There’s a reason 80% of SEO professionals say that link building is one of the most effective tactics to include in your digital marketing and SEO strategy.
But the reality is not every founder or marketer is a link builder. Heck, not even every SEO can successfully build links. It’s quite a specialized skill.
Without knowing which link building strategies get results, you will find it difficult to obtain quality backlinks.
When it comes to link building, there is no one size fits all solution. Often, it requires using several strategies in tandem.
Ready to learn which strategies will help you gain more quality backlinks and boost search rankings, brand awareness, and visibility?
Let’s dive into the most effective backlinking strategies and how you can use them to get results.
What is link building?
To ensure we’re on the same page, let’s quickly outline the basics of link building as an off page SEO strategy.
Websites often link to external sources to further explain something or cite or endorse the site they are linking to.
Link building is the practice of generating backlinks to your site by reaching out to other websites and publishers.
So why would anyone want to generate backlinks? Chances are, you aren’t creating content just for the sake of it… Otherwise, that’d be a waste.
In an ideal world, you’re creating content that real humans are searching for, answers their questions, and that search engines can understand.
But unfortunately, in today’s competitive marketplace, that isn’t enough for your content to rank on the first page of Google and for target customers to find your content.
To outrank other websites (aka your competitors), you must establish authority. The easiest way to develop said authority?
My secret weapon: enter link building
How link building looks in practice is essentially reaching out to other relevant websites or site owners and asking them to link back to your content.
But make no mistake. You don’t want to reach out to just any domain or webmaster asking for a backlink.
Obtaining backlinks from other high authority sites is one of the number one ways to generate targeted traffic and increase your website’s domain authority.
The last thing you want to do is generate spammy links or use black hat tactics that could get your site penalized.
To succeed at obtaining high-quality links and dominating the search engine result pages (SERPs), you’re going to need a sound strategy.
Why is link building a crucial part of your SEO strategy?
You’re creating high-quality content with the hopes of converting readers into customers… So you want that content to be found by your target audience, right?
To accomplish this, search engines like Google need to recognize your site as an authority, which pushes you up in the search ranks.
What is this authority, you ask? Domain authority is a link-based ranking system that takes into account link equity/quality.
When you have authority, you are more likely to rank for keywords in your industry.
Essentially, the quality and quantity of backlinks you have will affect your domain authority, which affects your Google ranking.
The higher the link authority you have, the higher the Google ranking you will have as a result.
Hopefully, I haven’t lost you by now. If you’re wondering why this SEO geekspeak matters, allow me to explain.
Approximately half of all traffic goes to the top position on Google, and you want to be as close as possible to the #1 search result to drive as much organic traffic as you can to your website.
When it comes to link building tactics, you shouldn’t prioritize quantity over quality. Of course, both are equally important, but high-quality white hat links are even more so.
High-quality backlinks are those from other websites with a high domain authority that will allow you to score some “link juice” from those high-authority sites.
A high authority site could be a site like HubSpot or Zapier, as an example.
You want to build as high-quality backlinks as possible and as high quantity as possible (without sacrificing quality).
This is because a high quantity of backlinks will show Google that you are an authority to a broader audience.
To further illustrate this, the average top result on Google has 380% more backlinks than those in positions 2-10. That alone tells you that quantity is equally important.
You will want to keep all of this in mind when building a link building strategy.
Hopefully, by now, you understand why link building is so crucial to your marketing strategy.
Sites ranking at the top of Google will see more organic traffic. You want to be on page one, ideally in position one, rather than your competitors.
If you want to get to the top spot and drive more search traffic, you will need a solid link building strategy as part of your search engine optimization (SEO) strategy.
Now, let’s dive into a few of the top link building strategies you can use to claim the top spot.
10 link building strategies you need to know to boost your search traffic and rankings
Ready to learn step-by-step how the top link builders build backlinks effortlessly to boost their SEO and domain authority?
Try these ten proven link building techniques that SEO marketers employ to dominate the search engines and overtake their competition in the SERPs.
Create shareable content via blog posts and infographics
If you want to obtain backlinks, you need to create content first.
It should come as no surprise that content creation is the number one strategy for generating backlinks.
The problem is that 90% of web pages get zero traffic. So if your content isn’t getting traffic, nobody is backlinking to it.
How does one solve this problem? First, 75% of marketers say they generate content that’s specifically designed to score backlinks. In other words, they are strategic with their content marketing and creation.
So what makes a shareable piece of content that generates natural dofollow backlinks with little effort?
According to HubSpot, the three best types of content to generate good links are:
- Stories backed by original data
- Thought-leadership or expert interview posts
- Ultimate guides to niche topics
For example, this ultimate guide post to SEO from Backlinko has generated over 600+ backlinks and is a highly shareable resource.
Case studies can also make highly shareable content that generates great links and referral traffic when done correctly.
If you can walk people through how to solve a specific problem and obtain excellent results, you will naturally get inbound links.
Alternatively, an infographic like one of these SEO infographics from Moz is also a highly shareable piece of great content that webmasters would be keen to reference.
2. Link reclamation and listening for brand mentions
Reclaiming links or listening for brand mentions is when a website already mentions your brand but did not include a backlink in the anchor text.
Using tools like Ahrefs or BuzzSumo, you can discover unlinked brand mentions and contact the site owners to request a backlink by monitoring for mentions of your brand or website.
If you don’t have one of these paid tools, you can also utilize a free tool like Google Alerts.
Listening for brand mentions and claiming those links is what I like to call going for the low-hanging fruit.
These should be effortless links to obtain as the websites are already mentioning you. You’re simply asking them to add a backlink to your website to the anchor text already there.
Link reclamation is a common strategy used by nearly half of all SEO marketers to obtain new links.
3. Broken link building
Another “easy win” and older link building tactic I like to use is broken link building.
With broken link building, you are essentially discovering dead links in your industry that are no longer functional and asking a webmaster to link to your resource on that topic instead.
The best way to do this is to target your competitors’ link profiles to find broken links on their website. My favorite broken link checker tool to use for this is Ahrefs.
Once you discover a broken link, run this URL through a tool like Ahrefs, and you will find all of the websites that link to that broken page or post.
The next step would be to create new content (if you don’t have existing) that replaces the original link’s content and contact all those sites pitching your resource.
The best way to do this is to target competitor sites to find broken links on their website. My favorite broken link checker tool to use for this is Ahrefs.
Once you discover a broken link, run this URL through a tool like Ahrefs, and you will find all of the websites that link to that broken page or post.
The next step would be to create new content (if you don’t have existing) that replaces the original link’s content and contact all those sites pitching your resource.
4. Steal your competitors’ backlinks
The word steal comes with a negative connotation.
But we’re going to use it positively. At least, positive for you… Maybe not so much for your competitors.
This link building tactic entails analyzing your competitors’ backlink profiles to identify prime link building opportunities.
To do this, again, you can use a tool like Ahrefs and their site explorer feature. Next, analyze their referring domains.
Chances are, if a website is linking to your competitor, they will be likely to link to your own site.
You’ll want to send an outreach email as part of your link building campaign and plead your case as to why they should link to you.
However, convincing someone to link to you is no easy feat.
The best approaches will utilize relationship building and other types of value exchange. You want to be an equal part giver and equal part taker.
In other words… What’s in it for them? Lead with that in your outreach emails.
5. Utilize the skyscraper technique
The skyscraper technique is a link building strategy that can result in more “easy” backlinks for you when done right.
For example, let’s say you have no backlinks and want to achieve a link from a high authority site. Your competitor already has ten links from various sites. If your link is going to be the same as their link, which will go further?
To overtake your competitor, you need to utilize the skyscraper technique by creating a bigger and better piece of content.
Think of a piece of content that’s 100X better than the sites linking back to their content won’t hesitate to change that backlink to point to your site instead.
Why? Because your content is either more valuable or in-depth and will be a better resource to the site’s readers.
The skyscraper technique will allow you to overtake their link number and improve the value of your link by creating a better piece of content for outreach purposes.
6. Build backlinks via resource pages
Depending on who you ask, some link builders consider this a subpar tactic, while others consider resource pages as another way to obtain high-value links.
Regardless, utilizing link directories and link resource pages is still a popular tactic among link builders.
Why might someone want to use resource pages as part of their link building strategy?
The idea is that by pointing a lot of backlinks to a particular page at once, Google might perceive it as an authority site in its respective niche due to its number of inbound links from different sources.
This can have a significant impact when it comes to scoring some link juice and link authority.
It might sound far-fetched, but I have seen this work on several occasions throughout the years.
On top of that, adding resource pages as link opportunities can be a great way to improve internal linking on your website and thus increase the overall link authority of some of your other target pages.
7. Guest blogging and writing guest posts
Moving on to one of my personal favorite link building strategies… Writing guest posts.
Guest posting isn’t much of a secret strategy and is used by 75% of SEO professionals to build backlinks.
The best part about guest posts is that they help you build backlinks and develop your persona as a trusted authority in your niche.
You’ll also get the chance to reach a new audience and offer them a glimpse of your brand’s value.
Not only that, but with content creation requiring time and money, it puts you in a better place to negotiate a backlink or two to your site since you’re offering content for free.
So how do I regularly incorporate guest posting into my backlinking strategy?
Start by searching for blogs with similar target audiences in the same or similar niche.
Then, I pitch relevant guest post topics that are relevant to both their audience and mine.
The key is to find a solid point of overlap.
Bonus points if you pitch them a topic that is backed by keyword and SEO research.
When writing the content, you should be able to naturally fit your site’s backlinks into the text.
Remember to keep this in mind when pitching topics, so you don’t end up writing content that you cannot naturally place your backlinks into.
8. Link exchanges
Another personal favorite, link exchanges are another great way to build more quality backlinks to your site.
Don’t just take my word for it, though. Around 28% of SEOs utilize link swapping as a part of their backlinking strategy.
Link exchanges are equal value exchanges. You offer to link back to someone, and you get a backlink in return.
Now whether you do direct link exchanges or triangle link swaps (linking from a 3rd domain to avoid 1:1 or reciprocal), link swaps is another story for another time.
This link building tactic is relatively straightforward.
First, find a list of relevant websites that have a similar target audience to you but aren’t exactly your competitors.
For example, let’s say you run an e-commerce marketing agency. Exchanging links with e-commerce SaaS websites would be a great way to build relevant links and possibly gain referral traffic (and clients).
Write to these site owners and offer to link back to their content from your blog or others in return for backlinks to your website from their website.
9. Collaborate and build relationships with other bloggers
Have you noticed a common theme yet?
Relationships will always be at the core of what you do when trying to build backlinks actively.
It’s essential to treat it like a long-term play and focus on building and nurturing relationships over time.
After all, it’s way easier to ask people you already know and have a relationship with for backlinks than a stranger.
The best way to do this? Collaborate and build relationships with other bloggers and link builders.
For example, let’s say you actively contribute guest posts each month. An easy way to double or triple your output is by collaborating with other bloggers doing the same.
Offer to link back to them from your guest posts in return for them linking back to you from theirs.
It pays to make friends with others who are trying to accomplish a similar mission… A mission of obtaining a ridiculous amount of backlinks.
10. Influencer outreach
You may use influencers to develop backlinks and market to a new audience. Not only that, but influencers also act as social proof by recommending your products or services to their followers.
That’s just one reason why 40% of marketers use influencer outreach as part of their strategy.
How does this help with your backlinking efforts, you ask?
Reach out to relevant influencers in your niche and offer them free products or a commission in return for a backlink on their website or social media pages.
Obviously, the higher the domain authority of their website, the better.
FAQ about link building strategies
Now, let’s dive into some frequently asked questions (FAQ) about link building strategies.
What is a link building strategy?
A link building strategy is a technique that involves generating backlinks to your website, which in turn will boost your organic traffic and search engine rankings in Google search and other search engines. So what are the types of link building?
What are the most effective link building strategies?
The most effective link building strategies are those that build quality dofollow backlinks to their website. Link builders who prioritize white hat, relationship-based link building will find much more success in their efforts than those who focus on spammy or black hat tactics.
How do you build links?
To build backlinks, you can use various strategies from contributing guest posts on websites with high domain authority, broken link building, the skyscraper technique, link reclamation, exchanging links with other bloggers, and more.
What are the best link building strategies for beginners?
The best or easiest link building strategies for beginners tend to be link reclamation and listening for brand mentions. Another link building strategy easy for beginners to succeed with is contributing guest posts to other blogs.
Conclusion
Hopefully, now you have a better idea of where to begin with your backlinking strategy and how to execute the above strategies.
If you’ve tried creating content, but it’s just not hitting the mark, then it may be time to dip your toes into alternate strategies like link exchanges or influencer outreach.
If you can’t seem to crack the code no matter the method or don’t have the time…
Remember, you can always pay for links.
You’ll be in good company, with almost half of SEO professionals admitting to using this strategy.
If you need help building high quality backlinks and brand mentions for your website, feel free to get in touch here.
Are there any other strategies you would add to this list? If so, let me know below!
Leave a Comment