What Are Backlinks SEO? Lets Explore the Benefits

What are Backlinks?

Backlinks, also known as inbound links or incoming links, are links from external websites to your website. They are a way for search engines to determine that other websites recognise the value and relevance of your content, which in turn can improve your website’s authority. Such links are essential for SEO: the #1 results have an average of 3.8 times more backlinks than the results that rank 2-10, thus highlighting their value for referral traffic and subsequent increase in revenue.

They’re also a great way for other websites to vouch for the quality of your content. When other websites link to your website, they are essentially stating that your content is meaningful to their audience. The more high-quality backlinks your website has, the more likely it is to be considered a valuable resource by search engines.

Why are Backlinks Important for SEO?

Search engines like Google use complex algorithms to determine the relevance and authority of a website, using backlinks as an important indicator. In simple terms, the more high-quality backlinks a website has, the more likely it is to rank higher on SERPs; and we at Saturate can leverage this factor as part of an SEO campaign for your business. So here’s some key reasons why backlinks are fundamental for SEO:

• Search Engines Use Backlinks to Determine the Authority of a Website

When a website has many high-quality backlinks, it is seen as a valuable resource and more-likely to rank higher. On the other hand, if a website has few or low-quality backlinks, it is seen as less authoritative and is less likely to rank well.

• Backlinks Help Search Engines Understand the Relevance of a Website

With more backlinks from other credible sources, your website can be seen as a valuable resource for a particular topic or niche. This can help the website to rank higher on SERPs for related keywords and phrases.

• Backlinks Drive Referral Traffic to a Website

Backlinks are not only important for SEO, but they can also drive referral traffic to your website. When one website links to another, users who click on that link are directed to your site.

How to Get Backlinks for SEO?

Getting high-quality backlinks for SEO can be a challenging task. However, there are plenty of strategies that can be used to acquire them and increase your website’s status. Below are some of the most effective strategies:

• Create High-Quality Content

The most effective way to acquire prime backlinks is by creating high-quality, relevant content that other websites want to link to. When you create content that is valuable and relevant to your  audience, other websites are more likely to link to it. This leads to more links, which improves your website’s authority and ranking.

• Outreach to Other Websites

Another effective way to acquire backlinks is by reaching out to other websites in your industry or niche. When you find websites that are relevant, reach out to them and ask them to link to your site. This can be done through email outreach, social media or other forms of communication. When reaching out, it’s important to make a compelling case for why they should link to you.

• Guest Blogging

When you guest blog on other websites, you can include links back to your website in your author bio or within the content of your post. This can help to increase the number of high-quality backlinks to your site.

• Broken Link Building

Broken link building is a strategy that involves finding broken links on other sites and offering a replacement. This strategy is effective as it provides value to the website owner by fixing their broken links, while also providing a backlink to your website.

• Participate in Online Communities and Forums

Participating in online communities and forums related to your industry or niche is an excellent idea. When you participate in online discussions, you can include links to your website in your comments or signature.

How to Evaluate Backlinks?

It is important to note that when acquiring backlinks, quality is more important than quantity: it’s better to have fewer high-quality backlinks from relevant, authoritative websites than numerous low-quality ones from irrelevant pages. These shoddy links can actually harm your website’s ranking, so it’s important to focus on acquiring decent backlinks from reputable sites. Below is an evaluation criteria to consider:

• Domain Authority (DA)

Domain Authority (DA) is a metric developed by Moz that predicts how well a website will rank on SERPs. The higher the DA, the more authoritative the website is considered to be. Backlinks from websites with high DA are more valuable than those from websites with low DA.

• Relevance

Relevance is another important factor to consider in your evaluation. Backlinks from websites that are relevant to your content are more valuable than those from irrelevant sites. For example, if you have a website about health & fitness, backlinks from other health & fitness websites are more valuable than those from sites about fashion or technology.

• Anchor Text

Anchor text is the text that is used to create a hyperlink to your website. Text that includes relevant keywords or phrases can help boost your website’s SERP positioning, however, if the anchor text is overly optimised or spammy, it can actually harm your website’s ranking.

• Trustworthiness

Backlinks from reputable websites that have a history of high-quality content are more valuable than those from dubious sites. So it’s important to evaluate the trustworthiness of the linking website before considering the backlink.

The Takeaway

Backlinks are a signal to search engines that other sites consider your content valuable and relevant, which can raise your online status. However, it’s important to focus on acquiring top-quality backlinks from relevant, authoritative websites. By creating engaging content, reaching out to other sites, broken link building and participating in online communities and forums, you can acquire links that’ll get your website seen by an increased volume of potential clients in no time.

And this is where Saturate comes in… Take advantage of our huge range of services, and get the right eyes on your website to yield the results you desire. Schedule a free 30 minute consultation now.