Everyone uses Google, but the process of getting your business on top of Google search results pages can seem daunting. There are lots of factors that influence Google’s website ranking algorithm. One of these factors is “Backlinking,” the unofficial process of one website giving another a vote of confidence by using its link. This indicates to Google’s algorithm that someone trusts this website.
Therefore, backlinking is an important part of SEO or Search Engine Optimization. Read on to learn how backlinks are getting your business on top of Google search results pages (SERPS).
What Are Backlinks?
Backlinks are created when a website incorporates a link to another website in its copy. Backlinks are also sometimes called inbound or incoming links. An example of a backlink: a cooking website’s blog may recommend a brand of cookware and post that cookware’s store website. This causes the cooking store website to gain a backlink as a “trusted” website. Getting your business on top of Google search results becomes more accessible because that website competes with other, similar websites.
How Does Your Website Get Backlinks?
Now that you know how backlinks impact SEO, it is important to learn how you can get them to influence your product. Backlinks are one of the most influential Google ranking factors and help in getting your business on top of Google search results.
There are roughly three ways to gain backlinks for your website. The first is natural backlinks or links given to the website with no action taken by the website owner. This can be achieved by creating high-quality content that other websites find useful. The second way to achieve backlinks for your website is to manually create them. This would involve a company that is seeking links on other websites, such as guest blogging and paid sponsorship. The final way to gain backlinks is when they are self-created. The site managers can do this by adding links to things like comments, online directories, and blogs. This final method is deemed to be the least effective, as it does not improve Google website ranking and may damage your website’s ranking.
What Makes Backlinks Valuable?
As previously stated, not all backlinks are created equal. Some are more valuable than others for improving your website’s Google search engine result page ranking. Here we will list the different things that impact the effectiveness of Backlinks to improve your Google ranking.
Website Authority
Website authority is important in good backlinks. The “backlink” is more valuable if the website hosting the link is well-known and trusted. On the flip side, spammy or poorly designed websites are less trusted; therefore, getting your business on top of Google search results becomes impossible.
Link Relevancy
When it comes to the value of backlinks, the relevancy of the link matters. It is important to ensure backlink quality and that the hosting website is relevant to the link’s content. A link for Alaskan snow boots is not going to be valuable on a website about Hawaiian surfing.
Location of Link
The Google algorithm takes many factors into account when it ranks backlinks, and one of those factors is the link’s location on the host site. If the link is small and insignificant, then it is less valuable than a prominently placed link. For example, a link placed in the smaller side scrolls of a website will not be as useful to ranking as a link placed in the header of a website.
Number of Links on the Page
Google can identify “link farming” pages that contain lots and lots of links but little or no substance. These backlinks are ranked lower because it would be difficult for someone to find your website link on a page of so many others, and the wall of links is untenable to use.
Quality of link text or “Anchor Text.”
The anchor text refers to the often underlined text that represents the link. The best anchor texts for SEO are those that are short and informative. The Anchor text is also usually a different color than the surrounding text, which identifies them as outbound links on the host website.
Contact Sterling & Pope to Get Your Product To Show Up Higher on Google
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