Link Building
Link building is the process of building inbound links to a website. The term is really a catch all for any process that improves the number and value of the links that point to a website.
Link building is a primary part of SEO and is done to influence the popularity and reputation of a website within the overall web and in the eyes of the search engines. Link building can help improve rankings and, if done correctly, it can also improve the direct level of traffic to a site. It is an integral part of the overall Offsite search engine optimisation process.
When you talk to an SER consultant you can be sure that you will get the best SEO advice but also that we understand the business environment in which you sit. You will always get a balanced view of whether the SEO challenge is one that can overcome while still delivering an effective return on investment both in the short and long term.
Link Profiling
This is the first part of our link building process. We look in detail at your current inbound links, the mix of links (paid, blogs, forums, partners etc), the PageRank they are passing to the site and their relevance. We look at the opportunity to improve the links by changing their anchor text or directing them to different parts of the site.
We also look at all the sites that currently rank for the keywords you need to target and using in-house tools we identify the inbound links these sites are benefiting from. This can uncover many links which are easy to source and could have a beneficial effect on your search engine rankings.
Target Link Acquisition
This process looks at your marketplace and identifies obvious candidates for links from trustworthy, high relevance sites. These could be companies or associations you already have a relationship with or could build. It also looks at the main online ‘hubs’ for you industry.
Link Bait
The best way to naturally attract links is to add something special or unique to your site. It could be as simple as an insightful blog that could become popular within your industry or as complex as a unique web application or online tool that solves a common industry problem. Anything that would make other sites want to recommend you through a link would work; it could even be a special offer or a competition. We would work with you to identify the right link bait vehicle for you, assist with developing it and the use online PR, article marketing and blogging etc to promote it.
Directories
Directories can be a great source of links. Google has devalued a lot of directories for their own poor SEO practices but there are still directories that can add value. In general they do not offer a great deal of PageRank but they can be very good for passing relevance, especially if it is a respected industry directory. General directories that have an editorial process for selection also offer value because Google knows that they have to be manually submitted and verified by the editorial team at the directory.
Article Marketing
This is the process of generating articles related to the theme of the site or a specific page and then distributing the article online to various article directories, e-zines and information hubs. Each article contains a bio box and by-line that include references and contact information for the author’s business. Most importantly the article and the bio box will contain links back to the site or page the article relates to.
Our aim is to generate backlinks through the articles themselves but to also inspire others to read the articles and link to your site. A well-written article has the potential of increasing PageRank, relevance as well as attracting new clients.
