Backlinks: An Online Handshake
When you speak with
SEO professionals, you may hear them talk about the importance of
backlinks. Backlinks are when another site links to your site. These links
are important because not only do they help drive traffic to your website,
but they are a sign to Google that your site provides information that
people appreciate and view as worth linking to.
In the beginning of 2015, there was controversy following one of the Google
‘hangouts.’ John Mueller, of Google, seemed to indicate that webmasters
should not focus on building backlinks. This took the marketing world by
storm, as many people dedicate time and energy to developing a high quality
backlink profile.
Careful analysis of the problem, however, demonstrates that this might not
have been what Mueller meant. At other Google hangouts in the past, he gave
advice about how to appropriately go about building successful and useful
backlink profiles. It is now largely agreed by many marketing professionals
that Mueller was speaking about avoiding using illicit tactics to build backlinks,
such as engaging in, 'I link to you, you link to me’ backlink schemes.
To understand how backlinks should ideally be developed, it can be useful
to look at how business is conducted in person.
The Role of a Handshake
Place yourself in a corporate meeting between two important executives.
They are sitting at a long table in a professionally furnished conference
room. They sit at opposite sides, each with a team of assistants taking
notes of the meeting and making sure that the bosses are always equipped
with a glass of ice water.
The two hash out their ideas. They want to see if their information aligns
and if they believe they can work with each other. No executive wants to
run the risk of doing business with someone who would ruin their reputation.
Before any deals are struck, they want to make sure that this is a
professional with whom they want to have their name publicly associated
with.
After a long conversation, they both stand up.
“Well, I suppose we are in agreement,” says one.
“Yes. I will have my team get started on the contract right away,” says the
other.
They reach out and they shake hands-- and now everyone in the room knows
that they will be willing to vouch for the other.
The Role of the Backlink
The handshake is a backlink. When one site links to another, they are
publicly vouching for the content on that page. They have reviewed the
information and found it to be in line with what they believe about the
topic at hand. They trust that when they send their page visitors to that
website, the users will be able to obtain useful information that will help
them answer their questions.
Backlinks should not be something that you ever have to trick the other
website into doing. It is not supposed to be the end goal of SEO. Instead, backlinks
should be viewed as a part of a larger SEO strategy that involves creating
high quality content that people are interested in reading and find
helpful.
That does not mean you cannot ask for backlinks. If you find a website that
aligns with your intended audience and you think your content would be
helpful, there is nothing wrong with asking for a link, but it should
always be done upfront and honestly.
You can build backlinks by writing guest posts or thought-leadership pieces
for other websites. You should also be sharing your content on social media
to increase exposure and build more backlinks.
Google, and its algorithm, want to keep an eye out for backlinks that come
from low quality sites or always seem to come from the same types of sites.
They want to make sure that the backlinks are diversified and gained
honestly. If a poor site links to you and you do not want the backlink
counting against you, then you can always disavow it to let Google know
that you want no part of that link.
When it comes to building backlinks, remember to always build them honestly
and with the end user in mind. Just like a handshake in business, it should
be viewed as a public vouching for the other site. When you view it in that
context, it will be easier to understand the role of backlinks in the
online web community.
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