Most individuals who dabble with online marketing have heard of the term "backlinks" before. We think we know what they are, but do we really understand them?
Not to the level, we should, at any rate.
This post will explain what backlinks are, why they are essential to SEO, and how you get them. We'll also show you a few things about backlinks you didn't know before and give a few tips on how to figure out whether your backlinks are good or not.
So start reading!
What Are Backlinks?
Basically, backlinks are what they sound like. They are links that point to your website from another page or website.
When someone leaves a comment on another site linking to yours, that's one kind of backlink. When other people have linked to you in their posts without it being an explicit link (i.e., mentioning your name), that's another type of backlink.
You get the idea.
When someone links to your website, you are getting a backlink.
What they don't tell you is that there are different kinds of backlinks – which brings us to the next point...
Why Are Backlinks Important For SEO?
SEO is search engine optimization - the art and science of ensuring that Google ranks your web pages, for the keywords you have targeted, as high as possible in its search results.
And Google uses backlinks as part of its algorithm for how it ranks pages. The more relevant websites which link to your site, the more likely Google will show it for searches related to those keywords.
The more quality and relevant backlinks your site has, the more authoritative Google will perceive it to be when its crawler robots visit it.
Authoritative basically means that you are an expert in the field related to the keywords associated with your website.
For example, if you had a webpage about dog training tricks, and someone linked to that page using keywords like "dog training tips," your website would appear as an authority on those topics - and Google knows this.
But if someone linked to your dog training tricks page using a backlink with the keyword "cheap protein powder" or something even less related, it wouldn't be as effective.
So yeah, that's the nitty-gritty.
What Are Some Kinds Of Backlinks?
Not all backlinks are created equal.
There's an unspoken rule from Google stating that it favors quality over quantity. So, just because you have a million websites linking to yours doesn't mean they will rank as high as a website with top-notch, high-quality backlinks.
And there are a few different kinds of backlinks, too:
1. No-Follow Backlink
This type of link will not affect your ranking in search engine results because it tells Google that the website owner doesn't want to pass on PageRank (i.e., value). The value passes from site A to site B via a link, and no-follow links tell Google that they don't want to contribute to the value of the target website.
These are commonly used in guest blogging-type promotions - sites like Forbes and Huffington Post often ask for high-quality content from you, which is great for your blog... but they don't let everyone know that you're the source of that content.
2. Do-follow Backlink
When someone links to your website with a do-follow link, it means they are passing on value to your site (i.e., PageRank). Google will change its ranking algorithm depending on how many high-quality backlinks you have pointed to your web page.
3. Footer Backlink
A backlink in the footer of another page is considered one of the best quality links you can get. Google considers a page with a backlink in a footer authoritative and trustworthy, which makes perfect sense because webmasters wouldn't put a random link on another site if they didn't think it was an excellent source.
These are the three main types of backlinks you will be looking for as a beginner. Let's talk about how you can get some...
How Do You Get Backlinks?
There are several ways you can get quality backlinks to your website, some of which include:
1. Social Media Sharing Links
Sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ can be valuable sources of backlinks because they allow the owners of those social media accounts to link to any web page they choose - which means you can ask them to link to your site.
Here's the thing, though: you need content that compels people to share it for this strategy to work because social media sharing seems random at times - there are no guarantees here.
2. Guest Blogging
Guest blogging is one of the best ways to get quality backlinks from other authority-type websites. It works because you're essentially getting a link on a website that's recognized as a leader in its industry, which tells search engines that your site is also authoritative and trustworthy.
To do this right, start by finding some blogs with more traffic than yours - these are the sites that will have an easier time getting you quality backlinks in return.
3. Forums And Other Community Sites
If your business provides solutions to problems other people have, seek out forums and post on them with links to your website. If someone sees the value of what you're offering, they might link back to you - but make sure you're giving them something of value in return.
4. Social Bookmarking Sites
Social bookmarking sites work because they allow users to mark web pages and store them for other people to see and potentially click on - which means these sites can be excellent sources of backlinks if you use them right.
5. Press Releases
This is another source of backlinks that can help increase your site's visibility in search engines. If you publish a release on PRWeb that has an interesting title, for example, it may be picked up by news sites and blogs who will link to it - but they will only pick up the release if they find its content valuable or noteworthy.
Video marketing sites like YouTube and Vimeo can be great sources of backlinks because they allow you to place a link on your video description page that points to any web page you want - which means, again, you can build high-quality links.
These are some of the top ways for you to get backlinks for your website. However, keep in mind that the only way to build good backlinks is to create great content that people want to share with their friends and followers online.
Some sites may want you to pay for a backlink, and if you do so, it could be a low-quality one that could get your site penalized by search engines.
The best way to get quality backlinks is to create content that compels people to share it with their friends and followers - this can help you build relationships online, which will help spread the word about your website and get more targeted traffic.
How Do You Know If Backlinks Are Quality?
Here's the thing about backlinks: not all are quality, and not all of them will benefit your site.
Google is constantly changing the way it ranks sites in search results, and a lot of the ranking factors have to do with backlinks.
If you get top-quality, relevant blogs to link to your site, you could rank higher in search engines - assuming that this is one of the things Google takes into account when deciding where your site shows up.
There are many ways you can try to improve your rankings in search engines, but this is one of the most effective and reliable ways to do it.
Quality backlinks are those that demonstrate a connection between your website and another high-quality site. This could be because you link to them from one of your web pages, or they link to you from theirs. Whatever the case may be, you should only get backlinks from sites relevant to your industry and related to your website.
When you get any kind of backlink, make sure the site seems like it will be valuable for your visitors. You can check out some metrics, like PageRank, Alexa rank, or SEM Rush, to gauge whether or not the site will be valuable to you.
However, keep in mind that these metrics can easily be manipulated by spammers. So while they are helpful, consider them only one metric among many when determining the value of a backlink.
Remember when we said it's essential to create high-quality content that compels people to share it?
That's because you'll more easily get quality backlinks if your content is widely shared and liked by many people.
If you want to make it easy for people to share and link to your website, create a piece of truly extraordinary content - this will give you the best shot at creating an online reputation as a resource for those interested in what you have to say.
Conclusion
Backlinks are links on other websites that point to your website. They can help drive more traffic, which can increase conversions and revenue for your business.
To get backlinks, seek out high-quality sites that link to similar content on your site - these links will be the best for increasing SEO rankings and visibility in search engines.
The quality of your backlinks can be determined by the metrics of the sites they are coming from, their relevance to your industry, and how widely shared or liked they are.
There are many ways you can work to improve your search engine rankings, and one of the most effective ways is by increasing the number and value of backlinks coming in from other websites.
Remember that to get high-quality backlinks, it's crucial to create a piece of content that compels people to share it with their friends and followers online.
This will help you build relationships with other bloggers in your industry, leading to getting even more quality backlinks.
Hopefully, you have more understanding of what backlinks are and why they're important.
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