A backlink or an inbound link is a link published on another website that brings back the user to yours.
The link can be placed on several carriers like the body of text in an article or blog, on an image, and even on an actionable button.
As long as the purpose of taking back the user is fulfilled, the backlink is being correctly used.
Getting access to high-quality backlinks can be a challenging part of your SEO strategy, especially for small businesses starting out online.
Backlinks are not just links taking you to other websites. They work like a tag of validation and denote the confidence of the publisher.
A backlink is like a publisher is telling you to get further information on the context of the article through this reliable source recommendation.
Why is back-linking important?
In SEO, backlinks are essential as they are among the most important ranking factors for Google and other search engines.
According to a study published by Backlinko, the number of domains linked to a page is directly correlated to Google rankings. Considering these results, backlinks are undoubtedly crucial as Google still uses them in their algorithm after all these years.
Therefore, let’s find out what you can do to upgrade your backlink strategies for 2020.
8 Actionable Tips to Upgrade your Backlink Strategies for 2020
The following are a few tips and tricks to get you started on how backlinks and linking, in general, would be working for online businesses in 2020.
1. Becoming a source for other publishers
If you have something valuable to offer to the market, then your expertise, opinions, and unique datasets are also valuable. You can easily become a source for other publishers like bloggers and journalists.
– Bloggers
New age bloggers require reference articles, information, and even quotes to make their write-ups more interesting.
The attention span of the majority of the readers has become very sparse. Therefore, to gain and retain their attention has become the main objective for bloggers.
You can gather trending topics and allow back-linking to increase brand awareness and drive traffic your way.
– Journalists
Similarly, journalist articles require current world trends, news highlights, and relevant information that applies to a global audience.
If you provide backstories and general statistics that can help validate their story and provide genuine statistics, case studies, and reports, you can easily become sources for many renowned news distributing platforms like Washington Post, Vanity Fair, etc.
2. Using skyscraper content technique
Skyscraper content is an inbound marketing technique where the objective is to find the topics that are trending and doing well on the SERP, social media searches, and other search domains.
The idea is to create a better content piece than the ones appearing as your search result.
It can be extremely challenging because, in order to do 5 to 10 times better than the links that are already doing well, you have to combine all the information that they have and yet add new and exciting information from your own.
Then promote your content as much as you can so that you appear worthy of a backlink, especially from prominent platforms.
3. Getting links from older publications
Ever wondered what happens to all the links when a website changes names or moves to a different URL? What if a most trusted organization stopped offering a particular service or updating that resource page? Or maybe if the website just shuts down and doesn’t work anymore?
Many people don’t realize that this might be a golden opportunity for them to get valuable backlinks from big names.
For instance, what we know today as Moz, used to go by the name SEOMoz. Many of the content that had links to the previous URL became outdated.
This was an opportunity seized by many publishers as they offered their articles to websites for back-linking.
Similarly, you can also find out if an article or report hasn’t been updated for a while or a link has been updated, but the article links to the outdated URL.
You can create a better and fresh piece and offer to link it. This can be extremely profitable for you, especially because you can earn backlinks from the websites with the highest DA ranking and divert major traffic your way.
4. Utilizing branded strategies
The idea is to develop a unique strategy, tip, or tactic that you can guarantee is successfully administered and working for you. It can be challenging to just come up with it.
Therefore, you must seek a particular strategy that applies to similar domains around you but make it unique.
Next, you need to name your strategy. Many people might be using a generic strategy, but a unique twist and an attractive, contextual name coined by you would make you the original creator of that strategy.
5. Leveraging content formatting
Recently, BuzzSumo did a study of 1 million blog posts and articles. The results concluded that most of the content is completely ignored. 75%, to be exact, the content is so irrelevant that it gets zero links.
Zilch! Where this was a shocking revelation, the flipside was that particularly unique type of content performs great. Not only do they get backlinks, but they are certainly relevant.
To put it simply, if you want backlinks, it is proven that you should make use of particular formats and see what works for you to enhance link-building.
The following are some content formats that can be leveraged for link building.
– Ultimate guide articles
An ultimate guide article is the most comprehensive resource available on a specific topic. The piece has to be well thought out and structured in a manner to retain the reader’s attention. These posts can be wordy, but the writer has to make it engaging and provide in-depth knowledge.
Otherwise, the same post can be the worst performing post of your page where all readers abandon it halfway through.
– Create free tools
Free tools like formula calculators, template generators, and unique editors can be useful for earning and generating backlinks.
The idea is to create a free tool better than those already appearing on top of the search result and make it relevant enough for others to find it worth of links on their posts.
The more customizing options you will add, the more it will attract an extensive audience range as it will suit every type of content.
– A URL
In this technique, the actual link of your website will display and also act like a link. For example, https://www.einsteinmarketer.com/. However, they look very unpolished.
– Images, videos, and gifs
Your post doesn’t necessarily have to be a written article. Pictures, videos, and gifs can do wonders for providing you great backlinks as well.
The idea is to have copyright-free imagery so that majority of the publishers can easily use your content.
You can go for detailed infographics, picture quizzes, and original data charts to expand your collection for multiple content genres.
You can even make ultimate guide videos where a particular topic is discussed in a thoroughly engaging way. For instance, you can take inspiration from what Hasan Minhaj does on the Patriot Act.
6. Using resource pages
Finding a resource page can be tricky because platforms don’t tend to call it straightforwardly a resource page.
Therefore, you will have to find something along the lines of further reading, helpful resources, or additional resources to land what you are looking for.
Once you find it, ask for a link because believe it or not, such resource pages are there solely for the purpose you are there: link-building.
7. The broken link method
Lastly, when all else fails, the best way to earn a backlink is by finding out websites that have content linked to links that are broken, create an error, or just simply don’t work.
Obviously, your webpage should be an attractive resource for this tactic to work.
Or else the website may go for any other one.
This is a guaranteed tip that will surely work because not only will you help the website fix an error but provide additional value and experience to their readers.
Wrapping It Up!
Now that you have your tips and tactics aligned to create updated back-linking strategies for the year 2020, make sure your web page is valuable to others.
Generate relevant content, and don’t forget to stay on trend by updating it every so often.
Webpages that continue to promote outdated and stale content don’t work well for SERP.
Google pushes them down as the algorithm favors current and trending topics. Therefore, do not compromise on your content quality, and you’ll be surfing the top results page in no time!
