More than half of all online journeys begin with a search, and SEO drives 1000%+ more traffic than social media. And in the world of search engines, Google rules. You probably already know this if you are a marketer or running your business site. Think of the number of companies that invest in link-building year after year. Why else would they go through all that trouble if it didn’t bring results?
Anyone with access to SEO software can confirm that the top-ranking sites on Google have more backlinks than the rest. But this is more nuanced than acquiring links from as many domains as possible. In fact, taking such a careless approach is a surefire way to get blacklisted. There are several types of link-building strategies you can put in place, instead, to boost your rankings more effortlessly. This article will explore a few of those.
Types of Links in SEO: Everything You Should Know
There are several types of links in SEO, but they can all be grouped as inbound, outbound, or internal. The inbound links are those that come to your webpage from other websites. Some people like to call this backlink. It also has a reputation for being the most challenging aspect of SEO. So most companies prefer to outsource it to a blog advertising network specialising in search engine optimisation tactics.
If you have ever written a blog post and then attached a link to another website, then you have used an outbound link. Most top-ranking sites have between 56 to 171 outbound links on average. Internal links, on the other hand, are those that connect to other pages on your website. They are vital for your site architecture as they help search engine crawlers properly understand and index your content. 82% of site owners fail to recognise and utilise internal linking opportunities adequately.
How do you carry out all these different link-building types? This aspect of SEO can be rather tricky, so there is no universal answer to this question. However, here are some ways to improve your links portfolio.
- Internal Links
Of the three types of link building, this is often a good place to start, as you want search engines to be able to crawl your site and understand how the content is all related. You want to ensure that you only use relevant internal links. Each should lead to an important page with related content or one that provides additional information on the topic. How many internal links do you need? A good rule of thumb is to have at least four old relevant links in each new article. Do the reverse by adding new links to old articles.Using doFollow tag attributes to send PageRank around your site is also a good idea. On the homepage, you want to be even more strategic as this is the most authoritative page on your site. Put more links here to other web pages that need traffic. Finally, to make the most out of these types of links, use internal linking to gently guide your users or visitors to where you want them to go.
- Inbound Links
Only 22% of online content will have more than one backlink. So, if you want an impressive inbound link profile, you must create high-quality content. But even this wouldn’t quite cut it. This is why outreach is essential. Reach out to the relevant sites in your niche with high domain authority and ask to collaborate with them. You could submit a guest post to them, for example. Links from trusted sources have a significant overall impact on your SEO ranking.Linkable assets also help to boost your link juice potential. So use them well in your content. Find ways to utilise link magnet content, e.g., how-tos, infographics, listicles, and so on. Remember to study your competitors’ backlinks profiles for linking opportunities. At the end of the day, the truth is that getting backlinks as a beginner can be complex. It takes a lot of time to search for the right websites, carry out outreach and plan your content. But with some consistency and effort, this type of link-building can be easier than you expect.
- External/Outbound Links
It may seem confusing to have links on your webpage that direct visitors to other websites, but external links can positively impact your search rankings. You should always have at least one or two links to high-quality sources in your articles. This can serve as a reference and improve the credibility of your content in general. Remember to use anchor texts correctly and only include those links that add more context to your content.A good tip is to avoid linking to your competitors and ensure each link opens up in a new tab. External links can boost SEO and build connections with other bloggers who might return the favour. So, start applying these types of links right away.
Implement the Latest Link Building Techniques in 4 Steps
Here are some more tips on using the latest link-building techniques.
- Guest blogging. The value lies in using it to build a robust network within your industry. When you offer a fresh perspective on relevant issues, you attract more collaboration, which boosts credibility and rankings. When submitting guest posts, use a Ranktracker to monitor all active web pages and their links.
- Use diversified natural anchor texts. Using keyword-rich anchor texts that look natural and fit the sentence’s context is also essential. Learn the proper ratio and distribution of branded and nonbranded anchor tags. Also, it should be descriptive enough to help the user know what to expect when they click on it.
- Don’t get spammy; start a new trend instead. It may seem like a good idea, but dropping your links in the comments sections of other sites and forums is an excellent way to ruin your brand reputation. Instead, you could start a new trend, and people would follow and link to you. It might not work on the first attempt, but it’s worth trying.
- Contract a white-hat Travel SEO Services instead of using paid links. Buying spammy links is generally frowned upon and could get your website in trouble. But not all paid links are bad, so you need to learn what to do to acquire backlinks from a white-hat SEO agency.
Conclusion
All the link-building methods mentioned have their benefits and can boost your SEO rankings. The best approach is to utilise all of them rather than focusing solely on just one type of link. Since quality is crucial for Google search rankings, the tips here can help you increase organic traffic and click-through rate.
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Article by Pankaj Shah: DCP London Web Designers
