It’s been a while since this entire SEO concept is around and backlinks are still considered the most important element of every campaign. As the years passed and the algorithms changed, marketers came with new ways of obtaining backlinks, adapted to the changes Google made. And no matter how hard the search engine giant made it sometimes, a few creative ways of getting that precious connection to a powerful website appeared.
Today we’re taking a bit of time to discuss the state of backlink building in 2020, as well as a few of the best ways to get backlinks in an era in which everybody says that content is king and the only way of doing it is to write well. As a side note, we’re not denying this, but there are also a few easy ways through which you can score a nice, valuable backlink. But enough with the chit-chat, let’s begin!
Write a lot!
Ok, since we already started talking about content marketing, let’s begin with this method. The first thing you should have in order to get some great backlinks is content. After all, nobody wants to link to a site which doesn’t have anything on it, right?
However, compared to a few years ago, when 300-word articles were good enough to attract backlinks, things changed a bit. Everybody wants to link to niched content, that analyses a topic in-depth and covers all of its aspects, but also ranks higher in search engines. Keeping it short, go for at least 2000 words – if possible – articles, with loads of images, which provide valuable information to the reader.
PS: Make sure you format it properly since nobody likes reading huge chunks of text!
Share on social media
Believe it or not, link building through social media is by far one of the most popular methods. But how you can obtain good links using social platforms, you’re asking? Well, it’s a bit complex, but not complicated at all.
Specifically, you start with finding your audience on social media, then find patterns in your popular content, by looking at which type of content you share gets the most engagement. From this point, it’s easy: you create high-quality content in the same niche, so it triggers your audience’s interests.
After you have the new pieces of content, share it and promote it. If done properly, your audience will reshare it or even put it on their own websites, mentioning yours.
Comment on other blogs
Yes, this method still works. However, things changed a bit. Comment on do follow blogs, but only if they are relevant to your own blog. Also, don’t resume to just one-liners, since your comment can be considered spam.
Lengthy comments are always appreciated if they provide value, not to mention that nobody will say anything if you insert a link somewhere in the comment.
Web 2.0 accounts all the way!
Another simple, yet effective way to create backlinks nowadays is to rely on Web 2.0 accounts. Here you can insert a link directly to your website and if it comes from a highly rated source, the value of the link increases!
For starters, try Tumblr, WordPress, or even Blogger. They’re free websites where you can create a profile! Obviously, the list can go on with several other examples!
Create business citations
If you’re not familiar with this term, let me explain this simply: a business citation is a mentioning of the name of your business online. Addresses and emails also work, as it helps users and search engines to find both your business and the product/service it offers online.
Just like Web 2.0 accounts, you can start with a few basic business citation sites, which get automatically submitted to Google. Some great examples are Manta, Hotfrog, MerchantCircle, or Superpages.
Join Aboutus.com
Sticking to creating profiles, Aboutus.com can be a great way to have your site added on a high-quality website and also get a backlink.
The process is very simple: you just register, add some quality content – related to your site, mandatory! – then put a link back to your site as well. And yeah, this is pretty much it.
Use the Moving Man Method
Combining content marketing and broken link building, this method, created by Backlinko’s Brian Dean is helping a lot of site owners to correct a broken link for them and get you a valuable, high-quality backlink.
In a nutshell, you start with finding sites which change their names in time or were even shut down and don’t exist anymore. Then, you find all the sites linking to the old page and proceed with creating similar, high-quality content, which can be linked.
After you’re done with the content, get in touch with the website owners, let them know about the broken link and, finally, give them your new link, replacing the old content. And voila, you got a quality backlink, from a related website!
Broken link building
If you ask yours truly, broken link building will never go out of fashion, this is why it’s recommended here. After all, pretty much any website, including big, reputable ones, suffer from broken links.
Simply put, each link from a website originally links to another page. However, since some websites often move their content around, some of these links eventually break or point to web pages that don’t exist anymore.
Therefore, the method consists in finding broken links on other websites, identifying the content they were originally linking to, then contact the website, offering them the chance to replace their broken link with a valid one. Obviously, the content will be on your site. It’s a win-win strategy, as the site owner will have fewer broken links and you will get a high-quality backlink!
Create infographics
There’s no doubt that infographics are one of the most-shared pieces of content on the Web. After all, there are even sites dedicated to public such types of content, so it’s obvious that they’re a big thing!
The main reason why infographics perform so well is that they have big chances of going viral. Nobody likes to read 5000 words when they can get the same information from a well-made infographic.
If you don’t have the skills required to create one from scratch, you can always go to Fiverr or Upwork and hire a designer to make one. Just jot down all of your ideas and wait until it’s done. Then, put it on your website, alongside an embedded code, so anybody who shares it will automatically link to the website they got it from – yours. And you never know who will share it!
Guest blogging will never die
Last but not least, let’s talk about one of the most popular ways of getting valuable links: guest blogging. Sure, getting a high-quality backlink using this procedure is not that easy. Yes, there are tons of websites accepting articles, but you’re after some big names, right?
The idea is that you need to start by selecting websites in your niche, on which you would be interested in publishing your articles, then pitch your article to them. And this is where the entire magic happens: your pitch should be so convincing that no website will say ‘no’ to publishing your article.
After you have an agreement, start writing the best content you can and have it published on a website which accepted your offer. Depending on their submission rules, you will also include a backlink to you. Oh, and the content is so good, it will also be shared and even curated by other websites. And you know what this means? That’s right, way more backlinks for your website!
This method will take time since not everybody responds after the first email and you’ll have to follow-up. However, at the end, when your guest post is up and you see all that engagement, it will surely be worth it.
Wrap-up
And this pretty much sums it up, folks. It took us a while, but we’ve been through some of the best ways to get backlinks in this article.
We like to believe that we covered some of the most efficient and popular methods here, which will genuinely help you get some great backlinks. Obviously, we’re aware of the fact that there are way more methods through which backlinks can be obtained, so this is why we’re inviting you to join the conversation.
Let us know, using the comment section below, which methods worked for you! Looking forward to reading your stories!