Link building is one of the most important aspects of search engine optimization (SEO), yet it can also be one of the most frustrating. There are so many different strategies and techniques that it can be challenging to know where to start.
This blog post will provide an overview of the most effective link-building strategies and some resources that will help you get started. We’ll also give you tips on making the process easier and less time-consuming. So, if you want to improve your website’s search engine ranking, read on!
What Is Link Building?
Before we dive into the details, let’s take a step back and answer the question: what is link building?
The goal of link building is to acquire links from other web pages to your own. These connections function somewhat like testimonials, informing search engines that your site is relevant and trustworthy.
I liken it to the cool kid on the playground putting his arm around the new kid and vouching for them. The end result, the new kid is now cool by association.
Getting high-quality backlinks from relevant websites is a simple and effective way to build credibility and authority for your brand online.
What Is A Link-Building Strategy, And Why Is It Important For Busy Entrepreneurs?
Now that we’ve answered the question “what is link building?”, let’s delve deeper and define what a link-building strategy is and why it’s important for busy entrepreneurs.
As an entrepreneur, you know that online visibility is key to success. After all, if potential customers can’t find you, they can’t do business with you. That’s why a diligent strategy is so important.
Link building helps increase your site’s visibility and authority, making it more likely to appear in search results. It also helps build relationships with other businesses and websites, leading to more referral traffic and opportunities. In short, a link-building strategy is essential for any entrepreneur who wants to succeed online.
Link Building Strategies: What NOT To Do
So now that we are on the same page regarding what link building is and why having a proper link-building strategy is so important, let’s discuss what NOT to do.
Here are ten of the most common mistakes entrepreneurs make when it comes to link building:
1. Not Diversifying Link Sources
Link building isn’t just about getting links from high-authority sites. It’s also important to diversify your link sources so that you get links from various relevant sites with different levels of authority.
2. Relying on Link Exchanges
Link exchanges used to be a popular way to build links, but they’re now considered more of a black hat SEO technique. Link exchanges can still be effective, but you should be careful not to rely too heavily on them.
3. Focusing on Link Quantity Over Quality
It’s not just about getting as many links as possible. The quality of your links is also essential. A few high-quality links will do more for your website than a large number of low-quality links.
4. Not Using Anchor Text
Anchor text is the text that appears on a link. Using the correct anchor text can help you rank for specific keywords.
5. Linking to Low-Quality Websites
Linking to low-quality websites can harm your website’s reputation. Ensure you’re only linking to high-quality sites relevant to your niche.
6. Buying Links
Buying links is generally considered a black hat SEO technique and will likely get your website penalized.
7. Not Linking Out To Other Sites
Linking out to other websites can be beneficial for your website. It shows that you’re willing to share valuable resources with your readers.
8. Linking to the Same Web Page Over and Over
Linking to the same web pages over and over again is unnecessary and can actually be harmful to your website.
9. Linking to Irrelevant Websites
Linking to irrelevant websites won’t help your website rank higher in search engines. Ensure you’re only linking to websites that add value to your visitors and are relevant to your niche.
10. Not Checking Link Quality
Link quality is just as important as link quantity. Make sure you’re only building links to high-quality websites.
Link Building Strategies: What To Do
Now that you know what not to do, let’s talk about what to do.
As we’ve already established, link-building work is one of the most important and challenging parts of SEO. To rank higher in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) and get more search traffic to your site, you need to focus on building high-quality links.
However, with so many different link-building strategies out there, it can be challenging to know where to start.
To help you out, I’ve put together a handful of link-building strategies (along with a few link-building tactics) that are sure to help your SEO efforts:
1. Be Worthy
Do you want backlinks? First and foremost, you must be worthy of linking to. How? Create valuable and engaging content that people not only want to consume but are inspired to link to and share—This can be anything from helpful blog posts to infographics and videos.
Let’s dive deeper still and get a bit tactical.
Write a Pillar Post.
A pillar blog post is a key piece of educational content that goes deeper into a specific topic. The helpful nature of this type of content makes it a great candidate for others to share and link to.
Create a Link Round-Up Post.
A Link Round-Up post is a blog post that includes links to other relevant sites and resources. Not only is this a great way to provide value to your readers, but it’s also an easy way to get backlinks.
Take this one up a notch by informing those you linked to on your blog and ask them to consider sharing and linking to it if they like what you did. Just don’t be attached to an outcome here. Don’t remove the link if they don’t reciprocate. If you do, you’re likely missing the point here.
Give Away Freebies And Resources On Your Website.
Giving away freebies and resources on your website is a great way to attract attention to your site, and it can also lead to some valuable backlinks.
2. Give To Get
Do you want backlinks? Be a giver, not a taker! Begin by giving backlinks to other relevant, deserving entrepreneurs. Doing so will stimulate what is known as the law of reciprocity—a concept coined by Robert Cialdini, Ph.D., in his groundbreaking book “INFLUENCE: The Psychology of Persuasion.”
Your intention and attitude shouldn’t be to now expect a link back in return from that same recipient of your generosity—although occasionally it happens, and that’s cool. Don’t cop an attitude if they don’t reciprocate. Have faith and trust that the universe will deliver—the backlinks will come so long as you are worthy.
Let’s dive deeper and get a bit tactical.
Broken Link Building.
As the name suggests, this involves finding and fixing broken links on other websites and then replacing them with links to your own website. You help other site owners, and they may help you in return.
This tactic can be highly effective, as it not only helps to improve the user experience on the linked-to website but also provides you with an opportunity to acquire a new link. Therefore, broken link building is a tactic worth considering if you want to build links to your website.
Build And Nurture Relationships.
This one spawns from the previous tips. The intention should be to develop relationships with other bloggers and influencers in your industry. Doing so can help you get your content shared and promoted and may also lead to some backlinks.
Band together with other link-minded entrepreneurs as well to help one another. Link building is a team sport.
Let’s dive deeper still.
- Interview with someone in your industry: This is a great way to build relationships with others in your industry and may also lead to backlinks.
- Get involved in the comments section on other sites and blog posts: This is a great way to start building relationships with other people in your industry and may also lead to some backlinks.
- Participate in online forums and discussion boards: This is a great way to build relationships with others in your industry and may also lead to backlinks.
- Guest blogging on other websites in your industry: This is a great way to get your name and your website’s URL out there in front of a new audience. Plus, at a minimum, you can include a link back to your own site in your author bio.
3. Ask For What You Want
In this world, if you don’t ask, you may not get what you want. Want backlinks from a specific website or influencer in your niche, be worthy, develop a relationship with the site owner and ask for the backlink. Be sure to only contact sites relevant to your niche with high domain authority.
4. Get Social
Leverage social media platforms to promote your content and build relationships. This is a great way to get your content in front of a large audience, and it can also lead to some valuable backlinks.
Understand, though, that wherever you decide to play on social media, play hard—own the platforms your target audience hangs out on. Then, create a win/win scenario by adding value to others. Doing so will likely trigger the law of reciprocity once again, and others will add value back to you—possibly in the form of expanding your reach by sharing your content or even creating some valuable backlinks.
5. Get Visible
Others won’t link to you if they do not know you exist. So get your brand out there!
Let’s get tactical.
Directory Submissions.
With this tactic, you submit your site’s URL and information about your business to online directories. Doing so helps to increase your site’s exposure and can lead to more backlinks.
It’s important to note that not all links are created equal. To maximize the effectiveness of your link-building strategy, be selective about the directories you submit to and ensure that your site’s listings are accurate and up-to-date.
Tips for Making Link Building More Efficient and Less Time-Consuming
Link building can be a time-consuming and daunting task, but it’s an essential part of any SEO strategy. Luckily, you can do a few things to make the process more efficient and less time-consuming.
Identify your link-building goals.
What do you want to achieve with your link-building campaign? More traffic? Higher rankings? Once you know what you want to achieve, you can create a more targeted and effective strategy.
Make Use of Link Building Resources
There are several great tools and resources available that can help you with every stage of the link-building process—from finding link opportunities to monitoring your progress.
A few tools that come to mind are SEMrush, Link Prospector, and BuzzSumo. These tools can help you find high-quality link opportunities, saving time and effort.
Focus on quality over quantity.
A few high-quality links are worth more than hundreds of low-quality links. So, don’t waste your time pursuing low-quality link opportunities.
Track your progress.
Obtaining backlinks can take some time to show results, so tracking your progress and measuring your success over time is essential. Doing so will help you to adjust your strategy as needed and ensure that your efforts are paying off.
How do you know if your link-building efforts are paying off?
If you’re putting in the effort to build links, you probably want to know if it’s actually doing anything. Link building can be a lot of work, so it’s important to ensure that your efforts pay off. Here are a few ways to tell if your link building is working:
You’re getting more traffic from organic searches.
One way to tell if your link building is working is by looking at your traffic from organic search. If you see an increase in traffic, it’s a good sign that your efforts are paying off.
Your rankings are improving.
Another way to tell if your link building is working is by looking at your rankings. If you’re seeing your keywords moving up in the SERPs, it’s a good sign that your links are helping.
You’re getting more social shares.
Link building can also help you get more social shares. If you’re seeing an increase in the number of times your content is being shared on social media, it’s a good sign that your links are helping to promote your content.
You’re getting more backlinks.
Of course, one of the best ways to tell if your link building is working is by looking at the number of backlinks you’re getting. If you see an increase in backlinks, it’s a good sign that your efforts are paying off.
Link Building FAQs
Link building is one of the most essential yet challenging SEO strategies. As a result, entrepreneurs often have questions about it. What follows are some of the more common link-building FAQs.
Is link building dead?
No. Link Building is far from dead; however, the strategies have changed over time. Link building continues to factor heavily in search engine rankings.
Do I need permission to link to another website?
No, you generally do not need permission to link to another website.
How do I choose the right link-building strategy for my business?
Choosing the right strategy for your business depends on several factors, including your budget, time constraints, and objectives.
If you're just starting out, you may want to focus on some of the more common link-building strategies that are less time-consuming and expensive, such as guest blogging, directory submissions, or setting up a resource page on your site that other site owners might want to link to.
As your business grows and you have more resources available, you can start to focus on more complex and time-consuming strategies, such as broken link building or infographic marketing.
Whichever link-building tactics you choose, ensure that you are consistent with your Link Building efforts to see the best results. The object is to create a backlink profile chock full of natural links pointing to your site.
How much time does link building take?
That is a tricky question to answer—it depends. Link building can take a lot of time, depending on how many backlinks you want to create. However, the upside can be enormous for your business. The key is to find the sweet spot between the time you are willing to invest and the number of backlinks you desire.
Of course, if you have more money than time, you could always outsource your link-building efforts to a reputable SEO agency.
Final Thoughts: Link-Building Strategy
SEO is a complex and ever-changing field, but using the right SEO tools and techniques can streamline your link-building process and get better results.
We hope this article has helped to give you some ideas about how to build links for your business. Don’t hesitate to contact us if you need help putting together an effective SEO strategy. Our team of experts would be happy to help you take your business to the next level.
Thanks for reading!
