You’re probably aware that one of the ways websites can climb higher in online rankings is through website link building. Almost any webpage you land on, in fact, will have an example of this popular practice.
Although link building seems simple in premise– post on another website, link it to your site, voila, link building– there are actually many search engine algorithm rules you should be keeping in mind in order to ensure that your link building amounts to anything. Here are three things you need to remember.
1. Context is Important
Are you using those automated link building services that just distribute your link willy nilly across the internet? This isn’t going to get you far, because context matters. You want link association with other businesses within your industry, since this establishes relevancy through the Google algorithm. Similarly, check the domain authority on inbound links. Getting 10 links from irrelevant PR websites is less effective than a single link from a high quality PR site. Another reason to avoid getting inbound links from shady sites? Google has been penalizing websites with lots of “bad links” since the Penguin algorithm update.
2. Do Something Newsworthy
As Erin Everhart explains on SearchEngineLand, the old way for SEO cheap link building was to send several press releases every month to sites like PRNewsire, Online PR News, et cetera, and hope for it to have some relevancy. She explains that the “new way” of doing things should actually work to give talking points. Newsworthy events are actually new. Not just in time, but also in the freshness of the announcement concept. Would anyone be surprised to read your press release? Another thing to consider is the advantage of using social bookmark submitters. Sites like Delicious and Tumblr tend to be perceived as more relevant, and this might be a good avenue to take your link building.
3. Anchor Text Does Matter
When you look into affordable link building, you might not think that anchor text matters. In fact, it matters a lot. In most cases, you want to move away from constantly linking to your brand name, such as, say, “Tough Lady Plumbers.” If that’s already your site’s URL and contained several times in website, Google already knows your brand name. What it might now know, though, is what exactly you do, which is why anchor texts like “fixing kitchen sinks” might be more effective.
Do you practice good, affordable link building?