Updated December 2020
If you haven’t heard this before, you need to hear it now: Backlinking is a vital part of ranking well on Google.
It’s something we understand, and we want you to understand it. If you have the time, use the tactics here to create backlinks.
If you’re hiring someone to assist you with backlinking (or helping to rank your site) it’ll be good to know what you’re getting in to (and what questions to ask).
What is a backlink?
When there’s a link on a page (text that’s clickable), and that link leads you to another page on the internet, that link with its accompanying anchor text is a hyperlink “link”.
When that link is directing someone from another website that’s not yours to a page on your website, that’s good, that’s a backlink.
Here’s an anchor text link: Best SEO for WordPress the anchor text is: Best SEO for WordPress.
If this was linking to another website that was in the same niche (WordPress) this would be a good thing for that site owner.
- It’s a backlink with proper anchor text (the anchor text is perfectly in relation to the page it’s linking to).
- The link is near the top of the content on the page.
- The link is a “DoFollow” link.
- The link is from a site with similar content (niche).
Why is getting backlinks important?
Take an election for example. Imagine the candidate getting a powerful endorsement from another person or entity.
If that endorser’s audience is large (if they’re an authority) then that endorsement is very powerful. In fact, most endorsements are good but some help more than others.
The election we’re speaking of in Search Engine Optimization terms is ranking in Google. The winner is the page in the first position when an individual does a search.
Google’s algorithm will crawl websites and see the backlinks from these websites. These backlinks are an endorsement in Google’s algorithm.
The more “endorsements” (backlinks) a webpage receives, the more likely it is to rank higher on Google (and other SERPs).
If the page that is backlinking to your site is in the same niche, has a large audience (is an influencer) the backlink will be worth more. If the site is untrusted “spammy” don’t bother. You DO NOT want a backlink. Links from these sites may negatively affect your outcome.
One Backlink Method that Works
Getting positive backlinks will make a huge difference in how well your pages perform in the SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages).
If you can plan correctly and keep pushing forward, in time, you’ll build a positive backlinking campaign. When done correctly, results will last for years and years.
Keep fostering your on page optimization, continue to update the site’s content and work hard on your backlinking strategies and you’ll continuously bring new visitors to your website.
Find Content that Ranks Well and Attracts Social Attention
You’re going to need to find what’s already working (what someone else is already doing).
If you have a great original content idea, go with that first. You’ll want to take this content you find, make sure it’s getting ample traction and decipher if you can improve it.
If you can find content that’s already working well and has several backlinks to it, you’re set to move to the next step.
Find Content
Finding the content starts with searching for the content. Here are a few tools that allow you to locate content efficiently.
- Search a specific location. If you’re interested in finding what’s working well locally (in some geographical area), you’ll want to use the Google Location Changer.
- Find Semantic Keywords. Semantic keywords are relational in nature. The LSI Keyword Generator will help you nail down semantic keywords.
- Research Keyword Data. Online tools like SEMRush can give you useful data that can help you make decisions on popularity of searches.
- Check Social Activity. An easy way to validate if something is actually popular (not just ranking well) is to see its social share traction.
Create the New Content
This is your chance to improve on the content you’ve found and where your expertise comes in to play.
If you are unable to improve the content, don’t bother going through with all of this. Creativity is not covered in this blog post. But… get creative.
Content can include but is not limited to:
- Written Content
- Great Photos
- Videos
- Infographics
Infographs: They’re a great way to create a powerful visual from standard content you find on a popular post or data you are able to find. The method for creating an infographic is pretty simple.
Infographic Method
Making in Infographic isn’t nearly as hard as you might think.
- Buy the design assets. We like websites like Graphic River and Creative Market. This will provide you with the exact look you want (you don’t have to rely on communicating style to the designer). Pick a design pack and use the elements provided to create the visuals.
- Hire someone. Find a person with experience creating infographs and pay them a fixed rate. We have found success on sites like UpWork, People Per Hour, and Fiverr.
- Give them what they need. Provide anyone you hire with: all text (exactly written out, don’t expect them to do anything more than copy and paste), a sketch of your layout and where the text will go while referencing the elements in the design pack you purchased. Create a number system for your text placement so the designer doesn’t have to overthink anything. This process will eliminate a lengthy back and forth… and frustration.
Get ALL THE BACKLINKS!
Showoff your content to those individuals that have linked back to those sites that have ranked well (that you found earlier).
You’ll do this by first finding all of the pages that are backlinking to the content you’re trying to beat out.
I like to use Open Link Profiler. Here, you can comb through the list to find places that might be a good fit to get a link.
At this stage you’ll need to form an outreach plan. Craft a well thought out email that will resonate and get attention.
This is the tricky part, reaching out to websites and blogs in your niche market, and pitching them on linking to your website in exchange for your free content.
Treat the circumstance as you would in a real world way. Build a relationship of trust and make sure you’re offering something that will benefit and add value to their site.
And that’s it. That is how you build backlinks. Time consuming? You bet! Challenging? That too. But we can help!
We have already established relationships with thousands of websites across every market segment you can imagine.
If you don’t have time to do proper SEO, let’s talk and see how we can help!
Talk to an SEO Professional
Want to ask specific questions and get advice? Reach out to us today and we’ll help coach you on how to get your digital marketing strategy just right. No obligation or cost!
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