After publishing my May Link Earning blog, some additional Link considerations arose to share:

  1. Inbound Links are one of web marketing’s most powerful Search Engine Optimization (SEO) tools, in that they are the Internet’s version of a reference. As with a good reference you need a good quality link. A bad link or reference can actually hurt your Internet ranking.
  2. Building high quality Inbound Links is a vital part of off-page SEO (SEO activities that take place off the website). Inbound Links help a search engine determine your business’ importance relative to your area or business category. Links account for much of a web page’s ability to rank for a certain keyword, phrase, or business category.

Proper Link Building is an inbound marketing tactic that requires dedication and the understanding that success doesn’t happen overnight. The goal of an established, targeted Link Building plan is to improve your rank for a keyword, phrase or to improve the rank of a particular web page in a business category.

Sourcing Inbound Links                                              

The varying value and quality of a Link makes Link Building a difficult, time-consuming process. A Link from an authoritative website, like the Wall Street Journal, will make a greater impact on a Search Engine Results Page (SERP) than a Link from a new website. However, the highest quality Links are hard to obtain.

It is important to avoid links from non-authoritative sites like ‘Link Farms’ or other sites formed specifically for Link generation. These low quality links are ineffective and can actually be destructive to your rankings. Recently created search engine updates filter out and downgrade websites using such low quality Links.

Not all Links are Created Equal

Submitting to website directories is one of the few Link Building tactics you do have total control over. Inbound links from directories may not be the most authoritative links, but they can jump start your Link Building efforts, making it totally worthwhile. Submitting to the right directories will get you quality Links.

Another important role of a Link is to help mobile devices zero in on a location. So, web directory listings actually provide a dual value: as an Inbound Link and a localized reference point. Their value is higher on mobile searches than on non-mobile searches, since anyone can create a listing.

Local web directory listings Links are also very important for boosting your company’s visibility on mobile devices, as the search engines use these types of Links to determine a locations importance. What your business does or where it is located are important factors when considering directories. Take into account if a directory is an important one in your industry.

The Role of Search on Link SEO

While Links aren’t everything in SEO, a large portion of the search engines’ algorithms (formulas or a way of doing things) include an Inbound Link assessment to determine your search engine results ranking. Search Engines consider the popularity of a website and page based on the number and popularity of pages linking to them.

The search engines also consider overall website authority, the relevance of its content, as well as positive (providing helpful information) or negative behavior (creating and sending out web spam). Trustworthy sites tend to Link to other trusted sites, while spammy sites receive very few Links from trusted sources.

Customers Reviews as Quality Links

Customer reviews are an important part of an SEO strategy. They are assigned an extremely high weighting (value) because they are an actual external linking reference. Reviews are also often localized, which can double their SEO impact. A localized review (from a local directory, search or review engine) can add up to a 40% weight increase to a local search result.

Closing Thoughts

A Link or Review from a very credible organization or person in your industry is weighted heavily as they are external references that are considered ‘credible’. Such authoritative, high quality Links positively impact a web page’s ranking in search results–and page rankings affect site traffic, and traffic can affect conversions.

Is a Link Building plan the missing link in your web SEO strategy? Are your web marketing tools actively converting? The Everbearing team can review or help set-up a Link Building SEO strategy for you today.

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