What Are SEO Backlinks?
Search engines use many different algorithms to determine website ranking, and SEO backlinks are one of these. While basic website building offers internal links to help users navigate a website, a backlink links to a different website outside your domain. Search engine optimization (SEO) is one marketing technique where you use content strategy and keywords to appear higher on website rankings and in search engine result pages (SERPs).
Organizations can often push themselves higher to the top of the SERP using strategies such as pay-per-click (PPC) ads, but these can get expensive. Major search engines also “crawl” for organic results to push your site higher to the top, which is highly based on SEO-driven content and how popular the website is with users.
Read on to learn more about SEO backlinks, how to write SEO content around backlinks, and why these are important to your marketing strategy.
What Is Off-page SEO?
There are two different types of search engine optimization: on- and off-page SEO. On-page SEO is keyword-driven content creation that allows users to understand what your website is about while at the same time being optimized to appear in search engine results by adding keywords, metadata, and other tools.
SEO backlinks are a part of off-page SEO, which demonstrates to search engine crawlers that your site is valuable. Backlinks are a major part of off-page SEO because they link to third-party websites. In essence, think of every backlink click as a “vote” that your website provides value. This, in combination with on-page SEO, helps your site appear higher in SERPs.
Why Are SEO Backlinks Important?
You may wonder why you’d want to link to a third party when you want users to click internal links that help them navigate your site.
SEO backlinks are important for a higher website ranking in SERPs and provide the user with additional information or resources, providing a better user experience. Websites use SEO backlinks for reasons such as:
- Citing or providing a source
- Adding authenticity to the article or site
- Provides broader context to the user
- Recommends something
- Supports claims made within the content
For example, a health or medical blog post can provide more information to the reader or cite sources using SEO backlinks. If you’re providing a product or service, this doesn’t drive them away from your website, but instead offers credibility and additional resources should the user need them.
Search engines are programmed to realize the value of backlinks and are an integral part of determining site ranking.
Incorporating SEO Backlinks Into Your Content
Backlink authority is one of the backbones of Google, and it first began ranking websites according to popularity at its inception in 1998. This algorithm is still used today and is known as PageRank. It measures traffic to your website and how often links are clicked but also measures the authority of those links by looking for backlinks. For example, a page with 200 backlinks has a higher authority than one with 20.
It’s also important to know that authority is also ranked by websites that are backlinking to your website. The more valuable the relationship between two external sites with backlinks, the higher both sites appear in rankings. If a major website backlinks to yours, it will certainly boost traffic to your site and also lets search engines know the value and backlink authority of the relationships. As video marketing becomes more popular and necessary, you can use YouTube SEO and backlinks from your channel to help boost your visibility.
This is where domain authority also comes into play. Your domain authority is often determined by your internal links and how well they link to each other for a cohesive website experience. Still, domain authority is also affected by backlinks. If a site links to yours, it of
course boosts its authority and drives traffic—but eventually, this will trickle down to all pages of your website because of your internal linking. This is a good reminder to make each site page a quality one.
An unintentional page is often discovered in organic results, so this the top reason you make your website great. You want more than just a click—you want a lead and conversion, and SEO backlinks are a terrific way to boost traffic to your site.
For more information on SEO, backlinks, and how your website can draw traffic, contact MDINC today.
