Linkbuilding is one of the most important strategies for the good positioning of a website in the search results. Today we tell you all about it, so get ready!
what is linkbuilding?
Linkbuilding is the set of techniques to generate links on external domains with the aim of improving the SEO positioning of a web page or website within the search engines.
These external links are known as backlinks. Each one of them indicates to search engines that the linked content is of value and this ends up increasing its authority. However, not all backlinks are going to give you the help you are looking for to improve your positioning, some can even harm you in this task.
how does Google rank links?
Google's algorithm establishes aspects to classify a page in its ranking:
- Number of links. This was the first criterion adopted by Google. It was the basis of PageRank: the more links the site received, the more relevant it was. The number of links to a page showed its popularity on the web. Today, this criterion is still one of the most important factors in Google's link evaluation.
- Link diversity: For the search engine Google, a site proves to be more authoritative when it receives links from several different domains, which is why the diversity of the link profile also plays a role in the evaluation of link building.
- Context of the link: Google can also understand the context around the link to see if it is really relevant. Firstly, it understands that links from sites related to your area of expertise have more value, as they make more sense to the audience of that site. And secondly, Google also evaluates the words that appear near the link, also called co-occurrences. These help the search engine understand the topic of the page and whether the link makes sense in that context. In addition to the words, Google also evaluates the other links that are nearby. If they are links to quality sites, the page gains much more relevance and transmits link juice.
- Anchor text: The anchor text also says a lot about the linked page. It usually contains a keyword or a short description of what the user will find on the page when clicking on the link.
- trustworthiness: One of Google's evolutions was TrustRank. When this criterion was added to the algorithm, the search engine started to consider the trustworthiness of sites in the ranking. So, the closer you are to trustworthy sites, the more trustworthy you will also be for Google and the more link juice you will receive. Trustworthy sites are those that help build a safer and more relevant website for the user. To evaluate your trustworthiness, consider factors such as domain age, use of security certificates, quality of content, among others.
- Links from other pages to your website: In linkbuilding, you can work with both internal and external links , but it is important to know which one has more weight in the ranking.
- Links from your site to your own pages. The links you insert in your own site do not have as much weight as backlinks, but they help to show the hierarchy of your pages to Google.
- Links from your site to other web pages. Links within your web pages that point to external sites also carry weight in ranking, as Google also evaluates whether you link to popular, good, trusted and authoritative sites.
- Speed of gaining links: Getting a lot of links in a short time often creates a black hat scheme, as a natural link profile has a gradual growth.
- Nofollow x Dofollow: Another factor that Google evaluates on a web page is the nofollow attribute. When this attribute is inserted into the link code, the robot knows not to consider it for the ranking of the linked page, i.e. nofollow links do not transmit link juice.
what are the 3 key factors for a successful linkbuilding strategy?
- Opt for quality instead of quantity. When talking about linkbuilding and SEO, it is important to explain that quality is much better than quantity. Therefore, having a large number of links to your website will not bring you results if they are not of value.
- Look for naturalness: backlinks must be natural and this is something that you must take into account at all times. Anything that is exaggerated or forced is not well regarded by search engines, and the same applies to linkbuilding techniques. Backlinks are important because they show search engines that your content is being cited as a reference. By doing something artificial, the search engine will understand that you are trying to trick it, so instead of favouring you, it will harm you.
- Worry about the anchor text. The anchor text is the text in which the link is linked and, although it may seem insignificant, it is more important than many people think. Phrases such as "click here" take away the relevance of the link. The ideal is to put the keyword or its variations, so you will give it much more value and naturalness.
