Building meaningful links, also known as link building, is like networking at an event, but for your website. So the good news is the introverts in the room won’t be overcome with anxiety!
Why is Link Building Important?
Link building is an essential part of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Everyone’s favorite subject! Links help search engines find and then rank your website pages. Without links, search engines like Google may take longer to recognize just how excellent your content is. First let’s look at what different link types we have:
- Internal Links: These are links on your website that direct users to other places within your website.
- External Links: These are links on your website that direct users to another website with relevant information.
- Backlinks: A backlink is a link from another person’s or business’s website back to your website. This builds credibility for your website and content.
Not All Links Are Treated Equally
Although establishing internal links is important and can help end-users explore content, it isn’t the same as link building. The ideal goal is to get other websites to link back to your pages, but it is important that these links are credible and beneficial. Not all links should be equally coveted. Take a look at the good and not-so-good link examples below.
Good Back Linking
If you own an elite restaurant, having a review on a renowned food critic’s website that links back to your website will give you more credit on search engines. Hopefully, it is also a positive review! Event bloggers who visit your restaurant and mention it in their post is beneficial! However, the higher traffic and rating a website has that mentions you, the more credit and ranking that link get as well!
Not-So-Good Backlinking
As we mentioned earlier, not all backlinks boost your site’s credibility in the same way. Low-quality backlinks are links to your site from websites with little to no engagement. When looking at sites to help build your backlink network we advise against software or services that promise to add you to “100’s of directory websites.” The key here is to build your backlinks with websites that relate to your business and may resonate with your audience.
Build Great Content
Before even considering building meaningful links, it is essential to have unique website content (see what we did there? what a beautifully placed internal link!) that represents your brand that people want to share with others. This includes a company history, employee bios discussing their contributions to the company, and industry-specific content that highlights your expertise. Creating and sharing content that is interesting to other individuals in your industry or your highly engaged consumer base makes it that much more easy to get those coveted links.
Define Your Audience
Who are you trying to reach with your content? How do those individuals usually consume information? Now, this is the part where the introverts will start squirming. This part feels a lot like networking. Once you have a defined list of ways your ideal end reader consumes information, it is time to reach out to them. Depending on your industry, the communication might look different.
For example, if you have a new tech product you are working on promoting, you could send a few samples to major tech publications asking them for a blog review to be featured on their website. Or maybe you invite a well-known health and wellness blogger to visit your state-of-the-art gym for free in exchange for an article on their blog highlighting how they can use your equipment. It is important to remember people will only add links to your website if it’s in their own or their audience’s interest.
You have to get creative when creating a link-building strategy! If you need help establishing your website content and marketing strategy to grow your business, promote an event, or increase product sales, we can help!