Even new start-up business owners are already aware of the importance associated with developing powerful link building strategies. The main problem is that not every approach is guaranteed to yield results. In fact, some have fallen flat on their “digital” faces. As opposed to repeating the same costly and time-consuming mistakes, it is much better to learn from such failures in order to move on.
This is why we have taken the time to put together a list of six link building errors which should be avoided at all costs in the coming year. If your current marketing campaigns have failed to produce viable results, the chances are high that the information highlighted below will come in handy.
1. Knowing when to limit your data points
We often hear of the power of online data in regards to building quality links. While there is no doubt that information is critical, it is just as important to point out that too much data can lead to confusion and poorly targeted links. There are additional problems with this approach. For example, publishers who are presented with a massive volume of data can find it difficult to pull out the key points. Let’s also remember that collating this information will require a great deal of time and energy.
As opposed to wading through vast amounts of information when developing a link-building strategy, it is much easier to solely focus upon the most insightful, relevant and interesting points.
2. Effectively spinning statistics
It is a foregone conclusion that authoritative content is looked upon favourably by search engines such as Google. Still, there is a hidden danger here. Publishing well-known statistical information relevant to a certain industry (such as the number of smartphones expected to enter into the 2021 marketplace or how many people access the Internet with mobile devices) in traditional formats could lead to a problem. Why is this the case?
We should first point out that well-known information is likely to already be associated with a significant number of backlinks. Publishers may have seen it in the past and therefore, they will not post the same material twice. Another issue involves how the content itself is spun into a link. Simply regurgitating information in the same ways as in the past will generate little interest. It is wiser to provide a unique spin or observation that has not been noted before.
3. Relying too much upon viral video campaigns
Statistics clearly illustrate the fact that videos are some of the best ways to generate user interest and to encourage further engagement. Thus, the term “viral” has entered into the SEO community. Although viral content is great for sharing and increasing brand awareness, you might be slightly surprised to learned that it is not always effective in terms of link building.
One pitfall here is that those who create the content itself rarely provide attributional links. Even if a link is mentioned within the content, users will rarely take the initiative to navigate to the page in question. To put it simply, videos need to be used in tandem with clickable links that are clearly visible (either within the media or directly below). Otherwise, a significant amount of time and energy could be spent upon a campaign that will never deliver viable results.
4. Too much locality?
One of the latest trends to have taken hold within the online SEO community is locally oriented content. This is partially due to the fact that Google algorithms tend to place a greater importance upon geographically relevant keywords. Although the power of local links is indisputable. What about hyper-local strategies? Once again, we run into a small problem.
Even the most well-produced content will often fail to meet your expectations if you are limited to the number of publishers who can be contacted. So, you are essentially selling yourself short in terms of exposure. This is one of the reasons why professional link building services will often emphasise the importance of broadening your horizons. We are not necessarily referring to creating extremely massive campaigns, but rather emphasising the importance of links that can be attributed to a wide variety of regions and industries.
5. New is not necessarily better in terms of building links
There are literally thousands of different services and software packages which claim to offer the best link building options. Some are naturally better than others. Still, new does not necessarily equate to better in terms of link building. Assuming that you have already developed a well-rounded campaign, why should it be changed in favour of another method that presents nothing more than the “wow” factor? Only modify your existing link building architecture if it is clearly time for a change.
6. A Lack of connectivity
Transparency is another key factor in terms of link building. Unfortunately, many online businesses choose links that are entirely unrelated to the material in question. Not only can this confuse the reader, but it may even be penalised by search engines in terms of its relation to your website. Another problem is that publishers tend to avoid links with little to no relevance with the background material. While there is nothing wrong with tangential strategies, be sure that they can still be tied to the products or services that you happen to be offering at the moment.
We can now see that not all link building strategies will produce positive results. The good news is that one of the best ways to improve an existing campaign is to learn from the mistakes of others. Furthermore, it is always wise to experiment with a handful of different approaches; some are more likely to be better suited for your enterprise while a handful might be entirely irrelevant.
Measuring the success of a link building campaign will likewise take a bit of time, so remain patient. Please do not hesitate to refer back to the suggestions contained within this article for future reference when needed.
Photograph by Lalmch