Getting inbound links to your site
Inbound links to your site from other places on the web, called “backlinks,” are often used by search engines to determine rankings in search results. For that reason, getting a good number of quality incoming links to your site is often a good way to improve your site’s search engine optimization (SEO). Backlinks can also help you find others who are interested in your website content.
The best way to get links to your website is to create remarkable content that others find valuable enough to link to online. Creating this link-worthy content should be an ongoing process so that search engines find good content to index and web searchers find good content to read and share.
In addition to creating linkable content, there are other great ways to get backlinks for your site:
Link to your site from social networks
Be sure to complete all the information in your social network profiles, including URLs of your site and/or landing pages. Be sure to include links to your relevant website content on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, and other appropriate networks.
Comment on blogs and online communities
Comment on blog articles relevant to your industry and in online forums where you customers participate, and always include your website URL in your signature.
Add yourself to online directories
Web directories such as http://dmoz.org and http://dir.yahoo.com allow you to add your site’s URL to categorized lists of website links.
Use social bookmarking
When you create new quality content, tag it on social bookmarking sites such as Digg, Reddit, Delicious, and StumbleUpon, and ask colleagues to tag it for you, too.
Submit online press releases and articles
Share company or industry news and articles on PRWeb, PRLeap, EzineArticles, GoArticles, or iSnare. These sites often rank highly and provide quality links to your site.
Answer questions online
Ask or answer questions on Yahoo! Answers, Google Groups, LinkedIn Groups, LinkedIn Answers, and Facebook Groups and provide links to relevant resources on your site and elsewhere on the web.
Ask for customer reviews
Ask customers to review your company on relevant review sites such as Yelp, Amazon.com, Alexa , and ePinions to help build your authority. Review content relevant to your company or industry on these sites and include your website URL.
Ask for links from influencers
Ask an influential person in your customers’ industry for their feedback and/or link on relevant news that you share on your website or blog. Get links from your local Better Business Bureau, Chamber of Commerce, and other local or industry groups.
Note: All backlinks are not created equal.
Getting a bunch of links from disreputable or irrelevant sites can be worse than no links at all. Be sure to seek links only from sites that bring you relevant, quality traffic. The goal is quality, not quantity.
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June 30th, 2010 at 1:03 am
Great tips. This summarizes inbound links very well, and I’ll be forwarding this to some folks who have a hard time understanding the concept. Thanks!
July 17th, 2010 at 8:04 am
Great tips. This summarizes inbound links very well, and I’ll be forwarding this to some folks who have a hard time understanding the concept. Thanks!
+1
August 9th, 2010 at 3:42 pm
Very good ideas in here. Thanks for sharing.
March 30th, 2011 at 9:38 am
When I initially commented I clicked the “Notify me when new comments are added” checkbox and now each time a comment is added I get four e-mails with the same comment. Is there any way you can remove people from that service? Many thanks!
May 12th, 2011 at 9:12 pm
This is excellent information, Thanks so much for sharing your knowledge on this topic. It’s much appreciated
November 18th, 2011 at 8:04 am
Great site! If you ever need any content, I can give you a great rate!
November 18th, 2011 at 4:57 pm
Don’t tempt me, Charles!
November 23rd, 2011 at 6:14 am
Thank for sharing this helpful information.
http://dmoz.org – important web for Google.
November 23rd, 2011 at 10:46 am
Very true, Emma. Don’t forget to register your site at dmoz.org!
April 6th, 2012 at 12:40 pm
Hi Kirsti,
This page came up on page one for a query on “get inbound links.” That’s great SEO!
One thing you didn’t mention were sponsor links. I tell my clients to be on the alert for these opportunities, and there are plenty of them. You can do a search on “sponsor us” or “our sponsors” and your city to find local opportunities or leave out the city to find national. Or just look for all the non-profits in your town and call them to offer to financial assistance. You don’t have to give much. Even a $25 donation will get you on a sponsor list. Make sure they link to your website though.
But here’s one for you now that gives even better sponsorship links than you usually get. These ones will be fully optimized for Google because the person giving them, me, is an SEO. Your donation funds cancer research through the Leukemia Lymphoma Society, so it’s a win/win. Big SEO points and good karma for you, much needed funds for the LLS. You can read all about it here: http://bit.ly/HoIJrH
March 23rd, 2013 at 8:52 am
Great post! We will be linking to this particularly great post on our website.
Keep up the good writing.