Search Engine Optimization and backlinks

back links

Sometimes referred to as off page links, backlinks are the oxygen of search engine positioning and traffic generation. When thinking about backlinks there are three elements you need to consider, the source from which the backlinks are derived, the anchor text of the backlinks and the content of the page to which the backlinks sends the visitor to.

The amount of backlinks

Most search engines count the quantity of backlinks to a web page when deciding where this page should be displayed in the search results.

The origin of the backlinks

Backlinks are like votes with different ‘rights’ that are derived from where they originate from But ‘votes’ passed through backlinks from trusted or authoritative pages to a page have greater influence over the search engines perception of this page than backlinks originating from pages with lower ‘trust’ or authority. Government (.gov) and educational (.edu) sites are prime examples of sites that are authoritative and trustworthy.

Google Page Rank

Google has the concept of ‘page rank’, this is the property it attaches to a page it considers to have accumulated authority over time from backlinks pointing towards it.

The ‘anchor text’

Just like a label, the backlink anchor text has influence over the search engines valuation of the backlink. If the content of the page is about ‘parenting’ and the backlink on the page is labeled or given the ‘anchor’ text ‘parenting’ then the search engines consider this to be of more value to the searcher looking for sites related to ‘parenting’ than if the backlink was labeled ‘babycare’.

Common mistakes

It’s not unusual for first timers to confuse the quantity with the quality of backlinks and become quickly frustrated by their lack of progress Having a large amount of backlinks to your page doesn’t necessarily mean the search engines will consider your page as relevant.

How to build backlinks

So here is my no obligation guidance for getting backlinks to your pages, good visibility in the search engine results pages and quality traffic to your site.

1. Finding the right keywords from the outset is essential.
2. I always set out to create a keyword cloud.
3. You should always start by identifying a key word or phrase which has a a constant and high amount of traffic.
4. To work out the amount of visitor traffic is being coming from searches for my top level keyword I use the Google keyword analyzer tool.
5. I look at words and search phrases relative to my primary phrase and create my ‘cloud’.
6. I then put together content in the form of articles and videos in which I have embedded backlinks with the correct ‘anchor text’ to my ‘money’ or ‘target’ page and disperse these to a wide range of content directories.
7. My golden rule is to author content that will attract visitors and compel them to follow the backlinks to my target pages as well as send backlinks.

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Tagged with: backlinks • internet marketing • link building • search engine marketing • seo • traffic building

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