Link Building and Establishing Authority
Link building can be done in a number of different ways and can include both inbound and internal links. Inbound links, also sometimes referred to as external links or back links, are links that typically point from one website to another while internal links connect various pages within your website.
It’s important that all link building is done naturally. Spammy links can severely jeopardise your website’s reputation as search engines have significantly refined the way they view links through sophisticated algorithms.
Link building is crucial, it is the online equivalent of building a reputation, and when coupled with excellent content that visitors want to read and engage with, will go a long way to establishing your authority online.
Excellent content and link building, though, are not enough to outrank your competitors. To truly see the benefits of your SEO campaign, your business needs to establish authority online which can be accomplished by building your brand awareness, nurturing your online audience with content that is not only authoritative and engaging but also worthy of being shared, and earning and establishing links from authoritative sites.
Linking to trustworthy sites is a crucial ranking factor with search engines. To ensure that your site is getting the best out of link building, and won’t be penalised by search engines for being spammy, your site links should always:
- Come from authoritative pages and topically relevant sources;
- Bring qualified traffic to your site;
- Be earned (not bought);
- Increase in number over time;
- Be naturally earned or strategically targeted.
Link building should never just be about search engine rankings though – you want to build an online presence that is sustainable and can stand the test of time. Build a healthy and reputable online presence that can stand up to algorithmic scrutiny and draw valuable traffic to your site. The key to earning high-quality, natural links lies in the quality of the content on your site, content that your visitors are interested in and wish to share and reference.
A well-known thought-leader and link building expert, Eric Ward once said that:
‘You should build your links as though Google might disappear tomorrow. In essence, you should focus on acquiring links that will bring qualified traffic to your website.’
How to Build High-Quality Links:
- Frequently publish content on your site that includes valuable and fresh content;
- Create unique resources that can be widely shared;
- Refurbish popular content by either updating the content and republishing it to the same platform or add it to other platforms, e.g. YouTube, FaceBook, Instagram, etc.);
- Be personal and genuine with the content and all your online activity;
- Get involved in your local community (this is particularly effective for local SEO efforts) – your business could benefit greatly with interactions with your local community, e.g. donations, promotions, sponsorships. This community involvement could result in particularly valuable links.
Establishing authority online is an important part of the SEO process and key to your business’s online success. Throughout the process, ensure that you deliver high-quality content, focus on keeping your clients happy, and seek and earn links from reputable sites that you are happy for your business to be associated with.
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