Backlinks, external links, linkbuilding – whatever you call it, it’s huge for SEO. Linkbuilding is the process of earning links from credible external websites, which directs traffic to your page and improves your authoritativeness to the search engine.
While linkbuilding is an effective tool for B2B SEO, it’s not a quick solution. Building credible links – the ones that actually benefit your ranking – take time. Creating linkable assets can move this process along by creating more desirable content that external websites prefer to link to.
Here are some linkbuilding strategies to create linkable assets.
1. Define Your Audience
The audience is the primary focus of any marketing strategy – linkbuilding or otherwise. Your audience should guide the content you create, leading to higher-quality content that other sites value.
Content that is worth linking to typically means providing value and information to the reader with plenty of authoritative sources to support it. Your content should also present information in a unique way that differentiates you from your competitors.
2. Create Quality Content
Whether it’s Digital PR or onsite content, tour content strategy is only part of the equation. The type of content that worthwhile sites want to link to is about more than regurgitating the same topics and adding a bunch of flashy videos and graphics.
Videos and graphics do help with your linkbuilding, but they’re not as important as the content itself. You need to focus first on the purpose, goal, and value of the content and how it helps the reader.
Remember, authoritative content takes time and resources. You can’t rush it to get it out there. Make sure your content is comprehensive and valuable, answering all the reader’s questions, relieving their stress and fears, and providing resources they need to take action.
3. Promote Your Content
Once you’ve created content, you need to get it in front of the right audience. This can be challenging, but you have plenty of options. Social media, paid advertising, and outreach can get your content more exposure.
Be sure to share your content everywhere you can think of, including your website and social media pages, and sell its value to the audience.
4. Pitch to Authoritative Sites
If you’ve created something unique and know the perfect place for it, make sure you pitch it. Your content may be valuable to a site or publication, but if they don’t know it exists, it may never be linked.
Create a list of sites that may be interested in linking to your content, then pitch it to them. You may not get a “yes” every time, but you may get some links that boost your exposure and get you started.
5. Leverage Research and Studies
Research and studies are popular for links and sources. They’re often from authoritative sources, independent and objective, and provide in-depth information and context on a topic, which is perfect for supporting claims in content.
Even if you don’t have a big name in the industry – yet – you can still contribute research. Consider personal case studies and small group studies, which you can pitch to credible websites. You can also update older and outdated research with new insights to get more attention.
6. Create Comprehensive Guides
Comprehensive guides are all over the internet and tend to have A LOT of backlinks. When someone writes short-form content, it’s beneficial to link to an in-depth piece to ensure the reader knows where to go for more information – and from a source they trust.
You should be an expert or knowledgeable on the topic to create a comprehensive guide, however. If you’re not, you need to be willing to conduct extensive research to flesh out your guide and ensure the information is correct.
7. Improve Existing Content
If you know of content and sites that have poor links to questionable sites, you have an opportunity. Create your own content on the same topic, then reach out to the original linking website to offer your new option.
Get Your Links!
Linkbuilding takes time and patience, but with linkable assets, you can create the type of content that authoritative websites are practically begging to link to.
Author Bio Below
Jason started freelancing in SEO back in college, sold his first agency, and now is founder of Zupo, which is an Orange County based SEO consulting agency helping construct powerful long term SEO strategies for our clients. Jason also enjoys multiple cups of tea a day, hiding away on weekends, catching up on reading, and rewatching The Simpsons for the 20th time.