Here are 10 great tips to give your inbound linking strategy a kick. For all the hard work we do making sure our pages are optimized for this keyword or that keyphrase, the truth is that without a strong network of quality backlinks, we might still never make it to our desired positions in the rankings.
I want to preface the list by saying that these methods don’t involve link trading or otherwise just going up to someone and saying “put me on your link page”. That’s good-old 90s link trading and is really pretty worthless. Let’s get links by creating content that people actually WANT to link to.
1) Become a guest writer on someone else’s blog. There are lots of complimentary websites that could drive visitors to your website. Seek them out and build a relationship. Every time you write an article, that’s a new backlink.
2) Teach someone how to do something. Writing tutorials about anything is a great way to get backlinks. Write one on your website and to maximize the exposure, go put it on about.com or squidoo.com as well.
3) Don’t forget to put links to your website in your signatures on other websites. When you participate in forums, comment on other people’s blogs or answer questions at Yahoo Answers, those are opportunities to include your link in your signature.
4) Link to content on other websites. You like to be linked, so guess what – so do other website owners! They will notice if you are linking to them and are likely to link back to your site.
5) Run a promotion. Give something away with some kind of contest. There are sites out there that seek out such contests to put into their databases. It’s an easy way to get inbound links.
6) Write a fantastic article! If you offer content that really helps someone or offers a new perspective on a subject, readers might not always link to it – however, they will tweet it or post it on Facebook or bookmark it through social channels. These are all links.
7) Create a “Top 10 List” People just love top ten lists. Since you’re reading this list, I won’t say anymore on the subject 🙂
8) Give positive comments to other bloggers. Those of us who write like compliments, and tend to check out those who give us compliments. It’s just how those things work. Not to mention, your complimentary post will have your signature in it that includes a backlink.
9) Write a critique or review a product. Most review sites have you enter your contact information and let you craft your signature. These can be a great way to build inbound traffic.
10) Make sure your any vendors you do business with are linking to you. No, this isn’t just asking a random website for a link, as I mentioned above, these are vendors. If your business relies on the products or services of another business, then their business relies on yours as well. They should be thrilled to link to your website as a show of support.
These are just 10 ways to give your inbound traffic a shot in the arm. There are, of course, many more ways and some of the methods above will no doubt be subject to many opinions on the matter. The point is, you need to engage with your customers, vendors, and the internet community in general in order to attract inbound links. Now, get out there and get noticed!
[sam id=”10″ codes=”true”]