It’s no secret that links are important, and Google has been using links since the early days of its search engine. The number of links used influences the page ranking.
Nowadays, this method has no effect on page ranking, but link building strategies still affect your site’s search engine result.
This is because rather than using the number of links on a site to rank it, search engines such as Google analyze the authority and quality of the pages where you build your links. Link building is an integral part of search engine optimization (SEO), but it can be tricky to get right.
This article will teach you how to use link building strategies to improve your site’s ranking.
What is Link Building?
Link building is the process of acquiring links to your website from other websites.
But why is it so important?
Well, as search engines have become more sophisticated, they now measure a website’s authority based on its links. In other words, a site with many links from high-quality sites will rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs).
So how can you acquire links for your website?
There are several strategies to use, but some of the most common include submitting articles to article directories, guest blogging, and social media marketing.
Read on to learn how to implement these and other effective link building strategies.
Why is Link Building Important?
Let’s take a look at why it’s so important that you use link building strategies and how they can help your business.
1. Increase Your Site’s Ranking and Traffic
Link building helps increase your site’s ranking on search engines. The more links you have from high-quality websites, the higher your site will rank. The reason for this is simple. When other websites link to yours, it tells Google and other search engines that you are an authority on the topic you’re writing about.
Hence, the search algorithm makes your site rank higher in search engine result pages. This means that more people will see your site, which leads to more traffic and more customers.
According to a survey, pages that have the highest number of backlinks rank higher in Google. Additionally, pages in Google’s SERP top spot usually have about 3.8 times more backlinks than ones on the second to tenth pages.
2. Build Relationships
The whole point of link building is to create links back to your site from other websites. And that can only be accomplished by building relationships with other site owners and influencers in your industry.
By guest blogging on other sites and leaving comments on blog posts, you’re getting your name out there and making yourself known as someone interested in the same topics as the people you’re trying to connect with.
It can also help you build relationships with customers and clients since you create helpful resources that show you’re interested in helping them.
3. Get Referral Business
There are two main ways that links can help you get referral business: by increasing your visibility and building trust. The more people who see your link, the more likely they will visit your site. And the more visits you get, the more likely someone will convert and become a customer.
When customers see that other reputable websites are linking to yours, it tells them that you are a credible source of information and that they can trust you. This builds trust and encourages customers to do business with you.
4. Increase Brand Exposure
Link building is a great way to increase brand exposure. By getting your brand name out there on other websites, you’re increasing the chances that people will see it and recognize it. And the more people who see your brand, the more likely they will remember it and think of it when looking for products or services you offer.
So if you’re looking for a way to increase sales and build your business, link building is a great place to start.
3 Types of Links That Matter For SEO
1. Internal links
Think of internal links as the foundation of your website. Just as the foundation is the most essential part of a house, internal links are the most crucial part of your website. Why? Because they help you direct users to the pages you want them to see.
Internal links are a critical part of SEO. When you link to other pages on your website, you’re telling search engines that those pages are related and essential. It helps the search engines figure out the website’s context, and when it does, it ranks it better on searches related to that context.
2. External links
External links are links from other websites to your website. They help search engines understand what your website is about and how it’s relevant to the topics people are searching for.
These links show search engines that your website is a good source of information on a specific topic. The more links you have from high-quality websites, the better your website will rank in search results.
3. Backlinks
Every time someone links to your site, they boost your website authority. This tells Google that your site is a reputable source of information and that others trust your content.
However, not all backlinks are created equal. Some are do-follow links, while others are no-follow links.
Do-follow links are the most common type of link, and they pass on authority from one site to another. No-follow links are used to prevent search engines from following a particular link.
Although no-follow links don’t have any SEO value, they can help with brand awareness and referral traffic. Nevertheless, always aim for do-follow links from reputable sources. This could be an industry leader, a government website, or a well-known blog. These links carry more weight because they’re coming from a source that’s already trusted by Google.
Improve Your Site’s Ranking Using Link Building Strategies
Here are 7 fool-proof link building strategies to improve your site’s ranking on search engines.
1. Audit Your Existing Content
Auditing your content is one of the most critical steps to effective link building. It means evaluating your existing content from a link-building perspective. You want to ask yourself the following questions:
- What content is already attracting links?
- What content is ranking well on search engines?
- What content is being shared on social media?
The audit procedure ensures you’re investing your time and energy in content worth linking to. It also helps you identify gaps in your content strategy to create new, link-worthy content.
You can use a few different tools for auditing your content, but our favorite is Ahrefs. Ahrefs is a powerful all-in-one SEO tool that can help you with everything from keyword research to link building to competitor analysis.
With Ahrefs, you’ll see which of your existing content is already attracting links, which pages are ranking well on search engines, and more.
Once you have a good understanding of which pieces of content are performing well, you can begin to incorporate those elements into new content.
For example, if you have a blog post that’s ranking well on Google, you can create a video version of that blog post to attract even more links. Or, if you have a piece of content that’s receiving a lot of shares on social media, you can create an infographic or SlideShare presentation based on that content.
2. Create a List of Target Sites
Creating a list of target sites is vital to ensure you are only targeting high-quality websites and now waste time with sites that won’t give you a link or those that aren’t worth it. Additionally, it helps you keep track of your progress.
When creating your list, you want to target high-quality sites that are relevant to your business. The more relevant the site, the more value the link will have. You should also aim to get links from sites with high domain authority.
Domain authority is a metric that measures the power of a domain name, and it’s based on multiple factors, including age, popularity, and credibility. Getting an inbound link from such a site also improves your domain authority and makes your site rank higher in no time.
There are a few ways to find high-quality sites for link building. One great way is to use SEO tools like Majestic, Ahrefs, and SEMrush. These tools can help you identify sites with plenty of backlinks and high domain authority. But first, you must use Google search results to find relevant sites. Alternatively, you can use Similarweb to find websites that are related to yours.
It would be best to organize your list in a spreadsheet so you can include other relevant data about each website. Ideally, your sheets should have columns for the site’s URL, the domain authority, and the author’s contact information.
If you are just starting with link building, it is a good idea to start small and target only a few sites. You can expand your list as you get more experience.
3. Publish Link-worthy Content
One of the most effective ways to score links is to simply create great content, the kind of stuff that people will want to link to because it’s informative, interesting, or even really well-designed.
People might link to your content if they reference it in their writing (for example, if they write a blog post about a similar topic). You can also proactively reach out to other web admins and ask them to link to your content. This approach can be a great way to get high-quality links from authoritative websites.
So what exactly makes for link-worthy content? First and foremost, your content should be relevant to your target audience. Write about topics that they care about and that are likely to be of interest to them.
One way to identify hot topics is to use Google Trends. This free tool shows you the number of Google searches for a topic within a particular period. So if the numbers are high, it’s a clear indication that you should cover the topic.
The tone expressed in your content also determines how people perceive it. Ideally, you want to sound authoritative. The more authoritative your content is, the more likely people will link to it.
Original research also makes for link-worthy content. People will be more likely to share and reference your content if you can offer unique insights or perspectives on a topic that’s not been published anywhere else. This could be a data-driven blog post, an infographic, or even something as simple as a listicle.
4. Leverage Broken Links
Have you ever clicked on a link only to be taken to a page that says the link is broken? If you have, then you know how frustrating it can be. And not only is it frustrating for you, the user, but it’s also bad for the site owner because it means they’re losing out on traffic.
But here’s the catch—you can actually use broken links building to your advantage. How? By finding relevant pages that have broken links and reaching out to the site owner to let them know.
You can do this by using a tool like Ahrefs or Majestic. Once you’ve found a relevant page with a broken link, reach out to the site owner and let them know. Then, offer to write a replacement piece of content for their site.
This is a great way to build links because you’re providing value to the site owner by helping them fix a broken link, and you’re getting a link back to your site. It’s a win-win.
5. Spy on Your Competitors
One of the best ways to find new link-building opportunities is to spy on your competitors. By taking a look at the backlinks they’ve built, you can not only get inspiration for new strategies, but you can also find potential link partners.
There are a few different ways to go about this. The first is to use a tool like Ahrefs or Majestic to see which sites are linking to your competitor. This step will give you a good idea of where their links are coming from and what content is performing well.
Another way to spy on your competitor’s backlinks is to use Google search operators. You can do this by searching for things like ‘link:competitorname.com’ or ‘site:competitorname.com inurl:links.’ This will show you any pages on their site that contain links, as well as any mentions of their site that contain links.
Once you have a list of potential link targets, reach out and build relationships. You can do this through social media, email, or by giving them a call. The goal here is to build a rapport with the people who control the links that you want.
6. Create Compelling Infographics
When done right, infographics can be an effective link-building tool. We love engaging with infographics simply because we are visual creatures. When you give your audience something easy on the eyes that’s also packed with interesting information, they can’t help but share it with their friends and followers.
But if you want your infographic to succeed, you must ensure it’s high-quality and informative. The first step is to have an interesting and informative idea. Brainstorm a list of potential topics and research to see what’s already out there.
After brainstorming, find data to support your claims. Credible sources like Statista and Gallup provide you with the information you need. Next, find a designer who can bring your idea to life. You can easily find one on freelance job platforms like Upwork and Fiverr. Make sure they have a strong portfolio and good reviews.
Then, provide them with all the information they need for the infographic. The more they know about your topic, the better they can design. It will also help if you give your designer some creative freedom. They should be able to add their flare to the design and make it unique. However, if you’ve got the skills and the time, you can use good graphic design software to create your infographic from scratch.
Once your infographic is complete, promote it on your blog and social media channels. Include a link back to your site within the graphic so people can easily credit you as the source.
7. Leverage Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is one of the most effective marketing growth hacks and inbound link-building strategies available. It allows you to tap into the pre-existing audience of an influential figure in your industry or niche.
When you work with influencers, you can get them to mention your brand or link to your site in their blogs or social media posts. This helps to increase brand awareness and also gets your site in front of a larger audience.
Ideally, you want to look for someone who is an expert in your industry, has a significant social media following, is respected by your target audience, and engages with their audience frequently.
To find an influencer that meets these criteria, you can use a tool like BuzzSumo. Enter a relevant keyword or phrase into the search bar and click ‘influencers’ on the left-hand side. This will show you a list of influencers in your industry, along with their contact information and social media statistics.
Once you’ve found an influencer like to work with, reach out to them and explain your offer. They’ll likely agree to help you promote your content if they’re interested. Remember, when you’re working with an influencer, it’s important to maintain a relationship with them. This way, you can continue to work together and build links over time.
Final Thoughts
In this post, we have explored how to use link building strategies to improve your site’s ranking. But keep in mind that getting links from these reputable sites can be difficult, but it’s worth it. Not only will it help your SEO, but it will also boost your reputation.
One of the easiest ways to get started is by guest blogging on popular sites in your industry. You can also reach out to authority sites and ask for links. Don’t give up on the first email; send follow-ups until the numbers start adding up.
We also compiled a guide on how you can increase your blog traffic using the best SEO tools.