Link building – how important is it?

It may sound like a vague phrase, but ‘link building’, the process of gaining hyperlinks from other sites to your own, is a page 1 tactic to have in your arsenal. But why is it so important and how do you actually link build? 

1. Ask for backlinks – do your friends or family have a blog or website relevant to your business? Ask for an in-content backlink in exchange
2. Forge relationships – good link building requires good rapports and there is no shortage of ways to do this: blogs, social media groups, forums and communities are good places to start. Don’t be afraid to make the first move by commenting on a post that could be a good talking point between your business and somebody else’s. This could result in your new contact using a link to your business on their site thus gaining Google’s approval as this will be evidence that your site is a good resource worthy of citation. This could be an on-going endeavour with your new business acquaintance: why not ask them if you can trade a back-link for a share on Twitter?
3. Start a blog – writing regular and engaging content will keep your users wanting to come back to your site and learn about the latest news in X industry – but make sure you don’t let them down. Blogs must be written regularly in order to be effective and a mistake and a sporadic approach will alienate your audience, who will find other sites to visit when your content is nowhere to be seen. Great content will attract back-links, so make sure you make it relevant and shareable. Did you know that a mere 1-2 blogs per month can increase B2B leads by 70%? Food for thought….
4. Recover any dead backlinks – everyone finds broken links on their site from time to time such as when the location of your pages changes, resulting in a 404 error.

Here at Hooked On Media, we can help you increase your online presence by implementing the techniques and practices necessary to succeed. Contact us today to find out more.