Have you noticed that over the years, link building has become a less discussed topic? I know I barely hear about it anymore, even though SEO in general is still a hot topic that dominates the question of online content marketing. You just don’t come across people wanting to know about link building tactics these days.
I think that this has given people a false impression of how useful link building is on the web today. Most probably think that it is no longer relevant, and that traditional link building has been overtaken entirely by social media.. This is probably half true; social media is definitely a more effective link sharing tool than the old school link building we used to do.
But there is still a place for link building in a well rounded marketing campaign. You just have to know what strategies still work, and which of them are both time and energy efficient. Since some work but are not effective enough to justify working on, here are five strategies that are still worth your time.
Take a page from this post’s book: top lists are still very effective for link building. People read them, share them are are always happy to refer to them. Especially when it comes to sites like Reddit. I have seen quite a few sites suggesting larger lists, like top 50, 100, 101, ect. Which are fine, but I have always preferred short ones that remain in the 5 – 10 range. They catch the attention of readers who just want a quick read, which giving you the chance for sequels in the future. A whole series of top lists is much better than just one, and has a lot more link building potential.
While directory submission is pretty much dead, going after some of major directories can still make sense. DirJournal web directory is one perfect example!
Guest posting is still a lucrative option for building powerful links. Having other writers, especially those who have a certain amount of authority on a topic, gives you a new pool to fish from through their own readers. Because the guest poster is going to share the link on their blog, in their social media profiles and potentially in future posts that reference the same topic. It will be a whole new audience that could become regular readers, as well.
This should be a no-brainer, right? But given the articles I have seen around the web that are obviously used for link building, I would have to say that it isn’t as obvious as we would like to think. There is still a ton of content out there that has been created for nothing but building links and gaining search engine traffic. But the way Google and other engines track content has changed, and it is much harder to get away with this. A point that anyone who writes genuine posts with real information in will be thrilled to hear. If you write well formed, informative and interesting posts, you will be much more likely to gain healthy links as a result.
I know that there is a bit of a stigma associated with using a site like EzineArticles, and that’s fair enough. But that doesn’t mean it doesn’t have its place in the scheme of things, nor that news syndication isn’t a great (if short lived) way to go. News sites of any kind, including EzineArticles, are highly ranked and tend to match what is trending at the moment. Think of it as a quick shot in the arm daily, generating traffic and providing highly shareable content for a short time. Sure, it doesn’t make a great campaign strategy alone, but incorporated with more permanent content? It works.
The web is an expansive digital world. While our thinking used to be more localized, with the increase of web use and the changing face of the international market that has followed, our view has become very broad indeed. Most of us don’t consider the local potential for anything, much less link building. But finding exposure from your own backyard is a great way to improve your presence and so the effectiveness of any part of your campaign. Check with local directories, shop local groups, your Chamber of Commerce website and other opportunities from your region.
This is obviously not a comprehensive list. But I have found a lot of the link building strategies of the past lacking thanks to the changing face of the web. The five above are the small handful that I believe are really worthwhile.
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