What is a Backlink? Positive Effect of Backlinks on SEO and Traffic

Backlinks are important for SEO and have the potential to provide more traffic to your website.

Backlinks refer to a rather uncomplicated idea, describing links from one webpage to another. However, this simple concept can have a great impact when it comes to the search engine ranking of a website – if it is done correctly.

The following post will describe which key things should be kept in mind to help ensure that the Backlinks work for you and not against.

 

Backlinks in SEO

Not every link is recognized by search engines as a backlink and thus only writing out a URL would not be sufficient. The link should be a clickable link, also referred to as hyperlink, meaning that the user is able to click on the link and be directed to a new webpage.

When a piece of text is used as a hyperlink you can usually notice it due to the fact it is underlined or appears to be in different color, however hyperlinks can also be created by using images and banners as clickable links.

But what makes these clickable links so important? Arguably, the main value of Backlinks, when it comes to search engines, is that they are viewed as a boost in credibility. What this essentially conveys is that when a website includes a hyperlink to another source, search engines take note.

 

backlinks
Source: SiteChecker

 

The higher the number of websites backlinking to a particular source, the higher is the possibility of an improved SEO ranking for that source, as its relevance becomes affirmed by other users. Here, diversity is key, meaning that the more separate sites link to a website, also known as the number of linking root domains, the higher its  SEO ranking can be.

 

The Right Kind of Backlinks

Having said that, not all Backlinks are of equal value. This is an important point to consider, in order to actually be able to utilize backlinking. Google and other search engines distinguish between high – and low-quality Backlinks and as such some Backlinks should be kept away from.

There are several traits, which signal a quality backlink to a search engine, but the fundamental characteristics are, that the context of the website and the backlink have a relevant connection and that it comes from a trustworthy website, usually ranking high in domain authority.

While the number of Backlinks can have a positive effect on a website’s visibility, the relevancy and trustworthiness tend to carry more weight with the search engines.

Furthermore, while linking to different pages on the same website, also known as internal linking, can have a positive impact on the said website’s engagement, SEO rankings are progressively placing more significant value on external links.

 

BackLink Tools

In order to understand Backlinks through a more hands-on approach, a backlink counter tool can be used – both to help determine the quality of Backlinks as well as to get an overview of their quantity.

There’s a large selection of these tools available with both simple and complicated functions, thus catering to different needs. Examples of websites offering backlink tools can be found below.

 

 

NoFollow vs DoFollow:

An important link categorization type to be aware of are nofollow and dofollow links. While the latter are the so-called normal Backlinks, nofollow links are created through changing the applied HTML tag on the website where the backlink originates from.

The nofollow tag signals to a search engine that the source of the link is not necessarily trustworthy, despite it being linked to.

Some webpages will perform this action in order to protect their own ranking by ensuring that they are not referring to a low quality website. In spite of the nofollow links being somewhat unhelpful when it comes to SEO, they can still bring in visitors to your website by creating awareness and traffic.

 

Backlinks and Improved Traffic

A surge in credibility by successful backlinking tends to also be accompanied by a boost in organic traffic, meaning a website will garner a larger audience, when the said audience utilizes search engines. In addition to organic traffic, Backlinks are often key to generating referral traffic, which can be another way of reaching a more specific target audience and in this case, the nofollow links still have the potential to greatly contribute to the growth.

The relationship of different websites linking to each other can be described through link equity, also often referred to as link juice. Link equity is directly connected to previously mentioned domain authority and can be understood as websites sharing their value – the so-called juice, through the links. Essentially, if a website with higher authority links to a website with lower authority, the former can be seen as passing on some of its credibility.

 

How To Obtain Backlinks

How does one go about receiving Backlinks? This is where link earning and link building comes into the picture. Link earning is the foundational idea that facilitates backlinking – there must be something valuable to link to. In other words, the website must offer some kind of assets to its visitor, such as meaningful content and/or services.

Link building is a term for describing the process of obtaining Backlinks, usually through outreach which entails contacting relevant people or organizations who could be interested in the assets a certain website is providing.

At this stage, it can be worthwhile to consider the potential placement of the backlink. For instance if the link is likely to be positioned in the footer of the page or other locations, where it is not as likely to get attention and is less relevant for the website visitor, it is also not as highly valued by Google. As such, it might make sense to consider other alternative sites to reach out to.

Some of the techniques on how to receive Backlinks are:

  1. Social Media: Social media is a great way to connect with not only existing and potential customers but to also find other, relevant industry professionals and leads.
  2. Guest Blogging: Writing posts for other websites (which are relevant and trustworthy) can be another good way to gain exposure and Backlinks.
  3. Comments & Reviews: Comment Backlinks practice has previously been exploited and search engines have made changes in order to counter the possibility of spam. However, if the commenting is relevant and done on a high-quality site it can still be beneficial.

 

backlinks
Source: Seobility – License: CC BY-SA 4.0

 

On the whole, link earning and building go hand in hand, making backlinking actually possible. However, it is important to note that backlinking, similarly to most aspects of SEO marketing, is a continuous operation and takes time to show positive impacts, but these impacts can greatly assist in reaching the desired digital marketing goals. 

 

What to read next:

Let’s dive deeper into the how-to of Backlinks.

Another fundamental part of SEO is On-Page SEO, explore more about it below.

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