SEO Backlinks: What are They and How Do They Improve Search Rankings?
How backlinks improve your SEO optimization and ranking in search engines like Google.
If you are familiar with SEO, you have likely heard about backlinks by now, but even so, they may still be a foreign concept. Link building is one of the most important factors to work on if you want to improve your search ranking status. However, it can also be more technical than other SEO strategies, which makes it harder to understand and execute correctly.
So, what are backlinks? Why are they important in your SEO strategy? Learn more about them with the information provided here.
What are Backlinks?
Backlinks are essentially website links that direct readers to your site. They are also called incoming or inbound links since they come from other sources and signal traffic going into your website. Your backlink profile determines how popular and credible your website is based on how many links you have and what types of websites are linking to you.
Why are Backlinks Important to SEO?
Backlinks serve as a critical ranking factor in SEO because they help you show your expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (EAT). Google aims to give users the most accurate and relevant results for their queries, so EAT is one way for them to evaluate the quality of a website and determine search engine rankings.
Having high quality backlinks allow you to hit the three components of EAT:
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Expertise
If you have quality content on a particular subject, websites can use anchor text to link to your pages. It allows you to demonstrate your expertise in the topic, giving users the assurance, your information is credible and properly researched. Backlinks from reputable sites also give Google a good impression of your expertise and authority.
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Authoritativeness
You can think of backlinks as a sign of approval or a vote of confidence from other websites. If high authority sites link to your page or post, it helps pass on the authority to your site so Google can rank your pages better.
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Trustworthiness
If other authority websites are willing to link their readers to your site, this makes your brand appear more trustworthy. Similar to expertise and authority, if trusted brands have inbound links pointing to your site, users will be more inclined to trust you.
Link Building Strategies
To help you improve your search engine optimization strategy and efforts, here are some link building strategies you can use to build a better backlink profile:
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Check Your Current Backlinks
Start by assessing your current backlinks to see how many you have and what types of websites are linking to your pages. You can check this out on Google Search Console to get a good idea of how you can improve your linking profile.
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Prioritize Quality Backlinks
More backlinks may be a good thing, but quality trumps quantity with your links. If you want to rank higher on search results, you should look for links from high-authority, popular, and trustworthy sites and avoid those from spammy sites. The latter may do more harm than good, so always emphasize the quality of your backlinks.
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Improve Site Speed
When readers click on your backlinks, you must make sure your page loads quickly. Otherwise, they might change their mind and decide not to visit the link anymore, representing a missed opportunity and potential customer. Slow loading times also result in a negative user experience, so remember to optimize this on all devices.
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Create High-Quality Content
Your content marketing strategy will be important to build backlinks. The goal is to make high-quality content so that other experts and bloggers deem it to be link worthy. To achieve this, your content should answer your customer’s questions and give them valuable information.
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Use Infographics
Infographics can strategically help you gain more backlinks. These are meant to convey information in a more digestible way through graphics and images. Other content creators and bloggers may opt to link to your infographics to provide more information for their readers.
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Form Strategic Partnerships
Partnerships are a great way to network with other reputable websites and increase your backlinks. Consider exchanging links with experts from a similar industry or collaborating with your content to share each other’s links. One way to find potential partners is to check your current outbound links and contacting the site owner to engage with them.
No doubt, backlinks can help you increase conversions and gain more online traffic. However, you must remember that they are not the only thing to consider in your SEO strategy. Thus, you should build your linking profile but still remember to focus on other aspects like content creation, mobile optimization, and other relevant SEO factors.
Build Quality Backlinks with the Assistance of a Digital Marketing Agency
Now that you know more about what backlinks are, you might be thinking of how to incorporate them into your current SEO efforts. P3 Agency can help you with all your digital marketing needs, so do not hesitate to contact us at 1-800-515-9422. Whether you intend to boost online visibility, increase organic traffic, or increase conversions, we will find the right solutions to make it happen.
Contact our team today to schedule a free marketing assessment to begin improving your website’s backlinks now and for web design in Clearwater.