What is Link Building?

Definition

Link building is the process of increasing the number and quality of inbound links to a website. Inbound links are one of the main factors that search engines use to determine the quality and relevance of a website. The more high-quality, relevant backlinks a website has, the higher it will rank in the search results.

There are a variety of ways to build links, but not all link building tactics are created equal. Some methods, like link buying and link farms, can actually hurt your website’s ranking. Others, like guest posting and directory submissions, can be time-consuming and may not have a big impact on your rankings.

Link Types

Backlinks can be divided into three main types – dofollow, nofollow, and sponsored.

Dofollow backlinks are the most valuable type of backlink. They are the type that Google uses to determine a website’s rank. Dofollow links pass on the SEO benefits of the link to the target website. This is why it is so important to have as many dofollow links as possible.

Nofollow backlinks are not as valuable as dofollow links, but they still have some SEO benefits. Nofollow links do not pass on the SEO benefits of the link to the target website, but they do help increase traffic and referral traffic. This makes them a good option for websites that want to increase their traffic but don’t want to risk their SEO ranking.

Sponsored backlinks are paid links that are used to promote a website. They are not as valuable as dofollow, but they can still be helpful for increasing traffic and brand awareness.

5 Factors of High-Quality Links

When it comes to link building, not all links are created equal. There are a few factors that you should look for when trying to build high-quality backlinks.

The first factor is the PageRank of the linking page. The higher the PageRank, the more valuable the link will be. You can check the PageRank of a page using such tools as SemRush, Ahrefs or Moz.

The second factor is the relevance of the linking page. A link from a relevant page is more valuable than a link from an irrelevant page. For example, a link from a website about pet care would be more valuable for a pet store than a link from a website about car care.

The third factor is the anchor text of the link. The anchor text is the text that is used to link to a website. For example, if the anchor text says “pet care products”, that will be more valuable than if the anchor text says “click here”.

The fourth factor is the number of other links on the linking page. A page with fewer links is more valuable than a page with more links. This is because it is less likely that the linking page will be diluted by other links.

The fifth factor is the location of the link on the page. Links in the body of an article are more valuable than links in the sidebar or footer. This is because they are less likely to be ignored by readers.

Overview of Link Building Approaches

There are a variety of ways to build links, but not all link building tactics are created equal. Some methods, like link buying and link farms, can actually hurt your website’s ranking. Others, like guest posting and directory submissions, can be time-consuming and may not have a big impact on your rankings.

The best way to build links is to focus on creating high-quality content that other people will want to link to. This could be anything from an informative blog post to an in-depth case study. Once you have created something that is worth linking to, reach out to other websites and ask them to link to it.

Link buying should be avoided as it can get your website penalized by Google. Link farms are also to be avoided as they provide low-quality links that can hurt your website’s ranking.

Guest posting is a good way to build links, but it can be time-consuming. You will need to find websites that accept guest posts and write an article that meets their standards. Once your article is published, you will have a link back to your website.

Directory submissions are another option for building links, but they are not as effective as they once were. This is because many directories are now filled with low-quality websites. If you do submit to a directory, make sure that it is a high-quality one.

Building high-quality backlinks takes time and effort, but it is worth it if you want to improve your website’s ranking. Link building is an important part of any SEO strategy and should not be ignored.

How to Track Links?

Once you start building links, it’s important to track your progress. There are a few different ways to do this.

The first way is to use Google Search Console. This tool can help you identify any websites that are linking to your website, however it doesn’t provider authority stats of these links.

The second way to track links is to use a tool like Ahrefs or SemRush. These tools will show you the number of backlinks that each website has. This is a good way to see which websites have the most link authority.

The third way to track links is to use a tool like Majestic or Moz. These tools will show you the number of backlinks that each website has, as well as the authority of those links.

The Bottom Line

Link building is an important part of SEO. It can help you improve your website’s ranking and get more traffic. However, it’s important to focus on quality over quantity when it comes to links. Link buying, link farms, and other black hat tactics can actually hurt your website’s ranking. Instead, focus on creating high-quality content that other people will want to link to.