The backlink is a kind of Internet pointer. It links one specific site to other external web resources containing links to this site. In this article, our Nashville SEO agency will review how to build backlinks properly.
Backlink building strategies are an integral part of website SEO promotion and digital marketing strategies. They help search engines to crawl your site and understand the theme of the pages. The PageRank algorithm, despite the long and active evolution, still takes into account the reference profile of a specific page and domain as one of the most important ranking factors. This is why every website owner wants to get as many backlinks as possible.
Number and quality of backlinks
Unfortunately, backlink strategy that works is not free (especially at the beginning), and their creation requires a lot of time and effort. That is why it is fundamentally important to learning how to make each acquired reciprocal link as profitable as possible.
For this, first of all:
- conduct a technical optimization of the page and the entire site;
- create a reliable site architecture;
- create interesting content.
Now about each step in more detail.
There should be no technical errors on the site
But nevertheless, they will be. The larger the site, the more likely that you will not have time to correct all errors in time.
Here is a list of the most popular problems you’ll probably encounter:
- 302 redirection (URL);
- 404 errors;
- incorrect use of commands (nofollow, noindex, etc.);
- slow download speed;
- copies of the content (plagiarism);
- redirection chains;
- site adaptability;
- canonical errors.
Improve the architecture of your site
A strong and reliable site architecture almost guarantees the effectiveness of backlinks. The better the architecture, the fewer links you need to get the results you need.
Create interesting content
But thousands of links and good architecture will not save in the presence of bad content. Avoid publishing bad or so-called “junk” content.
Risks during placing links
There are two main tactics for link placement:
- Risky, with a decent chance to get penalties.
- Safe way to post.
Now it is better to choose the second path. Recently, the site could be promoted within a month with the help of PBN (Private Blog Network) backlinks. Then Google created a sandbox that made the site owner wait at least 3 months until the effect of PBN backlinks manifested.
How to check links to the site
It’s no secret that getting good quality backlinks is one way to improve your site’s position on Google. But how to distinguish good links from bad ones? Careful selection, verification, and analysis of backlinks is a very important task for anyone who wants to optimize their sites. There are many different backlink checker tools that can help you check if your backlinks are trustworthy and can bring value to your website.
First of all, check the parameters of the links:
- Start with PageRank. This is one of the most valuable factors that have a great impact on your site. The logic is as follows: if sites with high authority link to yours, your site is also a trust. This parameter can be verified by the online link analysis tool Ahrefs. Add the required URL to the Ahrefs search bar and check its ranking.
- Traffic. The fact is that you do not need links from sites that no one visits.
- Link dofollow / nofollow. The tag rel = “nofollow” was created to prevent Google bots from crawling all links on the site. As a rule, dofollow links are more valuable than nofollow.
Backlink analysis tools
All the key factors of these links can be easily investigated using the Ahrefs backlinks check tool using Batch Analysis. It is very convenient when you have to check a large number of potential donors for the desired links. In addition, you can check the domain rating (DR). Just add the necessary URLs.
To learn more about using this tool, try the Ahrefs test account. With it, you can check your site, evaluate links, domains of competitors and build a winning link building strategy.
Secondly, it is better when links to the site are related to your niche. Such links are called relevant.
What does relevance mean? Imagine that you have a blog about tips on creating websites, but you have found a reputable website about makeup trends. According to Google, this source will not be ideal for you, because sites with high authority must be closely related to yours. The same goes for the content in which your link is located.
Rules for obtaining relevant backlinks
1. Maintain the relevance of your links.
Relevance depends on the following points:
- general topics of domain content that links to the page;
- the content of the linked page;
- the relevance of backlinks that refer to the domain.
Check the relevance of links with, for example, Majestic SEO Trust Flow.
2. Search for reputable sites
Links from reputable sites enhance your reference profile more than regular links. Analyze competitor links with Ahrefs, Semrush, Majestic, Serpstat and Link Strategy, and try to place it on the reputable authoritative domains found.
3. Concentrate on sites with real traffic
A link from a site where there is traffic looks more natural and will be much more efficient. Check domains for traffic using SimilarWeb, Ahrefs, Semrush before posting links and you will save yourself a lot of time and effort.
4. Be careful when choosing anchors
If the text of anchors looks unnatural, and you incorrectly place it, there is a threat to receive penalties. Most backlinks should be branded or without anchors.
Placing backlinks
1. Catalogues with niche targets
Although directories are considered meaningless and worthless, there are some that may be useful (especially at the beginning). They are called niche target directories and are able to provide you with relevant dofollow links. It’s not so easy to find them, so you should search for them using the following combinations in Google search:
Niche + “add site”
Niche + catalogues
Niche + catalogue
2. Social networks
Create company pages in such social networks:
Initially, such accounts are registered only for the first links. Further, you may notice that in some of the networks your content finds a great response from the audience, and this site should be given more time.
3. Directories with regional reference
Such directories are an essential source of links for local businesses.
You should do either local SEO optimization services or use as an option the following hints to find geo-targeted directories:
- Catalog + city name
- City name + catalogues
- City name + directory
- niche + city name + directory
- add site + city name
4. Backlinks from forums closely related to the niche
- Try to find related forums;
- Make your profile true and detailed information;
- Follow forum rules;
- Make lots of posts and make friends;
So, when you find the appropriate forum, make sure that you create a high-quality profile description. Then study the forum, its rules and how it works. Examine the forum to see if its members are sharing links in discussions. Become a reliable person, making more and more friends and posting.
5. Comments on niche blogs
Posting comments on these blogs help:
- notify the search engines about the site;
- receive referral traffic;
- significant to modify your anchor sheet;
- make acquaintance with bloggers, and then post links already in partnership articles.
It is important that the comments complement and expand the topic described in the article by the author. Write about the best decisions that you know, a quote from official sources, etc.
6. Merge method
This procedure consists of two stages:
- Find the relevant dead domain;
- Configure from it 301 redirects to your site.
7. Effective use of relevant dead domains
Acquiring an expired domain is dangerous. You need to check its history and relevance. These resources can help you find an expired domain:
- PR Powershot;
- Freshdrop;
- DomCop;
- ExpiredDomains.net.
How to earn backlinks
1. The user must be interested in your content.
When a user of the Internet starts looking for something, he tries to solve a specific problem or achieve something. The main goal is to help him find a good solution. Do not be obsessed with only the volume of the article and keywords. Think about user needs.
There is no difference between articles of 40,000 and 1,000 words when we talk about their values. Try to create high-quality content and do not pay attention to any stereotypes.
2. Your content should be unique, attractive and valuable.
Why does the content of a site fail? There are several reasons:
- His information is outdated. For example, there are almost no people who want to read about the iPhone 5 when the iPhone X already exists.
- He lacks research and numbers. This usually happens when a blogger wants to be first and forgets about quality. He publishes general provisions that will not last long.
- He does not take into account the level of knowledge of his reader and is considered “too clever and difficult to understand” or “too simple, as for school children.”
- It is not convenient for reading due to the lack of paragraphs, bright headings, proper design, images, and lists.
3. Do what others do not
Do not be lazy and improve your content daily. Do not write only short or long articles. Try different options, but do not forget about the quality. Remember that some users do not like to read a lot, while others prefer long-read and a detailed explanation of the problem that they are going to solve. This is an especially important strategy of digital marketing for small businesses.
4. Look for new profitable connections.
Your blog should not be isolated. Nothing can be better than strengthening relationships with famous bloggers. This is not easy, because you have to show that you can be useful to them. This is only possible if there is high-quality content.
It is important that your name is always visible due to the repetition of well-thought-out comments and non-binding email distribution. Ask the bloggers how you can help them. This is the best way to start a partnership.
Now you know much more what is backlink SEO. We hope that our detailed SEO backlinks strategy will help to improve your ranking and get more business. Though, if you face any issues with your search engine optimization, our professional UPQODE team is ready to help!
