While search engine optimization can be transformative for businesses when they get it right, the constant moving of the goal posts can be terribly frustrating. For example, is link building still as important today as it used to be? And if so, what are the best practices? Let’s find out…
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Is link-building important in 2023?
SEO has gone through many changes over the years but the three pillars of SEO are as important today as they have ever been:
- Onsite optimization,
- Content creation,
- Link-building
Some people may argue that link-building is less important today, but that is simply not the case. The fact is, if link building hasn’t been working for them, it’s either because they’re using blackhat link building techniques and failing, or because their content is so poor that nobody wants to share and link back to it.
The data doesn’t lie: “79.7% of SEOs consider link building an important part of their SEO strategy.”
Why is link-building so effective?
When executed well, it can yield incredible results for your long-term SEO campaign. But, why is it so effective?
Quality links indicate to Google that a web page is authoritative. So, the greater the number of high PR (Page Rank) websites that essentially ‘vote’ for a web page by linking back to it, clearly the more interesting the content is. Google recognises these pages with greater link volumes as being worthwhile and will grant them more visibility as a result.
Similarly, long-form content tends to attract more links because the depth of the content is typically far more thorough and as a result, performs better in the organic rankings.
Remember, Google is a business at the end of the day and they are dedicated to providing a good customer service – which means recommending quality content in the SERPs. Link quality and volume can help them easily determine the value of a web page before ranking it accordingly.
What are best practices when link-building for SEO?
Best practices in SEO and link building are actually relatively straight forward:
- Don’t buy cheap links from blackhat link farms. If you can get 10,000 links for a few hundred bucks, you are being ripped off – and Google will penalise you for it.
- Focus on building links organically by creating high-value long-form content that other marketers will want to share with their audience.
- Seek out local partnerships and prop up other businesses to gain organic backlinks.
- Put together a comprehensive guest blogging strategy and create high-value content for other industry-relevant guest blogging sites with a consistently high PR.
- Maintain good link hygiene by removing any poor quality links from fake or un-reputable websites.
If you want to work on your back link profile but you don’t have the time to focus on it, it’s worth hiring an SEO company in Melbourne to accommodate your needs. Keep an eye out for a reputable agency like the example provided with a wealth of 5* reviews and positive, real-life case studies. That way you can rely on them to use above-board link building strategies that will not result in your penalisation.
Final thoughts: Link building is stronger than ever
Just because Google is being stricter with link building, it doesn’t mean that the practice is not worth pursuing. All it means is that if you wish to be successful, you need to invest in exceptional content creation, mutually beneficial partnerships, and a well-strategized guest blogging campaign in order to attract genuine and valuable links.
