What Are Backlinks?

When it comes to search engine optimization, there are only a few superior contenders to the backlinks. So, what are backlinks? How do they help you rank higher in the search engines? And how to get more backlinks? Here’s everything you need to know!

 

A few years ago, digital nerds would plan elaborate tactics to procure as many backlinks as possible. Backlinks were considered the building blocks for getting thriving online traffic. However, that’s not the case due to Google’s ever-evolving algorithms.

Nowadays, search engines have more skillful algorithms to decipher a user’s intent. This also allows search engines to rank websites based on various factors rather than just solely depending on referrals. However, it doesn’t mean that backlinks have lost their value entirely. They are still one of the determining factors and can play a crucial role in ranking your sites higher on search engines.

 

So, what are backlinks? How do you get more of them and best use them for your website? Here’s a detailed guide!

 

What are Backlinks?

 

In simple words, backlinks are hyperlinks on your website that transport users from one webpage to another. You can also describe them as inbound or external links. For example, the word “Proven Ways to Make Money with Digital Marketing” is a backlink to another site, so they now have earned a backlink from us.

Backlinks on your website act as a recommendation, and search engines like Google see them as a vote of confidence. They also convince search engines that the content on the website is noteworthy. So, learning how to get more backlinks means more visibility and a higher ranking position in search engine optimization (SEO).

 

While explaining what backlinks are, let’s discuss some useful terms that apply to all SEO experts and link-building strategies.

 

• Referring Domain: The origin of all the backlinks. For example, the referring domain for all the backlinks in this post is AtHomeWorkGuru.com.
• Referring Page: Unlike the referring domain, referring page means only the webpage where you have backlinks. For example, referring page for all the backlinks in this post is AtHomeWorkGuru.com/what-are-backlinks.
• Broken Link refers to inaccessible links and returns with the error code “404” or “page not found.”
• Internal Backlinks: Also referred to as inbound links, internal backlinks allow you to interlink two web pages of the same domain. For example, https://athomeworkguru.com/is-prowritingaid-better/ is an internal link.

 

Types of Backlinks

 

There are various types of SEO backlinks, so understanding them can be beneficial in crafting a link-building strategy.

 

• Do Follow Backlinks

 

Follow links are standard or simple hyperlinks with no additional attributes. A follow backlink in an article means they vote for credibility, trust, and authority to Google or other search engines for the website they are linked with. Here is an example of do follow backlink.

 

<a href=”https://yourwebsite.com/blog”>

 

• No Follow Backlinks

 

Incorporating a link from another website in your article means you are vouching for that website. It also gives you a default follow backlink. However, you may not want to get a do-follow link in certain cases. For instance, you might want to incorporate links on your page from your competitor’s site without passing any authority.

 

So, using a no-follow link means you are telling search engines to ignore that Link and don’t pass any value. In addition, it also means that using no-follow links doesn’t help improve your visibility or ranking. Moreover, it is worth noting that skilled algorithms of Google see no follow links as a hint, helping Google decide whether to pass any value. Here is an example of no follow Link.

 

<a href=”https://www.yourwebsite.com/” rel=”nofollow”>

 

• Sponsored Backlinks

 

Sponsored links are another type of backlinks. They involve money, products, or services in exchange for a link. When using a sponsored or paid backlink, you should always add rel-a “sponsored” tag to help a search engine identify promotional links. Here’s an example of a sponsored or paid backlink.

 

<a href=”https://www.yourwebsite.com/” rel=”sponsored”>

 

• Editorial Backlinks

 

You earn these backlinks naturally. For instance, a webpage incorporates links from your article about backlinks because they found it trustworthy. Search engines appreciate editorial links because they are valuable in enhancing a user experience rather than manipulating search engine algorithms.

We hope now you have a clearer idea about what backlinks are. Now, let’s learn why you should use them and how to get more backlinks!

 

Why Are Backlinks Essential?

 

Here is why backlinks are essential:

 

• Backlinks Improve Your Website Ranking

 

Backlinks are one of the critical factors for improving your website ranking. Since external backlinks act as votes of popularity and credibility for webpages, there’s a solid connection between webpages with trustworthy, high-quality backlinks and Google rankings.

 

However, it is worth highlighting that not all backlinks are beneficial for your website. You can incorporate hundreds of spammy, low-quality backlinks from other websites. But remember that they won’t help you improve your website visibility or ranking compared to backlinks from relevant authoritative pages.

 

Let’s put it this way: You’re running a website about houseplants. Would you prefer to incorporate a link from your co-worker’s plant care blog rather than a link from the American Society of Plant Biologists? We believe you won’t.

 

• Backlinks Increase Visibility

 

In addition to passing the authoritativeness of your website, backlinks also help search engines find your website and increase its visibility. That’s one of the reasons backlinks are important. When you inject a high-quality backlink into a new page, Google crawls the page to find all the backlinks it has.

 

In this regard, using an internal link-building strategy that involves interlinking pages of your website is beneficial. That way, you will help Google find and follow backlinks on your page and continue following all the internal links to your site’s other pages. Moreover, it is also a crucial way to let Google understand your site structure.

 

• Backlinks Increase Referral Traffic

 

Referral traffic means people who land on your website through another website without performing a search for you on Google. They find you through backlinks. A few benefits of why you should get more backlinks to increase referral traffic include:

 

• Your website will be visible to new audiences.
• Backlinks help you expand brand recognition.
• You will benefit from new, qualified leads.
• Search engines will see your website as a credible, valuable, and authoritative content source.

 

Moreover, getting more backlinks to increase referral traffic also drive potential clients to your webpage, leading you to find new customers.

 

How to Get More Backlinks?

 

So, how to get more backlinks? It is worth noting that acquiring backlinks requires time, effort, and consistency. It should be a long-term strategy and done organically. You cannot just use black hat tactics, such as buying links, which could result in penalties from Google or other search engines.

 

That said, here are a few tips that can help you get high-quality backlinks from credible sources:

 

• Craft Original, Great, High-Quality Content

 

Crafting top-notch, original content is one of the basic ways to get more backlinks. Your goal should be to piece words together and create something that excites others, adds value to their lives, and is something they are happy to link their websites with. While this may be a time-intensive tactic, it is highly rewarding if you get it right.

 

You can craft various types of content that can help you get more backlinks. For instance, you can create guides, write how-to posts, run quizzes, etc.

 

Let’s assume that you are running a website about houseplants. You can acquire more backlinks by creating a post about growing orchids indoors. Similarly, you can also create a guide about the best indoor flowering houseplants.

 

• Incorporate Outbound Links

 

Another effective way of acquiring more backlinks is by analyzing your outbound links. If you incorporate high-quality links from an authoritative webpage and send a lot of referral traffic, it will be easier to send them an outreach email and create a partnership. Here’s how you can view your outbound link report in Google Analytics.

 

While viewing your report, you will see links that produce more clicks. Once you find those backlinks, you can approach their websites through email and form a relationship. In addition, let them know how you find their content helpful and that you used it as a reference.

 

Moreover, let them know that you are happy to work together and are ready for collaboration. Once they are agreed upon, it will open doors for you to acquire high-quality new links from credible sources.

 

• Analyze Your Competitors

 

Wondering how and from where your competitors got so many high-quality backlinks? What tactics do they use, and what content do they have on their website? The best way to get more backlinks like your competitors is to stay alert and know what’s happening within your niche.

 

Analyzing your competitors’ websites is an organic way to determine what sources you can use to get backlinks. For instance, you can use organic tactics like what keywords your competitors are using, what content they have, their social media, etc.

 

Moreover, you may also want to use valuable SEO tools like Ahrefs. These tools are incredibly helpful in finding backlink profiles of different websites. Other tactics to stay ahead of competitors include signing up for newsletters and Google Alerts.

 

• Broken Link Building

 

As we already mentioned, broken links produce “Error Code 404” or “Page Not Found” when you click on them. These links may have an improper URL, no longer exists, or the source webpage has changed its domain. One of the effective ways to find backlinks is to spy on your competitors and find their broken links. It is also a quick and excellent way to get more backlinks.

 

Regardless of what causes broken links, they offer new opportunities. You just need to find them, contact the site to replace the Link, and inject your webpage as a replacement.

 

To find broken links, your first step should be to analyze your competitors and then find more websites within your niche. Tools like Ahrefs or Semrush are incredibly helpful in finding broken links.

 

For instance, if you are using Semursh, it will let you capture your competitor’s link reports. If you just want to see broken link reports, you can use filters to find broken links.

 

Similarly, if you’re an Ahrefs user, you can copy and paste your targeted website’s URL in its search box and then click the broken button. In return, it will show you all the broken links on that specific webpage.

 

Once you collect all the broken links, your next move is to contact these websites and inform them about their broken Link. Moreover, remember to be nice and point out the exact location of their broken Link. Finally, tell them what they can do and mention a few alternatives, including your website. You are highly likely to get a high-quality backlink from them.

 

• Craft Skyscraper Content

 

In addition to creating original, link-worthy, high-quality content, you can also publish skyscraper content to get more backlinks. So, what is skyscraper content anyway?

 

These pieces of content are all-embracing guides on existing topics and could be as long as several thousand words. The goal behind publishing skyscraper content is to produce content that covers all aspects of an existing topic. This link-building strategy is effective when attracting other web pages to link your post on their websites.

 

You can create skyscraper content by searching for a topic within your niche on a search engine. Then analyze all the results on the first page because they are sources that can let you earn high-quality backlinks.

 

For instance, search for all the relevant results if your niche is related to houseplants. Then go through the content on each result to get new ideas. This will help you create detailed, more comprehensive, and 10x better content.

 

Moreover, once your skyscraper content is ready for publishing, you must promote it on as many platforms as possible.

 

Firstly, you can approach all the influencers, people, companies, tools, or web pages mentioned in your post. Let them know that their content is useful and you have used it as a reference in your content. You will start getting high-quality backlinks as your content makes its way out.

 

Secondly, another way to promote your skyscraper content is to find sites already backlinked to existing content. You can pitch your webpage as a better and more detailed alternative. In this regard, SEO tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush can help you find more links.

 

• Incorporate Infographics

 

In addition to written content, using Infographics is another valuable and effective way to get more backlinks. These involve using visuals to represent data or information through charts, graphics, and images. Infographics are also helpful in providing a quick outline of the topic while also breaking down complicated topics into interesting visuals.

 

Moreover, incorporating Infographics on your webpage means you are also helping others. For instance, they can use your Infographics in their posts and give you link as the creator, as we did by adding visuals from https://www.greengeeks.com/www.Greengeeks.com.

 

You can read more about Greengeeks web hosting at Greengeeks Web Hosting.

 

• Try HARO Strategy (Help a Reporter Out)

 

When speaking about high-quality backlinks, acquiring backlinks from journalistic blogs and new websites is like a goldmine. That’s because these sources are incredibly authoritative, and getting the opportunity to feature them will make your website more credible.

 

But how to get more links from such sources? The best way is to implement the Help a Reporter Out (HARO) strategy. In short, it is a platform that allows webmasters and bloggers to work together for stories and news.

 

All you need is to sign up on the platform and choose a paid plan. Once you have your account on HARO, you will start getting emails from different sources for advice, tips, quote, and more.

 

• Write Guest Posts

 

Guest blogging is another excellent way to get more backlinks for your webpage. You just have to approach websites and blogs that need guest posts. Hundreds of websites have a “write for us” section or offer a contributor account. In addition, some websites also allow you to link your website.

 

Do a Google search to find websites that accept guest postings. Then write a guest post on your targeted keyword and submit it. Your search engine will start filtering the results and show you sites where you can start guest posting.

 

Wrapping Up

 

So, what are backlinks, and how can you get more of them for your website? We’ve explained all the basics in detail. They are one of the most critical factors that can help increase your website’s visibility, credibility, and authoritativeness. However, you should avoid using links from poor, scammy sources. They would bring about a negative impact and could result in heavy penalties.

 

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