Do you have all the right keywords, but you’re still not hitting your SEO goals? Are you wondering where you’re going wrong?
It’s because your site doesn’t have any backlinks. Sure, you’ve got your external and internal links all in place. But do you have any links coming to your site from elsewhere?
Backlinks are incredibly important for websites, blogs, and online stores. They increase traffic, boost SEO, and encourage trust in your brand or business. And if you don’t have any, you’re missing out.
Keep reading to learn more about backlinks and how to get them for your site!
What Are Backlinks?
Backlinks may sound like something complex at first, but they’re not. They’re simply links that point back to your website. Whenever someone links your business or website on their blog post, that’s a backlink to your website.
Even the links you use to cite sources are backlinks to them. And, when you link your website to a social media post, that counts too!
There’s really no limit to how many backlinks you can have, as long as they’re all good. But it’s more effective to focus on getting good backlinks, rather than a lot of them. With really good backlinks, even one or two can go a long way.
Why Are Backlinks Important?
Backlinks are incredibly important for your website. They help improve your site’s SEO, gain more traffic, and establish more authority in your niche.
Increased Traffic
The main benefit of backlinking is the referral traffic that comes from the link. When your website is linked, people are going to want to learn more about you. And don’t forget that the boosted SEO rankings will bring in traffic.
SEO
The number of backlinks on your website is one of the most important SEO ranking factors. Every backlink your website has raises your site’s chances of ranking #1. But they can’t be just any backlinks. They have to be good backlinks from high-domain websites to be really effective.
Niche Authority
When people link to your business or website, this shows that you’re an expert in this topic. And, not just to readers either. The search engine will also see this and reward you for it.
Good Backlinks Versus Bad Backlinks
Like I said, your site can’t have just any old backlink on a random website.
Why?
Because Google catches onto that like a magnet and will penalize you for it. All your SEO efforts will be entirely wasted.
Good backlinks are:
Natural. They look like they belong in the text.
Relevant to both pages and their content.
From people who WANT to link to your site.
Bad backlinks are:
Just placed randomly in the text.
Not relevant to your content.
Bought from random people offering backlinks.
How Do You Get Good Backlinks?
There are many ways to get good backlinks. Some paid, and some for free. But, you should be careful when buying backlinks.
Remember to only get backlinks that align with your business and webpage content. Spam and unrelated links that point to irrelevant pages will only chase your readers away.
Let’s talk about some ways you can get good backlinks to your website.
Help A Reporter Out (HARO)
This is a website where journalists reach out to industry experts for input on a related piece. You can reply, and if chosen, get your business mentioned linked inside the content.
This method is great for publicity, especially if it’s featured in a highly viewed publication like the New York Times. The trick is to write a relevant reply that impresses the reader.
You can sign up for free at www.helpareporter.com. One thing to remember is that you’ll likely have to submit multiple replies before you’re successful.
Skyscraper Backlinking
The skyscraper backlinking technique is a bit of a lengthy and very tricky task. However, it’s extremely effective and beneficial for more than just backlinking.
Skyscraper backlinking involves finding a high-ranking piece of content in your niche that has lots of good backlinks. You can use a competitor analysis tool like Ahrefs or SEM Rush to help you with that.
After you find that content, you write something even better. Then you ask the people linking to them to link back to your content instead.
Guest Blogging
Guest blogging is the best and most common form of backlinking. This is where you write a blog post that is published on someone else’s website.
This method can sometimes take a long time. But, it’s also quite effective in getting backlinks and publicity for your website. It’s also a great way to network with other websites or bloggers for future collaborations.
If you want to learn more, check out my small business owner's guide to guest blogging.
White Hat Backlinks
I know what you’re thinking “Didn’t you just say not to pay for backlinks?” But, as I said, White Hat Backlinking is different than paying for some random backlinks on Fiverr.
White hat backlinks are a place on their website or another. But unlike bad links, these are relevant and high-quality. These people want to link back to your site or they find people who do.
Cold Emailing
The last method is the good old-fashioned cold email. This is where you find some relevant sites with relevant content and write an email asking them to link to your site.
It’s simple, but it’s a great way to network and build relationships that could be beneficial down the road.
You can even suggest further collaborations with your backlinks to combine the power of two backlinking techniques. For example, you can combine white hat linking and guest blogging.
The Key To Getting Good Backlinks = Good Content
If you want to pull readers down into your rabbit hole, you have to give them something irresistible to follow. Create interesting, unique content that draws in and captures your reader’s full attention.
If you’re not good at copywriting, then this may turn out to be a problem. Your solution? Hiring a copywriter. This saves you time and stress from creating content that others want to link to. You can even hire a writer for other backlinking techniques like guest blogging.
Sound like something you need? Shoot me an email! Let’s chat about how I can help with your backlinking strategy with my content writing services.