Are you struggling to figure out your websites are struggling to rank? Everyone wants to be on the first page for terms buyers search for. Doing all the recommended on-page optimization and may still result in low rankings. The reason is your site’s backlink profile is likely weaker than its competitors. Keep reading, and we’ll show you five reliable ways to build links.
1. Natural Outreach Is A Proven Way To Build Backlinks
There are many ways to build reliable backlinks. The most tried and true method is outreach. This is the process of emailing other blog and website owners. Most consider this to be the most natural, ethical, and reliable way of gaining links.
The reason is you can expect to gain links based on the number of emails you send. You will also build relationships along the way. This link-building method also avoids outright paying for links.
That’s important since paying for links is against Google’s guidelines. Paying for links has caused thousands of sites to lose their rankings over the years. Many times this happens due to not doing their due diligence.
Have you ever clicked a link that goes to a page that no longer exists? You can be helpful by showing them content on your site that can fill the void. This is an excellent way of fostering trust and adding value.
The downside of this method is it takes time and skill. You might still have the lingering doubt about what sites are worth doing outreach to. This is understandable since analyzing a site’s backlink profile takes years to understand.
Many less-experienced SEO practitioners overload their sites with links with ultra-strong metrics. This is a major red flag if they all come at once. It also seems odd that no smaller sites seem to pay attention to a site either.
This is why your SEO team needs to build a well-rounded and natural backlink strategy. It takes time to understand how it works.
Knowing your numbers gives you a predictable way of gaining links. You can expect a certain amount of positive responses for every 100 emails you send. The issue is webmasters are more careful about who they link to and trust.
It is usually better to outsource things like outreach to a professional if you have doubts. Outreach services have years of experience and existing relationships with established sites. You might consider contacting a service like Outreachz for more info.
2. Writing Great Content
Many of the so-called experts spout the gospel of writing great content. This half-truth fools many people. Self-proclaimed experts promise that if you build it, they will come. The problem is there are more ranking factors than content and keywords.
No one will find a site if it is not linked or shared somewhere on the internet. Great content is better served as a way of filling a knowledge gap in a niche. This makes people more willing to link to it since it adds value.
Five thousand words content only helps if it is relevant to the intent of the people it is in front of. Google uses links to understand what a page is about. For example, if a bunch of sports blogs link to a page, it likely has to do with sports. The link profiles of the sites linking to each other giving Google context.
Great content is more of a supplement than a way of building links itself. It should take a very long time for people to discover it on its own. Don’t let anyone fool you.
3. Buying Links Is The Easy Path
Many beginners default to this method since the services are very cheap. This is when people go to SEO marketplaces and buy links. Buying from a marketplace is much shadier.
Sometimes a link-buying service will have a temporary boost to a website’s rankings. The problem comes from many of these providers being in it for a buck to fund their larger products. It is common for these cheaply purchased links to penalize domains in the long-term.
A penalized domain is much harder to rank again. Many experts recommend starting fresh if you are a beginner. Fiverr and its counterparts have a few ethical sellers. The problem is sorting the good from the bad takes lots of trial and error.
This is why some don’t see its reputation as reliable. You shouldn’t conclude all link services on places like Fiverr are suspect. The conclusion should be that finding a good service requires a lot of trial and error.
Five-star reviews are often for sale. Savvy marketplace vendors will bribe others to leave them a lovely review. Sometimes they give out free services, or they pay for the reviews.
It will help if you go with services that have been around for years. Another tip is to test a link service on less important sites of yours to watch the effect.
4. Scraping Domains – Effective But Becoming Expensive
Domain auctions have grown in popularity. They are a way of obtaining high authority backlinks with less effort. The industry has caught on to this trick.
Prices for expired domains with strong metrics continue to increase. Some people specialize in buying strong domains and reselling them for more. They find them using special scraping techniques.
This means people buy older domains someone forgot to renew. More aged domains have naturally gained backlinks. The new owner then points these at their existing site. “Link-equity” is then transferred where the new owner wants.
Passing the power of the backlink profile is less reliable than it once was. Google has caught on to this tactic. This means that paying double or triple digits for an expired domain does not work 100 per cent of the time.
5. Sponsorship Links – Powerful But Use Wisely
This is like buying links. Non-profit organizations have many backlinks from news agencies. Their content is often shared on social media.
That’s why their backlinks are sought after. A link from an authoritative non-profit carries power. It is like a referral from a well-known person with good character.
Many agencies donate money on behalf of their clients. This buys them a mention on a page on the charity or school’s website. The problem is Google has also begun to catch on to this as well.
There’s a strong chance the link won’t carry much value if it is not relevant. The content on the organization’s page should relate to where it links. Google is always tweaking things to improve user experience.
Abusing this tactic also yields diminishing returns for each sponsorship gained. These sponsorships are rather pricey. A few links here and there helps, but they must be part of a well-rounded link profile.
Use A Well-Rounded Approach For Best Link-Building Results
These five link-building methods have existed for over a decade. Building a strong backlink profile will help a website rank. The key is understanding how to do so in the most natural and value-adding way possible.
