uses its own robot to traverse the web looking for relevant sites for your link directory, Zeus doesn't risk incurring the wrath of search engines by eating up their bandwidth during an extended search.

  • Zeus probably has the fastest turn-around time for support of all the link management programs I've researched - you can expect to receive a reply to your mail within hours of a request made 10am -6pm EST Mon-Fri.  Whilst using Zeus I was regularly in contact with the support desk and had an extremely positive experience.  I used it again for the first time in two years last week, and again got a rapid response.

  • if you can't afford to shell out for your link directory, Zeus allows you to build it for free using their Demo version.  There are no time restrictions on its usage, and unlike the ARELIS demo, it's functional, although there are limitations as to how you can customize and present your directory.

  • While you can't run your Zeus on more than computer without infringing the license, you CAN use it for any number of websites.  This compares favorably with with its nearest rival, ARELIS.

  • Zeus offers excellent opportunities for the beginning webmaster to learn more about how search engines work and how best to build a respectable link directory.  Over the years, Zeus has earned an I think, undeserved reputation as encouraging practices which lead to the banning of sites by search engines, and has faced attempts to discredit it by at least one prominent marketing guru.  My own experience of using the PRO version of Zeus on my first site is to the contrary - that it has played a significant role in raising the profile of my site, with my Zeus pages  always being listed in Google and Yahoo, with a consistent rating of PR 3-4.  Zeus may not be the place at which to end your search for the perfect link management tool, but there's certainly no harm in beginning there.


Cons

Don't look to Zeus to solve your link directory management problems for you - while it will help you build an organised directory, its limited features mean you'll still need to spend a good deal of time checking links (you can do this from within the program), and mailing link partners.  Zeus is at heart a highly sophisticated robot that excels at seeking out targeted information - anything else comes as a bonus.

  • Like ARELIS, Zeus over-promotes the effectiveness of using e-mail rather than direct submission in order to exchange links.  It's a method that irritates busy webmasters like me, discouraging rather than encouraging a swap.

  • Zeus persists in using its own private language to describe the various parts of the program - Themes, ThemeSites, ThemePages, ThemeCategories etc.  The language is not not overly difficult to learn, but strangely it doesn't stick, at least in my head.  Every time I revisit Zeus after spending some time away from it I find myself having to take a mini crash course in order to understand how it works.  Bill Gates might be able to get away with it with his FrontPage "Webs" and "Folders", but not Zeus I'm afraid.

  • Despite some definite improvements to its interface in the most recent version, Zeus still remains a rather quirky tool that you need to become familiar with, rather than one you can fall headlong into. Compared to ARELIS, its most similar rival, it feels clunky and unnecessarily cluttered.

  • Zeus is the only one of the five script/programs surveyed that doesn't offer unlimited free updates. Its limit is 6 months, then you'll need to pay $79.00 if you want to upgrade.  Pretty steep if you ask me.

  • It would have been nice to see the so-called "extras" like the directory search engine and link submission form built into the price of the PRO version of Zeus.  Instead, you'll need to pay $40.00 for each.

  • Although possible, it's extra work to stop Zeus pages looking like "Zeus pages".

  • If you need to run Zeus on more than one computer, you'll need to buy separate licenses.

 

Summary

 On the market since 1999, Zeus has more than held its own in a pretty competitive marketplace, even managing to survive sideswipes at its credibility as a legitimate tool.  It's been able to do this despite being one of of the most expensive tools (PRO version) in the market aimed at small sites. 

This must mean either;

-  they're very good at hype;

or

-  they've got something right.

As a past user, I'm inclined to think it it's the second of the two possibilities.  For all its limitations, Zeus DOES pull in the traffic; in fact in some ways, for me it's become the victim of its own success.  When my Zeus pages started showing up in the search engines, they increased the possibility of webmasters finding me.  Having found me, they started submitting links in their droves, I couldn't cope simply with using Zeus, so sought out a product with more automated features. 

While not so hot on automation, in my opinion Zeus and ARELIS represent the best tools for inexperienced webmasters because of their commitment to learning how to do things "right".  While packed to the gunnels with gizmos, javascript detectors  and cron jobs, tools like Reciprocal Manager don't make the discussion of linking strategy a priority in their help files - that level of knowledge is already assumed.  Leaving the potential for disastrous  mistakes further down the line.

An workable strategy for the beginning webmaster not over-concerned about customization would be to build a directory with the free version of Zeus, and when the time is right, move to one of the more sophisticated programs available on the market, most of which have import options, making a migration of Zeus data possible.

 

Find Out More About Zeus


Introduction
Linking101 Overview
Reciprocal Manager Overview
ARELIS Overview
Feature Comparison Chart



 

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