Thursday, 5 December 2013

An Eye Opening Guide for Bloggers about Link Building

About Guest Author: Hi my name is Ravi Kumar. I am a blogger and can't see my existence without blogging. Normally I write on Topic like - Blogging, SEO, Web designing ,Technology, Earn Money Online etc. I just started blogging one year ago but it took almost a year to learn everything about blogging and now I can say that I have enough information about blogging. Since I faced some problem in the early stage of my blogging career, I don't want people to face the same. That's the reason why I write on blogging and other topics which can help blogger. Visit my blog Geteverything.org and also follow me on my social networks.
For many bloggers, Link building can be boring, Confusing and waste of time but still, It holds the key in SEO industry. If you are reading this Blog Post, You are either a Blogger or Webmaster. If I am right, You already know the importance of getting First page appearance in Google SERPs(Search Engine Result Pages). It would be interesting for you to know that, a good Link building strategy can bring your blog posts to the first Page of Google SERPs. As a result, You will get huge amount of Organic Traffic which will boost up your earnings. Most of the new bloggers are either not focusing on Link building or using wrong Link building strategies which harms them instead of helping. In this article, I will tell you about Correct and Powerful link building strategies which really works.

What is the meaning of Link Building?

Since late 1990's, Search engines are using links for measuring the popularity of any website. It means, If your website is getting lots of Inbound links from quality sites, Your chances of getting better position in Google SERPs will increase. Thus, we can define Link building as "A method or strategy to get Inbound links to your site".

Link Building Strategies which doesn’t Work Anymore..

I decided to write this article because lots of new bloggers are just wasting their precious time in trying Link Building  strategies, which are either out-dated or  doesn’t work anymore. Useless Link Building Strategies are listed below:

1. Link Exchange Method

So many Link Exchange directories are there on internet. Blogger submit their blogs in such directories for getting better ranking in Google. Let's see, How the whole process works- When you submit your link in these directories, They asks you to place their link on your blog first. When you do so, They make your link Live. It means, Their site links to you blog and your blog links to their website. This kind of link is known as "Reciprocal Link" and acts as a mutual link between two websites.
This method doesn't work anymore. Major search engines including google doesn't give importance to Reciprocal linking because it doesn’t reflects the genuineness of any link. 

2.Blog Commenting

It can be strange for you to know this fact but I am not wrong. Blog commenting is helpful in bringing traffic to your blog but it fails in Link building. Now a day, No one wants to share his PR with other bloggers, Who comment only for getting backlinks.  Most of the new bloggers are giving preference to CommentLuv enabled blogs for commenting because they think that, These blogs will give them a “do-follow” backlink. However, They are wrong because 87 out of 100 bloggers are not giving “do-follow” links to their commentators.
If you are looking for link building, Don’t waste your time on Blog commenting.

3. Getting Backlinks from Irrelevant Sites

These kinds of mistakes are quite popular and often committed by new bloggers. If you are looking for backlinks, You must concentrate on relevant websites only. If you have a blog Where you write about Technology, getting links from another blog related to fashion will harm you rather than helping. Getting a link from similar site is easy for those blogs, Which focus on a particular niche rather than focusing on large number of topics. That is one of the reason why, I suggest bloggers to focus on a particular niche.

4. Getting a Backlink from a site which has large number of links

Getting a backlink from a site, which is already filled with lots of other backlinks, is quite easy but not helpful at all. For example- If a website has more than 1000 links and your link is one of them, I don't think it will help you.
A backlink is powerful and valuable, if it comes from a page which has few but quality links. So, try to find Quality sites first (Must be related to your site). Once done, Try to get backlink.

5. Getting a No-follow backlink

Getting a No-follow backlink is like getting nothing because Search engine spider doesn’t follow that link. Normally, Blogger use “no-follow” attribute to link those pages which seems useless to them.

Can I use software for building Links?

It is a common question, which is often asked by new bloggers because software are known for giving quick results. However, I never recommend any user to use Software for Link Building. I am saying this after noticing that, almost all websites or blogs which uses software for link building are penalized by Google algorithm updates.  If you are focusing on Long term result, Never use Software for Building Links.
Due to this reason, I recommend “Manual Link Building”. Guest Posting in Top blogs is one of the best way of Link Building.

Is it safe to hire an SEO expert who works at lower rate like $5

If any SEO expert claims that he can bring your site on first page of Google within few days(7 days) and is asking for just $5 or similar amounts, Don’t hire him. I am saying this because there is maximum possibility that, they will use softwares for building links. Manual link building takes time but once done, You won’t be penalized by Google or any Other search engine alogorithms. On the other hand, Link building using softwares gives quick result but you will be penalized during an algorithm updates.

Link Building Strategies which really Works?

Link building strategies which are really powerful and work are listed below:

1. Guest Posting on Top Blogs

According to me, Guest Posting on Top Blogs is one of the best way to build links. However,  You must choose only those blogs which are similar to your blog otherwise you won’t get any benefit. Try to find Blogs which has good Domain Authority score and PR first. Once done, Write a quality guest post on that blog.

2. Create Infographics

Infographics can be really helpful in building links because they are shared by lots of bloggers. If you know about any Infographic, Try to search for it in Google. I am pretty sure that, You will find the same infographic on lots of blogs. In order to build link, Create an Interesting infographic related to your niche and publish it on your blog. At the end, attach the link for sharing the same on other blogs.

3. Conduct Interviews

Most of the bloggers never notice this fact but Interviews are also a source of building links.  They are shared by other bloggers on their social networks as well which can be really helpful. It means, You are getting Knowledge, Traffic and Backlinks as well. Isn’t that great.

4. Create an Interesting/Helpful Drawing or Video

Videos or Drawings are the most sharable elements on internet. However, They should either be helpful or interesting. So focus on creating Interesting/Helpful  videos or Drawings. Once done, Publish on your website and ask your readers to share it.

5. Try to get .Edu and .Gov Backlinks

As I mentioned earlier, Link building is helpful in SEO because it inform google about the trust and popularity of any website. On internet, two domain extension which are most trusted are “.Edu” and “.Gov” . It means, Getting backlinks from these sites will really boost your ranking in SERPs(Search Engine Result Pages).

6. Use Broken Link Building Tactics

For most of the new bloggers, Broken Link building is still a mystery. Let me clear your concept. In Broken Link building strategy, We look for resource and link pages first. Then we check them for broken links. If any broken link is found which can be replaced by our own link, we request the website owner to use our link. In other words, We can see it as the replacement of links.

7. Use Scrapebox for White Hat Link Building

Normally, Scrapebox software is known for Black Hat SEOs but you can also use it for White Hat Link Building. Don’t use this software for automated Link Building. Just try to find Top sites using scrapebox. Once done, Guest Post on these blogs to get Quality Backlinks.

8. Convert your images into Links

You can convert your images into Links by using “Alt” tag. Actually, Search engine spider reads the textual contents without any issue but they can’t read Pictures. In order to inform them about our image, We use “Alt” tag. It will also give you better exposure in Image search.
You much use relevant Anchor link in your images otherwise it won’t help that much.

9. Create Great content on your Blog which can be shared

Now a day, Social networking sites plays an important role in SEO as well. Your website will be ranked higher in SERPs, If your articles are shared by large number of people on their social networks. Google consider it a parameter for ranking a site because it shows the trust and usefulness of your site.
To get lots of social share, You will have to create quality contents on your blog. So avoid copy-pasting.

Are social shares and Normal Links are Same?

The answer is “No”. Social shares are much more powerful than any normal links because it reflects the trustworthiness and usefulness of any particular site. It is logical as well. For example- If a particular post of a blog is shared 5000 times on social networks, It means that People are liking it. On the basis of this, You can conclude that the particular article is quite helpful.

Link Building Mistakes which you must Avoid

If you don’t want to be penalized by Google’s algorithm, You must avoid below given Link Building Mistakes:

1. Lots of same Anchor Text Links

Uses of Anchor Text Links are helpful for SEO. However, Use of lots of same anchor text links are extremely harmful. Never link to any website which is not related to the Anchor Text. For example- If you have used the anchor text “SEO Tips” and you are linking to a webpage which is about “Fashion”, You are inviting google to penalize you.

2. No use of Semantic Keywords Anchor text Links

I have noticed that, Very few bloggers are using semantic keywords in their articles. It is a kind of mistake.  If you will start using semantic keywords, Your ranking will go up.  Don’t get confused with the word “Semantic”. Let me explain this – Suppose that, You want to link a page which talks about “Green color” and you are using Anchor text as “Greenery”,”Green Land”,”Green carpet”, It is not “Semantic”. If you are committing this kind of mistake, You won’t get better result.
If you want to link a page which talks about “Green Color”,  simply use “Green” or “Green Color” as your anchor text so that Google can easily understand that, You want to say about Green color and nothing else.

3. Not using your Brand Name with Text Links

Most of the bloggers never understand this fact and thus fails to utilize it. To build link, You can also use your Brand Name. For example- If you have used All Tech Buzz in your internal pages, Link it to your Home Page. It tells Google about your Brand i.e All Tech Buzz which seems natural as well. If you are writing Guest Post on any other blog, use the same strategy as well. Believe me, It will help you.

4. Not focusing on Social Shares

As I mentioned earlier, Social shares has grabbed the attention of all major search engines including google and they are using it as a point for measuring trustworthiness and usefulness of any site. If you are not focusing on social shares, You are committing a big mistake.

5. Buying Links

Google or any other search engine doesn’t like Paid links. If they come to know about it, You will be penalized either sooner or later so avoid it. Majority of bloggers want to get results within few days so they purchase links. It is one of the biggest mistakes in the field of SEO.

Conclusion

Link Building is extremely helpful in bringing your blog/website to the top of Google’s listing but you should look for manual link building method instead of using Link building softwares.  I have already listed mistakes and their solution so use them and bring your site to the first page of Google SERPs.
If you still have any question, Feel free to ask me. It would be my pleasure to answer your questions.

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