I prefer to think of SEO and online reputation management as having phases. The first phase of SEO is technical SEO, which is often underestimated but crucial. This isn’t on-page or off-page, but more like “in-page,” with a lot of sitemaps, source code, crawling, indexing, mobile load times, and other things. This phase ensures that Google can find your pages, crawl them, render them swiftly, and render them as if they were on a mobile device. In this stage of technical SEO, other factors such as site architecture and scripting can be helpful. Simple on-page SEO best practices, such as upgrading your header tags, page titles, and page body language to include the keywords you want to rank for, are part of technical SEO.

After you’ve done all of that, you could be ready to move on to the second phase of SEO, link acquisition, which is a much longer-term approach that takes more time investment.

Backlinks are links on other people’s websites that point to your website.

They aid search engines in determining your website’s authority and relevancy to the topic for which you are ranked. They also act as a recommendation from other websites that says, “Hey, we think this stuff is worth reading.” Where and from whom your site is connected determines the authority component of backlinking. Websites with more significant traffic have more “authority,” which helps you rank higher than a smaller, third-party site. These links appear in the context of articles, on specific pages such as “Suggested Resources” or “Preferred Providers,” and occasionally in comments. There are particular methods for generating beneficial backlinks and others that will cost you money in the long run.

What you DO NOT want to do is:

• Spam comment boxes on other websites to gain a single backlink. Over time, this will degrade your standing.
• Spam people’s inboxes by bombarding them with requests for links to information that isn’t worth their time.
• Purchase backlinks. Many well-known websites, such as Forbes and Entrepreneur, have backlink limitations that prevent columnists from mentioning paid clients in their articles. I recommend reading this Buzzfeed article to learn more about how this will bite you in the backside.

Now that we know what not to do, what are some things you should be doing to build backlinks? This is not an exhaustive list, but it does contain some of my suggestions for managing link acquisition.

Take advantage of low-hanging fruit.

The Chamber of Commerce in your area. The Better Business Bureau (an organization that promotes ethical business practices). Professional groups on a local (and national) level. Charities. Vendors. Friends. Customers who have a presence on the internet. All of these are effortless approaches to turn friendships into link-building partners. Whatever type of business you have, it is built on relationships — people you work with, for, and with. Before you spread your wings, go after the low-hanging fruit.

Make something worthwhile.

Not simply for the websites, you wish to obtain connections to, but also for their audiences and your own. Please do your research and gain a thorough understanding of the website’s target audience, the types of information they consume, and the most recent changes to the website’s content. What gaps do you see in the content? What topics appear to be the most popular? Spending a little additional time thinking about what will whet their link appetite can be a wise investment if they’re high on your link prospecting list.

Create a plan for promoting your material.

Take the time to establish a proper content marketing plan that will identify the people who will share your content, and more crucially, those who will link to it, rather than doing the above on a link-by-link basis. Networking with others in your niche is a terrific method to reach a broader audience with your material. This is where being active on the internet may be beneficial. You’re probably already engaged on several social media platforms and connected to a number of the relevant people. Now you must harness that power and become strategic to reach even more individuals who may re-share or link to your material.

Make yourself available as a resource.

By putting yourself out there, you can earn links. Create news, report on information, and assist reporters and bloggers in connecting with others who can help them tell a compelling story. Eavesdropping on social media chats and using services like HARO can be an excellent (although noisy) way to contact reporters seeking a source. Do you see someone who is asking a question? Do you know what the answer is? Do you know someone who can help? Participate in the discourse and act as a connection. Before you ever need someone, establish a rapport with them. Make sure they understand what you do for a living, who your company serves, and the areas in which you excel. Then, get out and pitch yourself when you have the chance to localize a national news story or your company is doing something noteworthy. You’ll soon discover that the press is pursuing you, not the other way around.

Put on your public relations hat (not just your Google one).

This seems absurd, given that link building is frequently done solely to improve Google results. Think about what would happen if Google didn’t exist. Would you still want a link from a domain if it only had a tiny amount of referral traffic? Why should you ask for it now if you don’t need it? Instead, concentrate your efforts on sites where your target audience is likely to be active.

Many seemingly low-authority websites are worth their weight in gold because they generate constant referral traffic with extremely high engagement. On the other hand, websites with high domain authority look fantastic on paper, but no one clicks through the links. To consider both search engines and referral-based traffic, compare your link-building efforts.

Organize a gathering.

Create an event and invite people to it, whether it’s online or in person. Perhaps it’s a get-together to raise funds for a local family in need, an event to say “thank you” to your hardworking staff, or a chance to give away some free items. Whatever you do, make a commotion, let people know what you’re up to, and invite the media to witness it. If you’re lucky, you’ll get some fantastic images and social media stuff in addition to the links.

Ask. However, proceed with caution.

Many experts will advise you that requesting a link is impolite. We’ll tell you that if you’ve spent time locating a relevant entity (a website, a person, or a clever robot), that you need to establish a relationship with them and build something really valuable that you think they (and their audiences) would enjoy. Then, and only then, should you request a link. When doing so, focus the email on the value exchange rather than the link. Even if the material is excellent, no one will read it if the pitch is “hey, I’d like a link, please.” Instead, persuade the prospect to glance over the content. Before re-engaging the prospect and moving toward a link, use tracking URLs so you can see that they looked. Only a small percentage of links are gained through one-time, cold emails. Nurture, nurture, nurture, just like any other “lead.”

Conclusion

There you have it: some good recommendations for building long-lasting backlinks (that won’t have people accusing you of link purchasing). Do you have any questions or concerns regarding backlinks or managing your internet reputation? Please leave your questions in the comments below, and one of my SEO strategists will answer.