Developing a Link Building Strategy: Essential Points to Keep in Mind

If you own a business in the digital age, you need a website. This is true whether you’re a new entrepreneur with dreams of turning your fledgling operation into a thriving enterprise, a trusted local business owner adapting to changing times, or simply someone running a small side business to earn some extra cash.

You also need to make sure your business’ website ranks high in relevant search results pages. Your website needs consistent visitors for it to offer any major benefits. That’s why you should strongly consider developing and implementing a link building strategy.

Link building essentially involves generating backlinks to your site from other sites. When other sites link back to yours consistently, Google’s algorithm interprets this as a sign that your site features valuable content. The algorithm will thus be more likely to prioritize your site in results pages when users search for businesses or content like yours.

Link building can be both very affordable and very effective as a business marketing tool. However, before developing your strategy, it’s important to be aware of certain pitfalls and limitations that can thwart your efforts if you don’t plan thoroughly. Specifically, you should keep the following points in mind:

Be Careful With Link Building Partnerships (But Don’t Avoid Them Altogether, Necessarily)

One of the easiest ways to generate links to your site is to coordinate with other publishers, agreeing to link to their site in your content if they link to yours.

This can be a smart way to jumpstarting a link building campaign. That said, it’s important that when others link back to your site, they only do so because they have a natural reason to. They shouldn’t shoehorn in links just to meet the terms of your agreement.

Google’s algorithm programmers want users to find the valuable content they’re seeking when they perform searches. This is why links back to your site can play such a critical role in its search result rankings.

However, if it’s clear that a partner is linking to your site not because the content is genuinely valuable or relevant, but because you entered into an agreement, this constitutes a “link scheme.” Google will penalize your site accordingly in these circumstances. Thus, if you enter into any link building partnerships, ensure it’s abundantly clear that you only want someone to link to your site when they have a legitimate reason to do so.

Choose Where to Guest Post Wisely

Another way to generate links back to your site involves submitting guest contributions to blogs and other online publications. Often, the editors of online publications allow guest contributors to include links to their own sites in posts.

This is an effective strategy because it allows you to cast a wide net without spending much money. Just remember to consider the audience you’re trying to reach when deciding where to submit guests posts to. For example, if you’re trying to generate links back to your roofing business’ website, you might not have much luck generating interest among potential customers if you’re submitting guest posts to a site that focuses on pop culture or fashion trends.

Choose Links Wisely, Too

You don’t need to link to your homepage every time you generate a link to your site. In fact, you shouldn’t. Again, you need a natural reason for a link to exist. There won’t always be a reason to link to your homepage when another page may be more relevant. When you have some degree of control over which page on your site a link leads to, consider your options carefully.

Also keep in mind that you don’t need to develop a link building strategy on your own. You could partner with experts instead. This can help you save time, avoid common pitfalls, and achieve optimal results.