Fun fact: The number one factor that impacts Google Rankings is a link!
Before the inception of Google, search results were ranked based on the webpage's content. However, the entry of Google was a complete game-changer as it moved the focus to link quantity and link quality. Christoph C. Cemper, the CEO and Founder of LinkResearchTools and Link Detox, once said that “Ranking without links is really really hard”. The foundation of the Google Search Engine is based on links and it has not become obscene even after nearly 20 years.
Earlier, link building was based on quantity, and not quality. But now, the game is totally different. It is like apples and oranges. For starters, link building is the process of linking your website to other websites in order to improve search engine visibility. While this might sound simple, I’d like to point out that unique links are tough to build. So how are you going to create them?
Here’s a guide to walk you through the top 10 SEO link-building methods for this year:
1) Having superior content:
This forms the crux of link building. People prefer promoting content only if it is worth it. Having quality content might actually help you in earning a natural link. So, if link building is your end goal, you need to get serious about your content!
2) Promoting it the right way:
The power of digital promotion is implausible. A website or a blogger won’t probably add a link to your content if he doesn’t discover it on social media. Hence, you should take this power of digital PR to your advantage. The three best ways to promote content are:
- Advertising your content to the right audience to get more backlinks.
- Build up relations with people having successful websites who could link your site to theirs.
- Consistently share your content on social communities like groups of Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.
3) Guest Blogging:
According to SEO experts, guest blogging is extremely powerful. It is an efficient way to get tons of high quantity backlinks. This is a simple process of three steps:
- Find websites to pitch your guest post ideas to.
- Find topics to write about.
- Write content and get it approved/published on their blog, ideally with a link back to your site.
Now, before you start pitching on websites, always remember to pitch more sites than you can handle because every site won’t respond or accept your guest post. Additionally, as the best practice, it is recommended to add links to other guest posts that you’ve already published for greater visibility and for promoting the pages that are already linked to you.
4) Give a testimonial:
Testimonials are another great way to build links since they are beneficial for both parties. When a business gives you a chance to share an experience using their product, they’re actually building customer trust. You can use this to your advantage by getting a backlink for your website. Thus, this becomes a win-win situation for everybody.
5) The Broken Link Strategy:
Work hard, play smart! If you come across any blog with a dead link, you may request the blogger to replace the dead link with your website’s link. In such a situation, you’ll need to ensure the content on your link is similar to the one present on the last link.
This is considered a smart move since instead of begging for backlinks, you’re actually helping the blogger enhance the user experience on their blog page.
6) Checking on Dead Backlinks:
Do you know you’re constantly losing your backlinks?
Yes, as scary as this may sound, it is true. You might lose on some backlinks because of the following reasons: low-quality links got expired, the site doing the link simply got expired, the URL structure has changed, etc. In a nutshell, you can’t stop link death. But what you can do here is retain your existing backlinks by checking them periodically.
7) Resource Page linking:
Resource pages link out other websites that have the best content on a particular topic. Since their sole purpose is to link out pages, they are an excellent source for link building. Resource page linking can be done in four simple steps:
- Find a good resource page.
- Go through the page content to approximate where your link might be added.
- If the link position is good enough (like somewhere on the first page), find the content of your site that best fits the resource page’s content.
- Share an example article/script with the resource page.
8) Claiming unlinked mentions:
Sometimes people might mention you without linking your business. This might happen more than you can imagine and you can get a decent amount of backlinks from such situations. All you got to do is contact the owner of the website or blog that mentions your content and request a backlink.
9) Tracking Competitor’s Backlinks:
Always be aware of your competitor’s strength! It is important to know your competition to dominate the market. Therefore, you should always keep a close eye on your competitor’s backlinks and try to inculcate their successful link-building tactics to get similar links and outrank your competitor.
10) Using Infographics:
No matter how crisp your article is, some users find it easy to grasp knowledge visually. Using infographics is a tried and tested strategy that often yields excellent results. Adding images can instantly boost the number of backlinks.
To conclude, link building isn’t difficult but it isn’t a piece of cake either. You just need to improve your existing link-building skills and try to inculcate new ones now and then. There is no hard and fast rule for success in this field. It eventually comes with consistency. That said, having a plan of action is necessary.
Happy link building!
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