Ways to Get Quality Backlinks

All links are created equal, right? No, they are not!

Link building used to be simple: You’d write some interesting articles, submit them to different article submission sites, and get external links back to your website.

This does not really work in the post-Penguin era. While the good inbound website links boost your Search Engine rankings, brand reputation, and revenue, the bad ones may penalize your website. Plus, you never know what Google might do next.

Kevin
VP – Digital Marketing

We all know how Private Blog Networks (PBNs) shot to limelight in 2014 when Google threw a bomb – PBN deindexing update – that tanked rankings for websites that had used this technique. Google may do it once again if we try to game the search results. So, beware!

Now comes the burning question that you may have asked yourself many times, “How can I build quality backlinks to my website for the best SEO results?”

Before we jump into what does and does not work, it is important for you to know that we are now at a point where only white hat link-building techniques work. It is impossible to borrow, steal, or purchase links. All you can do is earn them, but there are smart ways to do that, too. In fact, some tactics even let you piggyback on your rivals’ success.

So, let’s get started.

Original Research

Conducting surveys and research is not cheap in either cost or time, but outlets such as ConversionXL and Hubspot regularly conduct and publish interesting research findings since they generate backlinks. If you do not wish to do the research yourself or appoint someone to do it, reach out to companies which conduct research or surveys and publish them in PDFs. You can ask these companies for the PDFs and then write a small blog post summarizing their findings in return for a link to their page where users can download their full report. This way, you will get lots of links as well as traffic, no matter if the information shared is not yours or if you are just reporting on it.

When your blog post is ready, create a catchy headline by using something like:

• New Findings
• New Research
• New Data

This will help people find out at the first glance that it is research-based and they will be more likely to read it.

Guest Blogging

This one is definitely one of my most favorite methods to gain exposure and links. It’s great if you have written for blogs before, but even if you haven’t, you can hire a ghostwriter for between $250 and $500 for a quality post of 2000 words.

Note: Do not go overboard by putting too many backlinks to your website. Keep it around 1-3 for 2000 words and most importantly, make sure the blog owner does not have a problem with adding backlinks. If they do, take your post somewhere else.

Also, be sure to keep your byline smart, crisp and to the point. It should convey the readers what you do, who you are, and what value you can bring. And yes, link it to your website.

Infographics

Infographics continue to be insanely popular.

Back in 2012, hashtag #infographic was shared exactly 56,765 times on Twitter. Some experts believed that it was merely a passing fad that would self-destruct in a few years.

Fast-forward to 2018, infographics are stronger and more popular than ever before.

An infographic with an amazing design and interesting facts/statistics can generate tons of high-quality backlinks. This is where, a good designer can work their magic – by creating a visually-appealing infographic that may generate quality backlinks and improve your website’s overall SEO.

When creating an infographic, it is important to brainstorm and choose a good topic. Then create an engaging copy, graphs, and charts to go with it. And yes, do not forget to add an embed code for making it easier for people willing to put it on their site.

If other websites find your infographic interesting and pertinent, they may download and put it on their own website. That’s why it is important to have your business logo on the infographic – so that even if you do not get the backlinks, you can still get some brand exposure on the web.

Outreach Efforts

When you write a post, you probably link to other articles and companies. Next time you do that, make an extra effort and contact the writers who created the content or get in touch with the people who run these companies. Tell them that you have mentioned them on your post and they may even share it on their social media handles or mention you in a future article they write.

Note: When you try to reach out to a wider audience, make sure you don’t ask for backlinks as that may make you appear desperate. Instead, tell them you genuinely liked their post and thought it would be great to share it on your blog. That is all you need to do.

Also, make sure your blog post does not have too many links as that can again make you look bad.

Conclusion

All it takes is hard work, creativity, and people skills. Your competitors that are on top of their search engine game are not cold emailing firms or bloggers who are always asking people for backlinks. They are hard-working professionals who know how to produce and write creative content that others would want to link to. Try the aforementioned tactics and see how they can get you more backlinks. Good Luck!