Top 5 Ways of Creating Backlinks

Relevance entails understanding what your target audience is searching for and how best to deliver it to them. If your content is irrelevant, then Google will not bring it up as a search engine result.

Authority has different meanings to various people. However, what is important to us is how Google sees it. Now, it all comes back to backlinks.

This article will cover the meaning of backlinking, its importance, and efficient strategies for doing backlinking.

What are Backlinks?

Backlinks are links that promote a website. For example, I have a site that deals with foods. Someone else has a blog that is related to health and food. Suppose the person includes a link to one of my articles on their website. This is backlinking, and search engines assume the website is trustworthy.

Search engines identify backlinks and use them to rank websites. Quality and quantity are two aspects of backlinks. High-quality backlinks optimise a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results.

Benefits of Backlinking

Website owners cannot discuss optimization without talking about backlinks. The most pressing question is: why are backlinks very important? Here are some benefits of backlinks:

Improves Ranking

Backlinks provide more exposure for your website. In addition to exposure, it also shows your site is trustworthy. Search engines and internet users perceive your web page as a trusted source in the industry. Therefore, you can get a higher ranking in search engine results.

Another benefit of links is that it allows Googlebot to find new pages on the web. Backlinking is one of the strategies to get Google to index your page content faster.

Helps Build Credibility of the Website

Building credibility is more about quality than the number of backlinks to your website. Quality backlinks build credibility and trustworthiness for your business. For example, you just started a fashion blog. The chances are that people do not know about you. However, suppose a reputable business mentions your site. This will give you credibility and help search engines see you as trustworthy.

Apart from search engine ranking, it also tells the audience that you have a good relationship with other people in the field. Communicating and networking are important in building your business.

Increases Traffic to your Website

As we have mentioned earlier, backlinking involves mentioning your site on another brand’s page. When their audience comes across your site, there is a high chance that they will click on it. This directs them to your page, and over time, the traffic to your website experiences an exponential increase. Therefore, getting backlinks from authority sites related to your niche is important. Authority sites already have an excellent ranking, and many people visit them. As a result, you open up your brand to a world of new and potential visitors, subscribers, and clients.

Characteristics of quality backlinks

Domain Authority

The domain authority is an essential aspect that Google considers. For example, suppose you get a recommendation from Yale for a job opportunity. Another candidate gets from a school with a low reputation. You have a higher chance of getting the job because your letter of recommendation carries authority.

Nevertheless, getting backlinks from authority sites is challenging. The good news is that it is worth all the stress because organic traffic to your site increases.

Different domains

Suppose you have earned backlinks from three different websites. Another blogger has ten backlinks from the same website. Don’t be surprised that your ranking will be higher than the blogger with ten backlinks. Statistics show that the number of sites you have earned a backlink from significantly influences Google ranking.

Do follow link

There are two types of backlinks- “dofollow” and “nofollow.” Suppose your backlink has the “dofollow” tag. You are safe because this is a valuable backlink. However, it is irrelevant if the backlink has a “nofollow” tag. More so, “nofollow” links do not count for search engine ranking.

Top 5 Effective strategies to create backlinks

Optimise Your Content

The importance of quality content cannot be overemphasised. Creative content is a winning SEO strategy that all website owners must use. Quality content must be:

• Relevant
• Creative
• Engaging, and
• Informative

Other websites or brands will be eager to put a link to your content on their website if it is valuable. They must determine if the content is useful to their target audience. In addition, they must ensure that using a backlink increases the value of their brand.
Therefore, focusing on high-quality content may get you the breakthrough you need. As a result, other brands can appreciate your unique expertise in the field, which leads them to trust you enough to get a mention.

Consistency in producing quality content makes you a trusted source, which is one of the ways to get quality backlinks. This strategy puts you in a position where other brands can reach out to you. Alternatively, they would be more inclined to use your content if you reach out to them.

Here are some tips for developing content that would make others appreciate you as an authority:

• Your content should be tailored towards providing precise answers or solutions to problems.
• The information should be presented in a detailed step-by-step explanation to avoid confusing the audience.
• Content must be unique and engaging to pique the interest of the audience to want more naturally.

Directory Backlinks

Getting backlinks is not a walk in the park for individuals who recently started a blog. However, one of the easiest ways to get a backlink is to get a listing on web directories.

Directory backlinks are a sure way of getting quality backlinks without too much stress. In addition, it helps to build the trust and credibility of your website. As a result, it will earn domain authority.

Each listing your website gets is an increase in brand awareness. Consequently, traffic to your website organically increases without too much work from you.

There are several directories that you may use, including those that are specific to your industry. The good news is that some directories offer free listings, which you can maximise by finding them, submitting your information, sitting back, and letting your website traffic grow. On the other hand, you need to pay to submit your information to some directories. The advantage of paid directories is that they promise better chances without much effort.

Examples of web directories include Foursquare, Better Business Bureau (free directories), Yellow pages, and Manta (paid directories)

Backlink analysis

Manual backlinking is an SEO mistake that many website owners often make. There are so many technological advancements available, especially since the last century, that you do not need to search for links manually.

You can optimise your backlinking strategy by using more reliable, effective, and efficient tools. All you have to do is relax and let the tools do their job.

Here are some backlinking tools for you:

• Ahrefs
• Majestic SEO
• SEMRush
• Moz Link Explorer
• Linkody

Alternatively, you can reach out to a website with a broken outbound link. You suggest they replace the broken link with a link from your website. However, your web page has to contain high-quality and engaging content. Otherwise, your website would not be a good source.

Replacing a broken link with yours is a win-win situation. It improves user experience on the site while increasing traffic to your web page.

Nevertheless, you need a good tool to identify websites with broken links. Afterward, you can create a relevant article that can be a perfect replacement. The final step is to reach out to the owner of the website. Send a short, concise, and convincing email on how you both can benefit from the arrangement- you are getting a backlink while they have relevant content for their audience.

Furthermore, you can perform a backlink analysis on your web page. Backlink analysis involves finding broken links, fixing 404s, removing redirects, and making updates (HTTPS or HTTP) on your site.

Reach out to request a backlink

Reaching out to people is an effective strategy to get backlinks. They could be business partners, clients, or collaborators. Suppose a website mentions your brand. You can leverage this mention to ask for a backlink.

However, it is not that straightforward. The success of this strategy may be significantly influenced by the relationship or niche. Suppose you do not have a close relationship with any individuals that you need to request a backlink. You can send an email proposing a collaboration. Therefore, they get a backlink from you, and you get one from them. This is a mutually beneficial scenario that they are more likely to accept. Remember that this strategy and many others will fall through if you do not have optimised content.

Suppose you get a backlink from a high-authority website. Google identifies your web page as an authoritative source in the niche. This is because backlinks are like votes of confidence. Therefore, it will increase your website’s ranking in search engine results.

Here are some things to consider when reaching out to others for a backlink:

• Suppose you are sending an email. Keep it short, polite, and factual.
• Provide points that will convince them that the relationship will be mutually beneficial.
• NB: some individuals may not respond to you if there is nothing to gain on their part.
• Include the anchor text to make it easier for them.

Guest Posting

Guest posting is one of the most effective ways of expanding your brand to a new audience. In addition, guest posting can make you earn quality backlinks.

Writing articles or blog posts for authoritative websites places your brand in a position to get more exposure than you can imagine. More so, it improves your social media presence which helps your brand to grow. Subsequently, the traffic to your website will increase, which will optimise the website’s search engine rankings.

This is an effective strategy, but your work is cut out for you. The first step is to research to identify websites that can accept guest posts. Focus on popular brands within your niche and find out if they welcome the idea of guest posting.

In addition, you can search for websites that embrace guest posting by searching keywords like “guest posts” or “write for us.” However, do not limit your search to Google. Twitter and Facebook are also excellent platforms for finding guest posting opportunities.

Link Building Pitfalls to avoid

We have discussed link-building strategies that work. It is also essential to point out some strategies that will only ruin your website’s ranking. Some backlinks are not organic, and Google perceives them as “Spam,” which could lead to penalization.

One mistake new bloggers often make is focusing on several links. Google, on the other hand, prioritises relevance between backlinks and web pages. Therefore, getting relevant and authoritative backlinks to your website is the best option.

Other practices that may get you in trouble include spamming links in the comment section, misleading redirects, and buying links.

Furthermore, Link building is not a day’s job. It requires patience, hard work, and commitment. However, if you implement the right strategies, your website will earn relevant backlinks.

Conclusion

Backlinks are essential for a brand. This is because it may be all you need to get exposure for your brand. Many people can access your web page, and they may become customers and long-term collaborators.

The hard truth is that your website ranking will suffer if you cannot implement a working backlink strategy. Maximise the five strategies listed in this article, and you will be surprised at the outcome.

Finally, take note of the pitfalls. Avoid taking the short way to get backlinks. It may be productive at the beginning. However, it won’t last, and your website ranking will plummet to the ground instead of soaring.