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Get a Quote Today!Six Proven Strategies to Build AWESOME Backlinks
Incorporating link building into your SEO strategy is a crucial way to generate referral traffic, improve your website’s ranking and appear more favourably in search results.
Therefore, it’s vital to remain informed about the current tools, techniques and tips that SEO specialists are using to build awesome backlinks and make their websites incredibly valuable.
In this blog post, we’ll look at six proven tactics guaranteed to kickstart your link-building strategy.
Key takeaways
- Backlinks are external hyperlinks linking one web page to another.
- Each backlink counts as a ‘vote’ from another website. The more backlinks you have, the more votes you have.
- The more votes you have, the higher google ranks your content and the more favourably you will appear in search results.
- To acquire links, focus on creating high-quality content with lots of linkable assets that make other websites want to backlink to you.
- Guest posting, broken link building, and the skyscraper technique are excellent tactics to bolster your link-building strategy.
What are backlinks, and how do they affect my ranking in search engines?
To begin, let’s recap some basic information about backlinks and why it’s essential that you make them a part of your SEO strategy.
Backlinks (sometimes known as incoming links or external links) are external hyperlinks that link one web page to another.
For example, if a technology website referenced Bough Digital as an authoritative digital marketing agency and embedded an outbound link to our website, that would count as a backlink.
Backlinks are important because Google treats them as ‘votes’ from other websites. Each vote tells search engines that you are providing credible, high-calibre content.
The more backlinks you have, the more votes you have that tell Google your website is high-quality.
Google will perceive a website with many links pointing to it as more reputable than a website with few links pointing to it.
The more valuable Google perceives your website to be, the more likely it is that your business will appear near the top of search engines.
For this reason, business owners looking to increase their website’s popularity should focus on securing backlinks. We refer to this strategy as ‘link building’.
Link-building tactics should be an integral part of any SEO campaign. Yet, not all backlinks are created equal. A successful backlink strategy is about more than just how many backlinks you have.
Backlinks from authoritative, respected sites are worth considerably more than those from lesser-known sites.
Links that come from reputable sites are often known as high-quality links. Links from high-quality websites are worth more than low-quality links because the ‘vote’ for your company is coming from an esteemed website.
While backlinks aren’t the only way your page is ranked, they play a significant role in dictating your website’s position in search results.
Therefore, building links should be a considerable part of your Search Engine Optimisation strategy.
Link building strategies
Acquiring links doesn’t have to be rocket science.
With a well-designed link-building campaign, you can get backlinks that add considerable value to your company’s website.
Let’s look at six proven link-building strategies guaranteed to help you build backlinks and generate high amounts of referral traffic for your business.
1. Create link-worthy content
Spammy link-building techniques are losing their effectiveness as SEO evolves to be fairer to all businesses.
Instead, the most consistent way to get backlinks is by creating relevant content that others want to link to.
If your SEO strategy isn’t founded on top-tier content, it will fail to make an impact.
To attain new link-building opportunities, always start from the ground up. Focus on your foundational content before you delve into other link-building techniques.
2. Build backlinks using linkable assets
When trying to earn links from high-quality sites, it’s essential to include valuable assets that encourage backlinks. Try incorporating some of these features into your content to attract links from other sites.
- Data-driven research and studies
- Extensive, thorough guides
- Lists and ranking posts
- Case studies
It’s essential that these assets provide value to readers.
Focus on what you can offer that other websites cannot.
Many site owners that don’t have the time to conduct extensive research will instead use outbound links to reference more detailed sites to bolster their own content.
The more linkable assets you include within your own website, the more opportunity there is for link-building and propelling your webpage to the top of the search results.
3. Build links with the 'skyscraper method'
One of the most effective ways to secure quality backlinks and appear at the top of search engines is using the ‘skyscraper method’.
This link-building strategy goes beyond creating high-quality content.
It involves creating better content than your competitors and marketing it to the right people.
You can accomplish this in a few simple steps.
To begin, find high-ranking, proven content that already has a lot of backlinks pointing toward it. This means that site owners have voted for this website as a valuable source.
Next, make content for your own website that’s even better. This could be accomplished by:
- Expanding on concepts and ideas.
- Making your content more accessible.
- Providing more up-to-date information.
After writing content that blows your competitors out of the water, it’s time to send emails.
The twist with this method is that you are sending out emails to site owners who have already linked to similar content within their own websites.
Simply show a site owner your superior work and imply that your content would be a better fit for their website.
If the site owner agrees, they may replace the backlink on their website with yours.
The goal is to write content that makes you the ‘tallest skyscraper’ in your niche.
While your request won’t always be successful, this is the perfect link-building strategy to build high-quality backlinks and generate valuable referral traffic.
4. Build links using guest blogging
Guest blogging is one of the best techniques to secure high-quality backlinks.
This method involves writing an original, unique ‘guest’ post on someone else’s website.
This is a mutually beneficial exchange. They receive quality content that generates organic traffic, and you can insert keywords that backlink to your website.
Guest blogging also builds relations with other websites, making it more likely that they will backlink you in the future.
Remember: when it comes to writing a guest post, it’s about quality over quantity.
The more authoritative and reputable the website you are writing a blog post for, the more effective your link-building will be.
Resist the urge to write a guest post on websites that aren’t related to your industry.
Google may consider this spammy and punish you with a lower ranking in search engines.
5. Link building through resource pages
The simplest way to achieve easy backlinks is through the use of resource pages.
Resource pages are extensive, curated lists of links pointing to relevant websites related to a particular topic.
For example, a resource page dedicated to skydiving instructors would provide links to the web pages of all relevant businesses and individuals that offer this service.
Simply search for relevant resource pages and fill out forms describing your business.
Within minutes, you could secure an excellent backlink and begin driving referral traffic to your content.
While backlinks sourced from resource page sites are less impactful than those from highly reputable companies, these sites are a great tool to launch your link-building strategy.
To find resource page link-building opportunities, see which resource pages provide a link to your close competitors.
6. Broken link building
Broken link building is one of the most effective ways to get backlinks.
It’s so effective because you are offering something to websites in return.
Specifically, you are offering to replace broken backlinks on their website with backlinks to content on your own website.
To attain backlinks using this method, we are looking to find broken links on relevant sites.
To find broken links, install a link-building tool like Check My Links.
This tool will scan websites and inform you if any of their backlinks are broken.
To find broken links, you could search on:
- Competitor’s websites
- Resource pages
- Sites that fit your niche
Next, reach out to the site and propose that they replace their broken backlinks with yours.
As you are doing the other site a favour (no website wants to provide their users with broken links), they will likely accept your request.
This makes broken link-building one of the most effective strategies for securing quality backlinks.
Need more help?
Looking for new ways to build your brand? Here at Bough Digital, we can advise, design and implement a first-class SEO campaign to suit your needs
Our holistic digital marketing approach allows us to create content that conveys your business’s core messages, driving organic traffic and supporting the long-term growth of your company.
For more information about the services we offer, contact us to learn more about our tailored SEO strategies and campaigns.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which backlinks should I avoid?
As mentioned earlier, not all backlinks are created equal. In general, try to avoid these three backlink types:
- Links from sites that aren’t related to your niche
- Links from spammy websites
- Links that feel forced and artificial.
Can Google tell if I pay for backlinks?
In short, yes. Google can tell and will punish any business that attempts to pay for backlinks. Buying backlinks violates Google’s TOS, and Google is becoming increasingly strict when cracking down on unethical SEO tactics.
Is link building difficult?
Unfortunately, there is no easy way to build links. Any site that advertises the next quick hack to build easy backlinks is likely lying. Building links takes time, energy and effort. Lazy SEO will get you nowhere. There are no workarounds – backlink building requires hard work to be effective.
That said, those businesses that do persevere and approach their link-building campaign with consistency will see results. The algorithm rewards hard-working companies for their efforts.