Link Building Strategies and SOPs
The ultimate list of link-building strategies to improve your ranking. Domain Authority is an important ranking factor if you are going after a competitive keyword.
But getting backlinks is a tough job. Forget about the high domain authority (DA) websites. Sometimes, getting links from a lower DA seems like a tough nut to crack. I know this because I have been there and have done that.
If you are struggling with it, I have compiled a list of all the backlinking methods known to humans on the e-planet of internet marketing.
Broken Link
Businesses close, unfortunately, and so does their website. This leaves a huge gap for SEO-savvy entrepreneurs looking for an opportunity to build their links.
The broken link-building strategy includes finding broken (aka dead) links on a website. Dead links are links to a dead site or a page with a 404 error.
It is an old technique that many digital marketers have used. It works well and is scalable if you have the right process.
Broken links result in poor user experience. Frankly, it is embarrassing, and nobody wants it on their website.
How to use the broken link-building strategy?
The broken link building has three steps essentially:
- Research
- Content Creation
- Outreach
***Write the steps***
Email template from Brian Dean of Backlinko
Blog Commenting
Blog commenting is a simple strategy of going to others’ blogs and commenting on them. It was one of the popular ways to get links to your website, but it was quickly abused, thanks to spammers.
You must have come across software and services that promise you links for thousands of links for low fees, like the one below.
Due to half-baked knowledge, many SEO beginners and naive website owners fall into this trap.
Blog comments were for people to leave thoughtful comments after reading the article to share their opinions, knowledge, and feedback with the blogger and learn more on the subject.
However, spammers developed tools that would automate the process, leaving blog owners with the additional burden of monitoring site comments.
To discourage these spammers and combat this pandemic, blog owners started implementing the nofollow attributes on all links. The nofollow link doesn’t pass any link juice to the website.
Some blog owners have completely stopped accepting any comments.
How do you use blog commenting properly?
If your sole purpose of blog commenting is only to create links, I am afraid you will fail. Blog comments are nofollow, and they are not worth the effort.
The key to using it is to build relationships with bloggers, which you can cash in for do-follow backlinks later through guest posts, broken links, etc. Bloggers are more open to engaging with their followers and readers than some random guy cold-emailing them.
The best practices for blog commenting are:
1. Using real name:
The easiest way to spot a blog comment spammer is if they are using their website’s name or keywords instead of their real name. Your comment will be instantly deleted by the blog owner.
Using your real name helps them to know you better and creates a human connection. As a blogger, it feels good to have a real human reader reading and interacting with them.
2. Using a real email address
Never use a fake email address. Using a real email address opens the channel for communication. If you are worried about the overwhelming number of unsolicited emails, I recommend you create an email address for blog comments.
Double-check your email address to avoid any typos.
3. Read the blog before commenting.
Do not leave a comment based on the topic or just by skimming the article. You may miss important details and embarrass yourself. Do not assert your opinion unless you are an expert on the topic. It’s wise to ask questions, but feel free to share your knowledge if you are.
When sharing your knowledge, be humble and do not brag. The comment should be at least three sentences.
HARO
HARO, which is for Help A Reporter Out, is one the top recommended ways if you are looking for high authority backlinks.
You can join HARO here.
You need to join in as a source. Once you join HARO, you will receive an email three times a day (5:35 a.m., 12:35 p.m., and 5:35 p.m. Eastern Standard Time) right in your inbox.
The inbox will consist of requests from reporters looking for sources.
How to use HARO?
Go through the email from email.
Scan through the INDEX and find the ones that match your expertise. Respond with your credentials and helpful tips that add value.
If the reporter decides to use you as a source, they’ll hook you up with a backlink.
It is probably one of the easiest ways to get a backlink from high-domain authority websites.
Infographics
Let’s face it: rarely does anyone have time to review your website. Readers often skim through your website for information. So, how do you grab their attention, make your site stand out, and come back for more? You guessed it right: infographics.
Infographics are visual presentations of data or information in small chunks, making it easier for readers to digest.
It also helps them skim the whole article and remove the key points.
The infographics are also used as a lead magnet. Site owners will ask for an email where they can send the infographics to busy readers.
Stats from Hubspot show that infographics are liked and shared on social media 3x more when compared to other types of content. It’s unsurprising as it makes information easy to understand instead of getting buried under texts.
So the next question is
How do you get backlinks through infographics?
Okay, so it’s not as easy as it sounds. For your infographics to go viral, it has to have three elements in common:
- Awesome design: A poorly created infographic is better than not having any, as it will harm the user experience. You should hire a graphic designer to create a visually appealing and professional design.
- Well-researched statistics: Viral infographics have one thing in common: they are well-researched containing interesting information, facts, and stats.
- Promotion and outreach: Once you have the above two taken care of and believe you have an awesome infographic, it’s time to reach out. If you don’t promote your infographics, it is likely to be found by no one.
Don’t be afraid to reach out to people by email, share on social media, and spend on paid advertisement.
Check out some of the infographics that went viral
The infographics you see below have a whooping 47k shares. The infographic has a really interesting and appealing subject, “How 5 Tech Giants Make their Billions”.
We all want to know this information, don’t we? It was created by visualcapitalist.com
The “Introverts Guide to Job Interviews” was created by CashNetUSA. This infographic has more than 15k shares.
It has earned them more backlinks from high DA from sites like entrepreneur.com and now ours as we use their example to motivate you 🙂
Link Reclamation (Unlinked Mentions)
Link reclamation (unlinked mentions) focuses on claiming links from any online mentions that refer to your brand name, images, citations, etc., that haven’t linked to you.
In this strategy, you proactively contact the site owners and ask them to link to your site.
It’s a fairly simple and straight process.
