Marketers are doing everything they can to appear in the top search results. The advantages to the brand are numerous—the most significant being greater visibility for its products and services. And one of the methods that give excellent results is building quality backlinks.
If you have never considered the importance of backlink building, look at the following statistics. Good quality backlinks are key considerations in Google’s ranking algorithms. 13% of SEO experts believe quality link building is one of the most valuable SEO tactics.
Yet, it is interesting that 41% of them believe that link building is one of the most difficult aspects of search engine optimization. Please outsource link building if you don’t have in-house expertise.
We could go on with the statistics, but you get the picture. To remain competitive online, you must optimize your SEO tactics, including link building.
Our article explores how to build quality backlinks for SEO and why it is important. But first, let’s uncover the meaning of backlinks.
Backlinks; What Are They?
The simplest definition of a backlink is a link that connects two websites. So let’s say you have a website and get a link placement in another. It means you have a backlink, incoming or inbound link from the other.
In the introduction, we talked about quality link building being one of the most difficult aspects of search engine optimization. We recommended outsourcing link building services to the experts with good reason. It is easy to break the Google Webmaster Guidelines. Indeed there is a list of what the search engine giant sees as link building schemes. These include:-
- Buying or selling links for purposes of achieving good rankings
- Excessive exchanges of links in a type of reciprocal relationship with the other websites
- Using automated services or programs to create links
- Text links or advertisements that don’t block credit rankings etc.
The penalties can be quite stiff, and it can take a long time to get out of Google ‘jail.’ A link building agency has the expertise and knowledge to implement white hat link building services. What you get is good rankings and traffic to your website. So, whichever way you look at it, the money you spend on outsourcing link building will be an investment in your business.
Importance of Backlinks to SEO
At this point, you should have a pretty good idea of why backlinks are important to SEO. We can summarize them as follows.
3rd Party Endorsement
Backlinks are a powerful endorsement or vote of confidence from other sites. That is an important factor that search engines look out for. A high authority site like Forbes would not stake its reputation by linking to a disreputable site.
The fact that they agree to place your link on their site shows you are trustworthy and credible.
Quality Backlinks are a Google Ranking Factor
Good quality backlinks are a critical Google ranking factor. Remember, the links are trust signals within their ranking algorithm. The backlink profile is critical in determining whether Google will rank your website for particular search terms.
Also, note that Google bots use links to explore new web pages. The bots also use the links to crawl and index websites. Placement on high-authority websites will make it easier for Google bots to find and rank you faster.
Backlinks Generate Traffic
One of the biggest challenges for marketers is how to get traffic to the website. Well, organic link building resulting in good quality backlinks is a fantastic solution. With high rankings on search engines, the brand enjoys greater visibility. The likelihood of people clicking on the link and returning to your website is higher.
Better Brand Exposure
The more backlinks you get, the greater the brand exposure. It is an excellent way to build industry authority, credibility and trustworthiness.
Tips for Building Quality Backlinks
Let’s now look at how to build quality backlinks. You will love how practical and workable the tips are.
1. Outsource Link Building to Experts
Let’s get this point out of the way as our first tip. SEO and link building is not a task for the fainthearted. Indeed, even the experts agree. It can take anywhere from 3 to 12 months to see results. And that only applies if you are using the right link building strategies.
It gets worse, though. If you crack local SEO or long-tail keywords, you may be lucky to see some results within a couple of months. But, short tail keywords may show some positive results after 3 to 5 years.
If you do not have the expertise, you may think link building is a waste of time. Yet, as we have shared, the benefits to the brand are many. So, please consider outsourcing SEO link building services to the experts.
2. Replicate Competitor Backlinks
There is no shame in the SEO or quality link building game. And that includes replicating what your competitors have. It will require a little research on your part, but here is what you need to do.
- See what backlinks your main competitors have. Focus on the top 5 SERPs, especially if they outrank you.
- Step 2 requires you to analyze the type of backlinks they have. There are tools available for this.
- Now pick and replicate good authority backlinks.
You may be wondering how to replicate the backlinks. Well, let’s say your competitor is guest posting on a particular site. You will need to reach out to the same site and pitch to do the same.
Or, if bloggers have reviewed your competitor’s products or services, you need to get them to do the same to yours. Get ready to do plenty of convincing because you must show why you deserve a chance. So make sure you add value and have something unique to offer.
Another method is to see the type of content they have and generate better. Better means adding new insights, research findings, or solutions.
3. Become an Information Source
Becoming an information source can work well for your backlinks building strategy. Here is how to go about it.
Look for high-authority websites like blogs or news sites. You can even sign up to platforms like help a reporter out (HARO) or other PR news sites.
Now, here comes the part that you need to get right. It is important to do two things. The first is to build relationships with the site owners, bloggers, journalists, or editors. The second is to pitch your ideas to them.
Of course, the running theme in quality link building is to provide value. So show the site owners how you can do this for them. You must keep your end of the bargain by providing relevant, factual, well-researched, and newsworthy content.
What you get in exchange is backlinks to your site. It may seem difficult. But you can be sure this is one of the most effective ways of quality link building.
4. Get Creative with Content
If you know anything about the online space is the amount of information on it. That presents a real challenge for marketers who must look for creative ways to stand above the clutter. An effective way is to get creative with how you present content.
So, forget about blocks of text. How about interactive content like polls or quizzes? The same applies to shareable assets like Infographics and 3D animations. Think about it this way. Polls, quizzes, and surveys provide new insights. Indeed, you can even come up with new research findings. And, high domain websites look for such content to link to. You can also publish Infographics on popular directories.
5. Go After Unmentioned Brand Names
You may have a pretty active presence both online and offline. Thus, you may get brand mentions on other sites without knowing it. Well, here is a fantastic opportunity to build backlinks.
The first thing you need to do is search for your brand online. Take note of any sites you appear on.
The next step is to reach out to the site owners and request a backlink on the unmentioned brand. At the risk of sounding like a broken record, show how this will add value to the site. You could improve your chances of a yes by, for instance, linking to an article that will help their readers.
6. Consider Broken Link Building
You have most likely clicked on a link and received a 404 error. That is an example of a broken link. And, what you may not know is that it provides an effective way to build quality links. You will, of course, need to find sites with broken links.
Once again, the amazing internet comes to your rescue because many online tools are available for this. A good piece of advice is to look for those that are in your niche. The next is to reach out to the website owner and inform them of the broken link.
But that’s not all. Offer the site owners a replacement link with one back to your site. At this point, you know what song we are singing, YES, the value song. Make it easy for the site owner to say yes to your link with a value-adding link.
Final Thoughts
Quality link building is a wonderful SEO tool. But it only helps if you do it well. We have looked at backlinks, what they are, their advantages, and how to build them. Consider outsourcing link building to the experts if you don’t have the knowledge. The results will be worth every cent you spend.
