Are you interested in growing your small business or personal blog? If so, you’ve probably already started optimizing your site for searchability. But here’s the big question; are you actively working to build links off your website too?
Backlinks are, as the name implies, links back to your website from another destination. Google sees backlinks as a seal of approval, and the team has clarified that websites with more referring links will boost their presence in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
Despite this announcement, 94% of website owners don’t have a single high-value backlink. As a result, many of these websites don’t perform well in terms of sales, engagement, and conversions.
Let's change that.
Today, I will show you several proven tips you can use to build backlinks, get more brand mentions, and amplify your SEO strategy.
Let’s get started!
Create Linkable Content
First, let’s talk about the content featured on your website. A whopping 72% of business leaders say content marketing is their number 1 SEO strategy. When you look at other data sets and statistics, it’s not hard to see why.
Companies with blogs get around 97% more backlinks when compared to those without. In other words, if your goal is to build more backlinks to your site, you need a robust content strategy.
The reason why blogging businesses are successful boils down to shareability and value. People are more likely to share and reference your posts (earning you links) if you create interesting, engaging content that adds value to readers’ lives.
If you want users to share your blog posts and reference your brand in the future, here are a few things to keep in mind:
- Create blog posts with your audiences’ goals and pain points in mind.
- Use long-tail, relevant keywords throughout your content.
- Offer a unique solution or viewpoint.
- Include supporting statistics to back up your points.
- Review your analytics so you can find your top-performing articles.
I also suggest looking for opportunities to turn your written posts into videos. We found that taking this specific action can improve your organic traffic by 157%. The more people see your content, the more opportunities you have to build links.
Look for Guest Posting Opportunities
Now that you know how creating on-site content can improve backlinks, let’s talk about posting on other sites. Writing articles for other publications is called guest posting, and it’s an extremely effective link-building strategy.
The objective of guest posting is to get your business (and accompanying links) featured on other websites while building rapport with different brands and bloggers. When people visit the website featuring your article, they get the chance to learn about your company and can even visit your website from links within the content or in the author bio.
The key to developing an effective guest posting strategy is connecting with brands in your industry who are not direct competitors. For example, the owner of an SEO SaaS might partner with a company that sells lead-generation plugins or hosting solutions.
It’s safe to say that someone who needs an SEO plugin may also need hosting for their website. So, when someone visits a hosting platform that they know and respect, they may find the article from the SEO company and associate the same level of trust with this new brand. The confidence users feel in this situation is a form of social proof. Users think, “A company I like trusts this brand, so I should too!”
We found that 60% of bloggers write between 1 and 5 guest posts monthly. It’s possible to write more, but you need to connect with partners who are ready and willing to publish your content. Once you find a list of consistent partners, you can easily build backlinks through guest posting.
Connect with Journalists and Curious Consumers
My next tip for you today involves answering questions for journalists and your target audience. Currently, there are an insane number of digital publications and public forums on the internet.
If you can connect with journalists who cover your niche, you can get featured and earn a backlink to your website. For instance, Help a Reporter Out (HARO) curates lists of questions from journalists and sends them to people who have signed up for their website.
Let’s say you own a marketing firm and want to get more backlinks. You can go to HARO and register for their marketing and technology categories. Every day, you’ll receive a digest that shows you all of the new questions of the day.
You can then go in and answer the questions and get featured in expert roundups or get an offer for an interview. Either way, you’ll get the opportunity to get more backlinks to your business.
I also suggest checking out community forums like Quora. Quora is a website that allows people to sign up and ask questions about virtually anything. You can register for an account and then answer questions for people. Use this opportunity to build rapport with prospects and offer resources from your site.
Work with Influencers and Affiliate Marketers
Now, let’s talk about influencers and affiliate marketers. Before we get into it, let’s define the terms.
An influencer is someone with a medium-to-large following who promotes your brand on social media. They are typically paid a flat rate, given free products, and can be paid in commission (much like affiliates).
On the other hand, affiliates can be described as being loosely connected with your brand. They promote your product to their audience, and their only monetary kickback is the commission on each sale they secure. There are rarely key performance indicators, check-ins, or detailed contracts.
Both are effective ways to build backlinks and connect with people who have never heard of your brand. For example, business leaders claim that affiliate marketing sales generate between 15-30% of total sales for their company. Impressive, right?
The way each draws traffic to your site and builds backlinks is different.
Around 69% of affiliate marketing traffic comes from SEO. In other words, people type in search terms on Google, look at the results, and read affiliates’ reviews before making a purchasing decision.
Influencers, on the other hand, generate most of their traffic and engagement on social media. These people will promote your product and include links to your brands on sites like Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. For context on the effectiveness of this strategy, over 130 million Instagram users tap on influencer posts every month!
If you want to make the most of both strategies, you’ll want to reach out to influencers on social media. Find people who talk about your industry so you can ensure that your backlinks and brand mentions are hitting the eyes and ears of people who can benefit from your product.
You can attract affiliates to your site by creating and promoting an affiliate program on your homepage and social media. If someone is passionate about your brand, they may sign up to become an affiliate and boost your backlink count.
Final Thoughts
The critical thing to remember about building backlinks is if you need to work with other people. Influencer partnerships, affiliate programs, connecting with journalists, and writing guest posts require you to get involved in your industry, engage with people, and build bonds.
Many new marketers and business leaders struggle with the social aspect of running a brand. But with some practice, you’ll have no problem connecting with like-minded people and forging partnerships that will result in more backlinks to your website.
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