Having a website is only part of the marketing jigsaw. To make it
purr you need to keep it updated with fresh, relevant content; optimise
it for search engines; build a social presence, etc. A large
part of the digital marketing puzzle is link-building, which increase
the search engine equity of your website. One of the primary ways of
doing this is by encouraging other relevant websites to link to it.
New websites and new businesses don’t need to invest thousands of
pounds in SEO and link building campaigns. There’s a lot you can do
yourself to get the ball rolling, which mostly involves a bit of hustle
and some common sense.
Here are my three DIY link building tips for small businesses:
1 Who do you know?
One of the best places to start is by utilising existing business
relationships. Chances are your suppliers, customers and other contacts
will be more than happy to link to your website, it’s just a case of
asking the right person.
List everyone in your existing business network. Ask them to link to
you. Don’t discount those who don’t have resources pages. Ask to write a
testimonial about their services or even contribute a case study about
your experience. This way you’ll create value for them, as opposed to
simply requesting a link.
2 Niche and local directories
‘Directory submissions’ have become dirty words in digital marketing,
predominately because of the swathes that have been created solely for
those looking to build links. Most will advise you to avoid them,
because they tend to be flagged as spam by search engines. By submitting
to them you risk wasting your time or worse – being penalised for
overtly trying to manipulate the rankings. This doesn’t mean that all
directories should be avoided – far from it.
Chances are they’ll be a few directories curated by people that are
specific to your industry. These represent a relatively straightforward
means of listing your business and getting a link. Try simple queries
related to your niche and see what comes up. For example, if you
manufacture pumps, just try ‘pumps directory’. Once you’ve mined that,
search for something more general, but still relevant (eg‘process
industry directory’ or ‘British manufacturers’ directory’).
3 Organisations and associations
Once you’ve cleaned up the directories in your niche, start thinking
about industry bodies and associations. Check that any associations
you’re a member of link to you from their website. If not, ask them to.
Again, it might be useful to think beyond just asking for a link. How
can you add more value to that community? Perhaps you could get involved
more by sharing your business experiences on their websites. Are there
any organisations relevant to your business that you’re not a member of
that it might be worth joining?
Now what?
Once you’ve boxed off your connections, niche directories and
organisations, you’ll have built strong linking foundations for your
website. You might even have whetted your appetite to try a few more
advanced tactics. If you’re ever unsure about whether it’s a good
linking opportunity, just follow link building expert Eric Ward’s Litmus test:
‘Would you pursue the link if there were no search engine at all?’ In
other words, would you want a connection between yours website and
someone else’s, even if you weren’t doing it simply to build the value
perceived by search engines? Follow this rule and you won’t go far
wrong.
1 Comments:
It's awesome for me to have a web page, which is useful for my experience.
thanks admin
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