The best links are earned, not paid for – but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to earn them! Analysing data from multiple sources is one of the best ways to determine where your target audience hangs out and what they’re interested in. This will help you determine whom to reach out to and what kind of content you can share with them so that they’ll naturally want to link back to your site when they mention or reference it.
· Outline the basics of link building
Link building is one of those tedious tasks that many SEOs love to hate. But data can be your best friend when making link acquisition more appealing. Using a little bit of data, you can uncover opportunities in an industry or site that aren’t yet obvious. Your research may even lead you down a path where you discover an entirely new angle from which your client could acquire links. In either case, paying attention to data will link building less stressful and more beneficial.
· Assess Your Competitors
Before launching your campaign, look at what other bloggers in your niche are doing and think about how you can do it better. Check out their content and see if they’re missing the point or have too much filler. Are their posts short? Long? Informative? Entertaining? Do they use industry jargon to turn off readers who don’t understand what they’re saying? Identify trends by analysing top sites in your niche – whether it be through social media or SEO.
· Build Metadata with Keywords
Targeted metadata (what we call keywords, folks) is a great way to ensure your site shows up for relevant searches. As you build content on your site and elsewhere, include these important words in titles, headings, images, captions and other areas. If there’s no good reason for a reader to search for a specific word on your page—eliminate it. You can also add those keywords to your meta description tags when appropriate. Don’t go overboard here; Google will penalise you if they think you are trying to manipulate their algorithm. Use them sparingly and purposefully, as they can help boost your rankings without hurting user experience or overloading visitors with too much information.
· Add Context With Relevant Information
Rather than simply adding many keywords, think about how you can provide context and bring your links more closely into line with your content. For example, if you’re writing an infographic about dog care, use data from reputable sources (like PETA or WebMD) that support your point of view and link back to your website. You’ll end up attracting quality links that will boost SEO and SEO site audit services efforts.
· Get Backlinks with Influencers
Reach out to influencers in your industry and encourage them to link back to your site. Influencers have loyal followers, so their fans will likely check out whatever they recommend. Influencer outreach can seem intimidating, but there are a few ways you can make it easier. First, think about what content you might be able to provide for influencers that would be useful—or fun—for their audience.
· Craft a Compelling Story
Your content needs a compelling story. Readers will expect you to have a differentiator, why they should be reading your articles and not those of your competitors. The biggest problem businesses face is that they come up with strategies and ideas but fail when it comes to executing these plans effectively. If you can create unique content for your website, then visitors will be compelled to share it with others.
· Look at Similar Sites in Other Industries
To build high-quality links, look at other sites in your industry. These sites will either be your competitors or similar businesses, like companies that sell similar products as you but are not direct competitors. Check out their linking profiles and what they are doing well—and not so well. The links they have acquired could offer a wealth of information for your link building strategy and help you get better links than your competitors!
· Double-Check Before Posting
Always double-check any content you plan on posting online, especially if it’s a controversial or sensitive topic. You want to make sure there are no typos or spelling errors (unless you’re intentionally trying to craft a message around such errors). Additionally, check that your links and citations are valid and correctly attributed. You never know when one of your sources might pop up in an unexpected place!
BONUS TIP – Do Stuff Offline (Influencer marketing and events!)
If you’re starting in your niche, getting involved with related communities, organisations, and events might not be a bad idea. This is a great way to meet influencers and other players in your industry.
Conclusion
If your content is high quality, it won’t be challenging to get links from relevant, authoritative sites. Even if you don’t have an in with a top influencer or an enormous social following yourself, bloggers are always looking for material that they can promote on their site. If you want blogger outreach success, make sure your content is truly top-notch—and that goes well beyond merely being optimised for SEO purposes. Engaging and unique content will lead to more shares (and links).
