UNDERSTANDING THE IMPORTANCE OF A GOOD LINK
It’s no secret that a good link is a valuable asset for success in search engine optimization. Using both internal and external links within content is a strategy that has long been used by the best Fort Collins SEO Companies in order to add value and reliability. But in order to find the greatest value in links, you must first understand what a good link is and how you go about getting them.
What Makes a Quality Link?
Linking allows you to create a connection between your site and that of another. In order to benefit from linking, however, you must be careful that all integrated links provide a reputable and valuable connection, not simply a connection for the sake of it. While there was once a time in which the quantity of links took precedence, Google’s modern algorithms now hone in on the quality of links. Links should lead readers from one page to another, delivering information that will not only add value, but will also provide support for your own content.
More and more, search engines are being programmed to rank sites that offer content of a higher quality and this includes linking. Linking should be used to support the worth of your own content with help from other sources of quality content. But the question remains, what makes a link good? How can you be sure that links integrated into your content will add value rather than take away from it?
Moz put it best – a good link starts with the concept of E-A-T: expert, authoritative, and trustworthy. You should link to reliable and reputable high authority sites that offer expertise in your industry or on the topic of your content. There must be purpose and intention behind each link in order for them to be effective. Links that do not provide something of value to your content are not worth the effort, while links that offer no value will hurt you more than help. The success of your backlink strategy goes beyond filling your content with link after link.
A good link:
- Is both relevant and coordinated to your content
- Is productive for your topic
- Comes from high authority websites with either high page ranks or top ranking in search results
- Is naturally integrated into your content through pertinent and descriptive anchor text
- Comes from sites within your industry or industries that compliment the subject of your content
- Promotes high quality traffic to both sites
When asked what a good link would be, Google’s John Mueller said that “…the traditional good link is someone who comes across your website and thinks it’s a fantastic website and recommends it to other people with a link.” This applies in both directions. A good link comes from a website that you find fantastic and worth recommending. This form of promotion can produce greater value in link building as you create relationships with well-established sites.
Why Is Linking Important?
The benefits of link building are undeniable as it is consistently recognized as an important ranking factor and a worthwhile component of SEO. It can improve domain and page authority, create exposure and visibility, generate traffic, establish trust, and more. Good links effortlessly influence readers into giving your content an even higher value. Your brand then becomes associated with other relevant and authoritative people or businesses, leading search engines to also add value to your website as they identify correlation with other highly ranked websites. Google uses links to help it measure the quality and credibility of a page, which in turn influences how your page or site will be ranked on a results page.
How Do You Find Good Links?
Learning how to find high-quality links can be technical, but worth the effort in order to get the most out of backlinks. To find good links, start by understanding what a good link is and isn’t. The more you understand this, the easier it will be for you to identify sites worth linking to. As you look for good links, be sure to:
- Focus On Quality And Your Audience: You must begin by creating content that is worthy of being linked to. Your priority should be to create quality content that will benefit and appeal to readers, rather than content desperately trying to get Google’s attention. Understanding your readers and tailoring content to meet user intent will influence you as you look for connections worth promoting. Sites you link to must be relevant to the information you’re providing or they will not add any value.
- Analyze Potential Sites: Find pages or sites that are both compatible and complementary to your own. Links should be an asset, so make sure that you invest time into researching potential sites. Visit these sites and take a detailed look into the quality of the content, the authority of both the page and the site as a whole. Look for signs of any unapproved black hat tactics that could lead to penalization rather than compensation. Focus on making connections solely with high-ranking, high-authority, reputable sites.
- Take Advantage of Backlink Research: Sites such as Ahrefs, SEMrush, Moz, and many others offer tools designed to streamline backlink research and help you build better linking performance. The detailed analytics available from these sites can provide you with invaluable insight into to the success of your own links, but also in the links found through your competitors.
- Trust In SEO Experts: Invest in the expertise of a reputable SEO company with the experience and knowledge needed to implement the most effective content marketing strategies. At Red Rocket Web Specialists, we understand what a good link is and we know how to use them to benefit your SEO campaign. Call us today at (970) 674-0079.