Voluminous data flow gets churned today daily, whether business websites, brand engagement through blogs and articles, and others. All work done online has one overarching objective – increasing visibility and traction to reach the intended audience.
One way to increase visibility is through link building services. The intended audience should get the correct message at the right time, but getting your cards in line is complex. Some strategies and methods help you beat the chaos.
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Getting acquainted with link building
If you’ve just begun content creation, then you have reached the right place. Adopting link-building in today’s day and age is paramount. Typically, the services are for SEO purposes.
At the outset, link building is where other websites get linked with yours. How does this happen? You would have heard about jargon such as backlinks, inbound links or simply, links. When websites are connected, it hints at the Google algorithm to increase the ranking based on parameters. When this happens, the google core update adds new information.
Top tips for successful link-building
Before delving into tips and strategies, you should understand why link building is crucial. Think of website linking as votes.
1. Look for Authoritative Links
Taking from web linking is akin to votes; it depends on the quality or authority of the links. That is, high-quality links increase your rank on Google and direct higher organic traffic to your website. For instance, Forbes or Thomson Reuters would entail a higher weightage compared to other websites. High-quality links have a profound impact on the rankings and are showcased through PageRank. PageRank is a Google algorithm that ranks websites in search engine results. Each page is assigned a score of importance and authority by evaluating the quality and quantity of the links.
Not only quality but the position of the links also affects the overall ranking. As a rule of thumb, links placed in the body of the content would rank higher than ones in the footer or sidebar.
2. Including more ‘Followed’ Links
A predicament of sorts, one should note that not all links pass PageRank. The reason is that they are assessed based on different attributes and the primary ones are no-follow, sponsored and UGC (User-Generated Content) links.
Links attributed as no follow posit that Google should bypass them. The two websites – yours and the linked one – will not be associated from a ranking perspective. Secondly, sponsored links are paid ones, and these do not pass PageRank. Links attributed to UGC come from forums and comments. These also do not pass through PageRank. However, links referred to as followed do not have any attributes attached and pass PageRank. Therefore, to increase your link profile, you should include more followed links, provided they come from reliable sources.
3. Relevance to Topics at Hand
Another crucial aspect is to backlink websites and sources closely related to your blog or website topic. For instance, if the premise at hand is about travel, then backlinking with a travel or hospitality brand would stand to gain a higher rank.
Wonder why this is the case? Go back to the reasoning behind the link-building activity. The purpose of doing so is to take you to sites that offer detailed and relevant information. So why would a reader want to navigate to an unrelated website?
4. Captivating and Vibrant Visuals
So prevalent is the advent of visuals that it has become an independent subsector. Illustrators and graphic designers make the core of putting forth captivating visuals. Visuals typically entail images, diagrams, infographics, and charts. However, constant stimulation has paved the way for recent developments of GIFs and Memes. Whatever your visual strategy, they offer a tremendous upper hand compared to nonvisual content links. They are easy to link. When you upload a chart to your site, you receive a notification when shared on somebody else’s site.
5. Beware of Black Hat Links
A paramount aspect, your guide to link-building is incomplete without addressing the black hat. Black hat links breach the Google Webmaster Guidelines. Black hat SEO uses manipulative and even malicious tactics to increase its ranking; it is a strategy adopted for gaining a quick buck.
Like, how we refer to grey areas as interpretative and subjective, the same thing applies to link-building. Yes, there also exists grey hat link-building. Grey hat SEO is the middle ground that uses tactics perceived as manipulative or in violation of the Webmaster Guidelines. It could either improve the ranking of your site or cost you lost traffic. The premise of grey hat SEO is that it could swing either way.
6. Research and Data
Original research has immense value and adds to the overall digital repository. Another benefit is highly linkability, and when external parties cite your data, they get linked to you. Original data also falls under the unique domains. They can move up the ranking of your site to a prominent position.
Final Comments
The voluminous data has created a unique rat race. The primary aim is to increase online visibility and ranking. Among the multiple approaches, link building is the most defining.
There are multiple ways to pursue link building. And if done right, then it is goodwill galore. The top tips for impactful link building are that one should look for authoritative links, include more followed links and site links related to the topic. More so, using visuals, being informed about black hat links and original data.
