Link Building – Should I Do It?
In short, yes. (we’re very direct here at Dynamics)
Links are one of the top – if not the top – ranking factor in Google. Google values inbound links (links coming to your site from an outside website) above all other factors because good links, like help, are hard to find. Let me rephrase that: they aren’t hard to find . . . they’re hard to get. There are plenty of good links on the internet today but the process of getting them to notice you and link to your website is difficult.
Will links always be a top factor?
Yes. (again, directness) For the foreseeable future, links will be high priority for SEO. The reason being, links are the most natural way of determining the popularity/authority/relevancy of a website. Are there ways to fake and manipulate this? Sure, but Google usually catches up with those strategies.
So how do you do it?
I like to start with one simple question: Why would someone link to my site?
Photo Credit: SiteFox (Creative Commons)
Even though link building is the process of getting other sites to link back to yours, you first need to address what it is they will be linking back to. Ask yourself, is my content:
- Unique
- Well organized
- Viral
- Timely
- Resourceful
- Out of the box
If you answered yes to some of these you are probably already getting links naturally (which is the best way). If you answered no, you need to follow some basic steps to make your website “link worthy.” Essentially this means that you don’t do any work besides create awesome content. People will naturally want to link to you because you’re unique, original and you think outside the box.
All cliches aside, see our post next week to see how you can make your site “link worthy.” We’ll provide you with examples of media-rich, appealing content that people have utilized to drive loads of organic traffic to their sites.
Keith Mayer is the Director of Search Engine Marketing at Dynamics Online.
You can reach him by calling (216) 292-4410.
