The Value of Link-Building
Link-building is key to SEO facilitation. Search Engine Optimization runs on algorithms, and when algorithms determine a certain product or service is more popular or relevant to a search query, that search engine populates results that reflect such information.
So if you’ve got a link to your own proprietary mustache wax on hundreds of beard-trimming sites, when someone enters a query about the best mustache wax on the market, your product is more likely to show up in the search results.
Link-building is a major factor in SERP (Search Engine Results Page) ranking. Here’s Neil Patel’s list of link-building best practices for marketers who are already pretty busy to begin with. Beyond Neil’s ideas, consider these five as well.
- Consult With the Experts
What do the experts have to say? There are content marketers who make their living from keeping pace with the market, and helping clients incorporate the latest known best practices. SEO optimization is a moving target. What worked last year may work this year, but in five years time, the industry will likely have shifted entirely.
Take “keyword stuffing”, as a for-instance. When the internet was in its infancy, and Google was burgeoning, an article just stuffed with relevant keywords would quickly climb to the top of SERPs.
Google managers realized this was bad for business, as it put a lot of “spam” at the forefront of search results. So they designed algorithms to anticipate and rebuff such attempts. Consultants can help you determine what sort of link-building strategies aren’t only going to work, but will work best with the algorithmic approaches of today’s search engines.
- Keep Data on What Works
It’s very important to keep careful data on what works, and what doesn’t. As was just stated, earlier link-building practices and SEO tactics won’t keep working like they do now; things change. When you are tracking the performance of varying outreach efforts, you’ll know which link-building strategies are yielding fruit, and which ones aren’t doing you any good.Of course, the easier way to approach this is to work with a reliable agency which can create a custom link building campaign, tailored to your site. - The Guest-Posting Angle
Guest-posting is one of the most important ways to organically build links such that search engines are more likely to produce results that make your business more visible. Here’s a link that can help you look for guest-posting sites that will match what your business does. This is a common practice, and functions as a sort of mutual advertisement between businesses.
When you put a link on a guest-blogger’s site, to a certain extent, they’re now collaterally associated with your business. So look at guest-posting as building business relationships in addition to expanded visibility.
- The Visual Component and Social Media Mobility
People just don’t like to read these days, there’s no nicer way to say it. Because of television, film, smartphones, tablets, and video games, today’s movers and shakers are used to passively ingesting content, rather than actively receiving it. They want to see something, they don’t want to have to interpret it.
To that end, in terms of marketing, it’s a great idea to use things like infographics. These can be filled with hyperlinks, and if you make yours unbiased enough, other businesses may use it as well, organically expanding your operation’s visibility.
On that note, you want to take into account the mobile component as you go about using SEO solutions like link-building. Smartphones have different interface formats with online content, and that means you want to post on guest-blogs that have taken this into account, while simultaneously calibrating all visual content to match the media clients view it on.
- Regularly Produce High-Volumes of Quality Linked Content
Another great way to build links is to simply continuously produce high-quality content. At minimum, you want about four pieces of content a week, or sixteen a month. So about every other day, a new piece of content needs to be put out there. Each piece should have a link that helps send traffic to the right place. Also, it’s a good idea to link both inbound and outbound.
For example, if you regularly post guest blogs on a site that’s similar to your business, a link to them where appropriate is a good idea. Think about it: they’ll do the same for you, and when you’ve got outbound links in your content, that makes what you’ve produced more “legitimate” in the eyes of algorithms to begin with.
So produce lots of content, and incorporate links to and from your site. Ideally, you want customers sticking around on your homepage, but there will be situations where they need to do some more research. If they’re doing it with businesses you already work with, that’s a definite win.
Building Links in a Way That Clearly Enhances Business Profit
Regularly produce high volumes of quality linked content, don’t neglect either the visual component or mobility, guest post as appropriate, keep careful data on everything that works (and that which doesn’t), and consult with the experts. Altogether, these tips should help your link-building campaign be more successful.