Backlinks are one of the many elements that contribute to improving a page’s ranking within Google’s SERP. In fact, as we all know, SEO includes numerous elements that we need to consider and optimize in order to compete with organic opponents. Let’s see together how to get backlinks!
What are backlinks?
I would say first of all, let’s start with the basics. So: what is a link? It is a direct link to a web page; this can be done either through anchor text, i.e. a portion of text, or through an image. Have you ever accidentally clicked on an image to be magically catapulted to a new page on the Internet? If the answer is yes, well: that was indeed a link.
The term anchor text, on the other hand, refers to that portion of text on which you click to be redirected to a certain page. This is a very important element from an SEO perspective, because it is with this portion of text that the content related to the linked page is defined.
The search engine, in fact, through the anchor text understands the topic covered within the page to which it redirects. This is therefore for Google itself an indication regarding which keyword set to refer to in order to position the page within the SERP.
However, anchor text must be chosen with caution; in fact, Google uses it as one of the elements to establish the link’s naturalness: this is because there is little chance that webmasters will use exactly the same words. Therefore, heavy use of the terms relevant to the page’s ranking should be avoided, not least because then one would risk potential penalties for the page itself.
It should be known that there are also two other types of links:
- Internal: when linking two pages of the same site together, using this practice increases the relevance of the pages and the depth reached by search engines;
- External: when a third party site places a direct link to our site within it, this scenario occurs in case our site has good content that is seen by an external user who in turn considers that content authoritative and therefore decides to promote it within their own site with a link. We usually refer to these as backlinks.
But why are backlinks important? They are in that they help the search engine understand whether the content in front of it can be considered authoritative or not. In fact, to “judge” the scanned page, the backlinks pointing to it are analyzed, and in this case not only the quantity of backlinks is taken into consideration, but also the quality.
It is possible that a page with a lot of backlinks behind it will be perceived by Google as not very authoritative, this could depend on the quality of links that such a page receives. For this reason, it is very important to also observe the value and quality that can be attributed to the backlinks that our site receives.
READ ALSO: Mobile First Indexing: is your site ready for the ultimate switch?
It is also good to distinguish between DoFollow and NoFollow links. Nofollow links explicitly tell the search engine that they do not convey SEO value to the linked page: you can use it when you prefer that Google does not associate your site with the linked page or that it does not crawl that page from your site.
As for DoFollow links, on the other hand, this type does not really exist but is a convention that defines links that do not explicitly state anything this way.
To verify the type of link you are examining, you need to access the source code of the web page and analyze the link: if it turns out to have rel=”nofollow” wording then that is a link that does not convey value. If there is a lack of specific wording, on the other hand, you are dealing with a DoFollow link.
We specify, however, that it is not that NoFollow links are useless: they still bring traffic to the website and increase the so-called concept of naturalness. As reported earlier, Google detects when illegal activities are being put in place, so it prefers natural ones. It is almost impossible for a website to have exclusively DoFollow links, and the search engine may detect this activity as abnormal and unnatural. Reason why it is sometimes necessary to also include NoFollow links with the purpose of balancing the two activities.
How to check the value of the backlink?
There are several elements that determine the value of a link: first of all, the source from which it comes, then the authority of the page that is linking, the relevance of the link, i.e., that such a link is actually relevant to what the linked page is about, and finally, naturalness.
The term natural link refers to a link that is obtained in a completely spontaneous and free manner. This type of activity is also usually referred to as White Hat SEO, as opposed to what is referred to as Black Hat SEO, which is black hat SEO that seeks to obtain links in an illicit manner.
Various tools can be used to define the value of a backlink. Majestic SEO for example highlights the status of inbound links according to two criteria:
- Trust Flow: a percentage value that estimates the level of trustworthiness of the site from which the links come;
- Citation Flow: a percentage metric that estimates the quantitative value of backlinks a domain receives.
An ideal backlink profile should have a 1:1 ratio between Trust Flow and Citation Flow.
When checking the value of a backlink, however, it is also important to check the organic traffic that such a site receives; this can be done with SEMRush. The latter tool analyzes a multitude of search keys, i.e., the SERP for each of them, records all the keywords it finds, and then, based on all this detected data, estimates what the analyzed website’s organic traffic might be.
By cross-checking Majestic and SEMRush, you can avoid placing too much value on a site that actually has little traffic or, conversely, few backlinks.
How to get backlinks?
So let’s assume that we have built our website, optimized it with the best SEO techniques and are ready to increase its popularity: it is then necessary to get backlinks!
Backlinks are obtained mainly through the activity of link building. An activity that consists of providing the site with links that will allow it to be more relevant in the eyes of Google, and thus be among the potential first-page search results for a specific keyword.
Usually, the link building strategies that are implemented can be called Gray Hat SEO. This strategy involves the use of links that have been “solicited” in some way but still create value for the user; it involves the use of Guest Posts, which can be either paid or free, and comments, designed to create warmth within forums and communities.
The term Guest Post refers to an article within a third-party site and containing a direct link to the site of our interest. In this case, it is important to check that the sites on which the activity is performed have good values and, consequently, convey good trust to our site of interest.
READ ALSO: 21 years of Google: how the SERP and search results have evolved
The importance of link building
Link building is therefore an important activity to contribute to the SERP ranking of the pages of one’s website, and that is why it must be planned as a real Off-Site strategy.
This in fact, in case a careful selection of anchor text is made, can be a considerable help in ranking a page for a specific keyword.
A good SEO link building strategy involves the study of the SERP, that is, an analysis of the metrics of our interest for the competitors present within the SERPs for keywords relevant to our business.
In this case, it is also important to consider an overview of the daily growth in terms of referring domains acquired by the site of our interest and the main competitors identified. In this way, a cumulative view can be had graphically, allowing a clearer view of how well the analyzed site is keeping up with the competition or not. This will then allow to understand if there is a gap to be filled and how to set up the strategy of acquiring new direct links to the site of our interest.
