Why Link Building is Essential

So, you have a gorgeously designed website and even good content, who cares? The truth is, having a website is not enough to guarantee traffic and potentially big conversion rates.

No one cares about your website except you, family members and friends. So, you need to promote your website in such a way that your target audience is aware that it exists to begin with.

But how do you reach out to your target audience and then draw them to your website?

This is where link building comes in. Plainly put link building is an SEO marketing technique where hyperlinks are created in your content or the content of other sites/blogs and these hyperlinks direct readers to a page on your website.

This is a neat trick that can compel traffic to your website without you even making a sales pitch. The need for information is key and your target audience would click on that hyperlink or link on search of the information they need.

Just as blog content could be rich in links leading to a webpage in your site, so also can links be created for simple social media content. A Twitter post for example with a link can direct traffic to your webpage for more detailed information.

A link building campaign can be crucial to the relevance or not of a website and business. However, in going on such a campaign, your links need to be of high quality. This means that anyone clicking on such a link should not be disappointed for doing so.

Types of links

There are many types of links, some of these links include;

• Resource links: These are links created by researched article owners which direct readers to a point of reference. If traffic is derived on your site from the resource link created by another site or blog, it basically means that you are offering terrific content. Moreso that other content writers have to acknowledge your output by creating resource links.

• Image links: If your website is a great resource for fresh images or infographics that are appealing to other sites. Then those sites may create image links which also serves as a sort of resource link to your URL.

• Reciprocal links: You could enter into an express or implied agreement with other websites to engage in link building. This is when the content of a site is riddled with links to your website. You then reciprocate this kind gesture by also having content with links to the site. This way the two sites can generate as much traffic. Reciprocal links are particularly great where sites have a thing in common or are of a similar field.

• Directory links: The internet is full of website directories. These directories are usually organized in categories and include links that direct people to websites of their chosen category. You can list your website URL in a directory if you want to draw quality traffic to your site. There are free directories and those you have to pay. Ultimately the decision on which type of directory to list your URL in rests with you and what's best for your brand.

• Blog comment link building: By leaving a valued comment on high traffic blogs, you could effectively draw traffic to your website. This is a form of link building where you visit specialized blogs and offer a comment that shows you are an expert in whatever topic is posted on the blog. By being an active commentator on high traffic blogs, you could divert traffic directly from the blog on which you have provided your comments.

There are other types of links such as acquired, editorial, forum signature, guest blogging and social bookmarking links. The bottom-line of all these types of links is to influence traffic to your site, increase potential leads and generate substantial conversions. This is the essence of SEO marketing and why link building is absolutely a vital piece of the puzzle.

Content from Help My Rank.