Link Building: The Online Marketing Tool of the Week
One of the primary purposes of your inbound marketing is to drive traffic to various areas of your website and blog. The best way to do this is through effective link building. However, there is a right and wrong way to execute this marketing tool. Your web content writers must understand how to best use this important component. Make sure your web content writer is using the right methods of link building to create a successful outcome.
Relevancy
The goal of link building is to show the relevancy of your website. When Internet users enter specific terms into a search engine, they expect certain results. If those results don’t reflect what they are looking for, they may attempt to use other terms or they may give up looking for information altogether. Either situation will not provide the traffic you are looking for. The use of relevant links will ensure visitors find your site and turn to you in the future as a trusted source for information.
The Search Engines Evaluate Links
You may wonder if it is worth the effort to build links. After all, some of the recent search engine algorithms make it sound as if linking is no longer necessary to rank well. However, this is not accurate. The search engines still look at the links web content writers include in their subject matter to determine if they are relevant and add value to the piece. If so, it increases the chances of ranking higher in the results. In addition, using links to other pages on your site will help the search engine spiders crawl your site and rank your other pages as well.
How to Build a Good Link
When you hire web content writers, it is important to ensure they know how to properly build good links to avoid ranking issues. Before you add any link to your content, whether it is your website or your blog, make sure it is pertinent to the content and meets at least one of the following criteria:
- A page with the same or similar topic
- Information relevant to your content
- Adds value for the reader
- A high chance of being clicked
- Link text should vary
If you and your web content writer follow these rules, your links should be more effective and boost your rankings.
Social Linking
It may seem out of place to consider linking to your social media, but this can be an effective option to drive traffic both to your website and your social media sites. Inbound marketing strategies often require combining multiple methods for a better impact. While these links may not carry as much weight, they can still serve a useful purpose in your content.
Avoid Link Schemes
Many content writers easily confuse link building techniques and link schemes. Link building will help you generate more traffic by boosting your search engine results. On the other hand, participating in link schemes may get you blacklisted from the search engines and reduce your traffic overall. To avoid these problems, don’t:
- Sell links
- Use automated programs
- Link solely to get a link back
- Use optimized anchor links in press releases
- Create a network for the sole purpose of building links
The Best Ways to Build Links
This year, a web content writer can use three main ways to build links. These methods are currently acceptable by the search engines and can help businesses drive more traffic and generate more sales. The most popular ways to build links today include:
- Focusing link building on external links that are approved by your editorial staff for use. This will weed out any improper links.
- Finding links that are relevant to your content.
- Concentrating on the quality of the links, not how many you use on each page.
When you use these tactics for your link building efforts, you will experience positive results. Your web content writers should already be experienced in this area, guiding you through the process and helping you maintain a realistic view of this practice. It is also important for them to stay updated on the latest trends because like many other aspects of inbound marketing, the best link building practices can change often and quickly.
If you are looking for a company that can help with your link building efforts, contact us. We can help you build links that generate traffic and sales.
