When it comes to marketing topics, SEO is perhaps the most complex one. There is so much you need to know and be aware of, that, at times, it can almost feel like an impossible mission to keep up with everything.
We at Camberlion are here to make your marketing learning experience as straightforward as possible by providing you with well-written, informative and easy-to-understand articles. Today, we will be doing just that by dedicating this article to link building and why it’s so crucial for SEO. In the text below, we will take a look at what link building is, how it’s done, why it’s useful, and provide more helpful advice on how you can make it a part of your marketing strategy.
What is Link Building?
Let’s kick things off by first clarifying exactly what link building is. It’s basically the practice of getting links to your website from another website. These links are referred to as backlinks in SEO, and getting ones from high-quality, reputable sites is a way to make your own site more authoritative in the “eyes” of search engines. As per Google, a key part of identifying which sites are trustworthy is verifying if other already established websites refer or link to the content. That is why link building is considered to be an integral part of any SEO strategy that wants to be successful.
What Makes Link Building So Important?
Let’s imagine the following scenario: You’ve written a great article. However, your website is brand new and has almost no authority as of yet. In this case, getting other websites to link to yours is a terrific way to let Google know your website is worth noticing. You can think of backlinks as votes of confidence for your site. It’s often the case that websites that have more backlinks rank higher on search engine result pages. That’s why it’s vital that you
- Create great content that’s worth linking to.
- Have link building strategies that enable you to have more backlinks.
Remember, link building isn’t easy; it takes a ton of effort, so starting the process as soon as possible gives you a much bigger advantage in the future over competitors who are just starting out.
How Can You Do Link Building?
If you manage to get backlinks from recognizable, high-quality websites, that’s the best way to boost your authority through link building. It’s essential that you remember that even if you have a ton of backlinks, if they come from uncredible, spammy websites, they’re likely not going to help your search engine rank in any way.
Getting credible backlinks is easier said than done but there are many ways to acquire them:
- Writing guest blogs
- Reaching out to owners of great websites
- Pursuing the backlinks of your competitors
You need to keep in mind that backlinks aren’t the be-all, end-all of marketing strategies. The most important thing is the content you create – it needs to be informative, high-quality, and valuable to your target audience. You also need to remember that backlinking is a difficult job for both beginners and experienced marketers alike, so don’t be disappointed if you can’t work things out right away. However, it’s vital to keep trying, as backlinking can become one of your most powerful tools for success.
What Are the Different Types of Links?
When considering a link building strategy, you need to be aware of the three types of links, and we will discuss them below.
Nofollow vs. Follow
Nofollow links are mainly used when you want to link to another website. However, you don’t want the search engines to crawl that site. To make a link a “nofollow” one, you have to add the attribute rel=”nofollow” into the link’s code. This will give Google information that the link shouldn’t pass the PageRank.
Now, you may wonder why nofollow links are even worth mentioning. Well, it’s simple:
- They’re great to use if you need to link to a site but don’t want to market it in any way.
- When that link is profitable, however, for such scenarios, Google created the “sponsored” attribute as an additional backlink attribute and urged users to use it for links that are paid for in any way.
Remember, nofollow links don’t give any authority directly but they can still give you some referral traffic and brand recognition. On the other hand, follow links is a term used for regular links that just have an attribute that informs Google that the link should pass the PageRank. Marketers use follow links when
- They want to give authority to a particular website directly.
- They want to help search engines understand what the content is all about.
Links from Users
Relying on user-generated links as a tactic for link building is not the greatest idea you can come up with when it comes to your SEO strategy. In fact, in the past, Google used to penalize those who tried user-generated linking.
You can sometimes generate such links in an effort to promote your own work. Along with that, they’re also typically of lower quality and so not as great when it comes to what Google prefers as link building methods. Other examples of links from users are
- Profile pages of users
- Unmoderated blog comments
- Ads
- Press releases with heavily optimized anchor text
- Embedded widgets or infographics
Now, don’t get us wrong, links from these types of sources won’t harm your site, but it’s generally a waste of time to put effort into this type of strategy for links that probably won’t pass any authority.
Links from Other Sites or Blogs
Natural links occur organically from people who read your website and decide to include a link on their blog or website without asking you. This kind of backlinking strategy doesn’t require you to ask anyone for a backlink. Typically, natural links aren’t in sponsored or paid posts and lack tracking parameters. Their purpose is to provide value to the reader in one way or the other.
You will see such links in blog posts, images, and other types of informational content on a website. Having a natural link is considered “good” in any case and is one of the safest link building strategies. Along with that, natural links are thought to be one of the best ways to drive brand recognition and promote your content.
How to Successfully Build Links
Now that you have the vital information on backlinking, let’s talk more about how you can successfully build links.
Request Links
This strategy can take up a ton of time and effort, and sometimes it’s not very rewarding to do. However, if you use the right tools, it can be much more effective. If you want to get a backlink from a specific website that you know could help increase the authority of your own page, then it’s likely that you will have to talk to that website’s owner directly and ask him to do it. Before you start going over the entire internet and asking for backlinks, try to keep a few things in mind:
- You should request links from websites in your niche.
- You have to consider the quality and credibility of the other website.
- You need to write a good email that’s professional and intriguing before writing to site owners.
Manually Add Links
When we talk about manual link building, we’re talking about you placing links on websites that refer to your own page. That can happen through comments on blogs, a written guest blog post, or a press release. In this scenario, you’re in complete control of the outcome of the tactics, as you’re not relying on anyone else to link back to your site. These tactics are referred to as “manual link building”; however, you need to consider that the links you’re in control of are usually not of the best quality.
As far as Google goes, any links that are not placed in the editorial piece are thought to be manipulative. It’s vital to not just add links randomly or spam with them.
Manual link building can be a terrific strategy if it’s done correctly. This method can give immense benefits, including referral traffic and also personal branding, as it allows you to place yourself as a thought leader in your industry. Adding links on your own won’t help you gain much of a competitive advantage. As with most quick-win tactics, this one can easily be copied and utilized by other businesses in your niche.
Earn Links
Now, this is where the real link building happens. If you want to get a true advantage over your competitors, you need to have a strategy that enables you to earn editorially placed links. Link earning is a strategy that requires a lot of effort. However, it also gives the best reward. So, if you’re ready to invest resources and time into earning links, that’s the best way to go.
By utilizing this strategy, you will be able to get links that competitors cannot easily replicate. As Google likes to say, “Writing good content pays off.” The better your content is, the more editorial links you will get and you will have a greater chance of your website ranking high on search engine result pages.
When you earn a link, it’s because someone else decided to link to your website, which typically happens. After all, your content is valuable to him or his readers in one way or another. The cool thing is that it adds value to your site and content as well.
Link Building Tactics To Avoid Using
Our main goal is to please Google’s bots and claim a high spot in the search engine result pages with any SEO strategy. However, some link-building tactics considered “quick wins” can easily negatively impact your site. There are some strategies that you should avoid when doing link building.
Buying Links
Despite it being a violation of Google’s rules, this link building tactic is still widely used, mainly because it brings results. Most marketers get discouraged, as earning links takes effort, and so they turn to this “easy” route that is unfortunately only successful at first.
These links are considered to be “toxic,” so it’s a high-risk tactic to use them. Additionally, they often come from sites that aren’t in the same niche as yours and have many outbound links, making them low-quality. In most cases, this “strategy” is not worth it – not only are the results not as great, but you also face the risk of getting penalized by Google, which is something you want to avoid at all costs.
Summary
When it comes to SEO, things are never easy – ask any marketer, and he will tell you the same. Most SEO strategies typically take a ton of time to work and are also challenging to learn; however, the rewards you get from them are worth all the headaches. When it comes to link building, it’s perhaps one of the best tactics to get referral traffic, generate brand awareness and popularize your website in your industry. The information in this article is only the basic info you need to get your link building strategy started. There’s much more to learn about backlinking and how to make it more effective for your company.
If you want to learn more about SEO strategies and other marketing and business tips, then pay a visit to the different articles on the Camberlion blog. Along with them, we also create and share a ton of information on our Instagram and TikTok pages, so you can enjoy some quick wisdom when you aren’t in the mood for reading. We hope to see you soon.