How to Perform Link Building the Right Way

During the last few months, I’ve noticed that a good part of my colleagues went all the way through the Content Marketing strategy. Most of them stated that Link Building no longer works due to search engines’ updated algorithms. On the next lines, I will show you that neglecting the “old good” Link Building strategy is a sure way NOT to be ranked among the first places.

It is true that high-quality content is the core of every SEO oriented project, but that doesn’t mean to forget about link building, not at all. This strategy can still bring your site to the top search results.

The basics

What is link building? A simple definition of link building is: the strategy that consists on posting links to your website on other webpages, also called backlinks or inbound links.

We all know that links are a main component within internet itself. Of course, Google knows that too. That’s why it is definitely a factor to keep in mind when you pursue the goal of being ranked among the first places. Links are also the natural way that allows everybody to share information throughout the web.

How to use link building to improve your ranking

With those definitions in mind, now let’s move on to the best strategies I have found in order to get the most of link building.

1.Post links on social media

Even though most social media have opted for the “no follow” attribute, posting links to your site on social media will still increase your traffic and give a decent boost to your conversion rate.

Does this mean you can rely merely on social media? Not at all! Try to see your social media pages and profiles as a place to showcase what you consider to be useful. Feel free to post information that links to other websites besides yours. Don’t forget to use hashtags once in a while, too. Social media are definitely useful tools, but remember that “favorites” and “likes” don’t necessarily mean more traffic to your site.

2.Post reviews

This has worked pretty well for me in the past. Just let your curiosity guide you to explore new products, sites, apps or any kind of software that relates to your niche. Post about your personal experience with your website. Remember to give an honest opinion about the product you’ve just tested.

Ok, so how does link building play a role in this? The correct way to perform link building with reviews is by contacting the developer. Reach out to him and find out if he would be interested in having an article about his latest product. If he agrees, then it’s a win-win situation: he gets an honest review that will be very useful for potential customers and you, on the other side, get the chance to reach a whole new target audience.

3.Add links when you comment on other blogs

For many years, this has proven to be the most used and most effective way to improve your SEO ranking. In addition, it’s the easiest way to go.

An interesting trend among content developers is to believe that this is no longer effective due to aggressive advertising (spamming). Even though more and more sites are using the “no follow” attribute on their comments section, you can still gain a good amount of traffic with this simple technique.

How to comment on blogs and gain traffic from it? That’s the obvious question to ask and also the not-so-obvious answer as well! An effective way of commenting and link building at the same time is by asking questions. Make sure that your questions are coherent and can take the discussion to the next level. By showing interest and making it clear that you know this certain topic, you’ll draw the readers’ attention to you. Even the webmasters themselves might be curious about who you are. They will try to find out more about you, and that will take them to visit your website.

An effective technique about commenting on other people’s blog should result in an interesting and long-lasting relationship, which could make it easier for both parties to share links in the future (another strategy that I will explain below).

Another thing to do is to answer questions. Again, make sure that your answers are as accurate as possible. Let them show that you master this certain topic and take the information one step further. You can also give a short answer and invite the readers to know more about this subject by visiting your website.

If you can’t find any questions to ask or to answer, try with a simple compliment. We all love to be flattered, right? When you do so, keep in mind that it should be a meaningful compliment that could also be useful for other readers.

As you can see, the secret behind link building through comments is to be an interesting person that has a lot to say. This strategy takes some practice, but when it’s done correctly, you could be amazed at the results.

4.Guest posting

This strategy becomes way easier once you have taken the previous one (blog commenting) to interesting levels. You can still try to guest posting even if you don’t have a good relationship with another site’s webmasters.

This is how you do guest posting the right way:

First, make sure that the website you want to write for has good traffic, good SEO ranking and also a good reputation. You don’t need to go straight up to the top sites, just choose a credible one.

Then, study the website. Find more information about the developers, their audience, their favorite subjects.

Address to the site’s developers or content managers. If you have done your research, you should have a handful of interesting topics to write about.

Finally, write a high-quality article and add all the relevant links. You don’t need to make all the links redirect to your site, feel free to link to other websites. Include some inbound links, as well. The developers will love that!

Conclusion

Link building is not dead! The best developers and webmaster still use it with astonishing results.

I would be very happy to know about your link building strategies. Which one of these worked best for you? Please let me know about them by commenting below.