Signing out of account, Standby…
While link building is a powerful SEO tactic, it cannot boost your ranking without these other expert-backed strategies.
Human beings like to think simplistically. We like to neatly categorize concepts and see things in black-and-white. We like to ignore nuance for the sake of a one-sentence summary. And when it comes to complex marketing strategies like search engine optimization (SEO), we like to boil down hypothetical approaches into a handful of actionable tactics.
Perhaps that’s why so many modern SEO experts have attempted to make SEO synonymous with link building. But here’s the thing, while link building is important for SEO, it’s not the only factor you need to consider. And if you focus on link building too much, it could end up costing you your chance at reaching rank one.
Related: How to Shake Up a Stale Link Building Strategy
First, we need to acknowledge that link building is highly important for SEO. Mostly, that’s because links have a tightly interconnected relationship with your domain authority. Your domain authority is an invisible score that represents your site’s trustworthiness in the eyes of Google and other search engines. The higher that authority is, the more trustworthy your site is seen to be, and the higher you’re going to rank in relevant searches.
While the back-end system for evaluating link quality is sophisticated, it’s mostly true to say that the more links you have, and the more authoritative those links are, the higher your domain authority will be. Building links on websites that already have a high authority will pass some of that authority to you, accelerating your domain authority increase.
Related: Why Is Link Building So Controversial?
However, if you focus exclusively on link building, you’re going to sabotage your campaign. While it’s very hard to increase your domain authority without active link building, if you focus on link building exclusively or too much, it’s only going to work against you.
If you focus on link building too heavily, you’re going to neglect other important elements of search engine optimization, including:
There’s a bit of irony in excessively focusing on link building because if you don’t focus on these other elements, link building becomes harder.
While it’s possible to intentionally and manually build high-quality, natural-looking links to your website, it’s also important to naturally attract links whenever possible. In part because Google will penalize your website if it looks like you’re participating in link schemes and in part because naturally attracted links tend to come from a diversity of different sources, ultimately building your authority further.
Related: 7 Reasons Why SEO Matters for Every Startup
With no content (or bad content), you’re never going to attract those natural links. You’ll be completely reliant on manual link building – and even then, you won’t have powerful content to serve as the destination for your new links.
I’m not here to bash link building. On the contrary, I think it’s the most important element of SEO to master. But we need to honestly acknowledge that link building isn’t the only aspect of SEO you need to pursue – and if you focus too heavily on link building, it will work against you.
Related: How to Shake Up a Stale Link Building Strategy
Business Strategies, Entrepreneurial Advice & Inspiring Stories are all in one place. Explore the new Entrepreneur Bookstore.
I’m a Millennial Who Quit My Job Last Year to Do What I Love. Here’s How I’ve Made More Than $300,000 So Far.
‘This Is the Way It’s Always Been’: HarperCollins Workers Fight to End Historic Cycle of Unfair Wages
If You Have No Emotional Awareness as a Leader, You’re Limiting Your Success. Here’s Why (and How to Fix It).
4 Expert-Backed Strategies for Being Less Impulsive
He Scored $175,000 By Saying the One Phrase This Investor Wanted to Hear
How Veterans Can Get Started in Franchising Today Through IFA’s VetFran Program
Going on 3 Dates a Week Dramatically Improved My Sales Skills. Here Are the Biggest Lessons I Learned.
Emily Rella
Gabrielle Bienasz
Gabrielle Bienasz
Subscribe to our Newsletter
The latest news, articles, and resources sent to your inbox.
I understand that the data I am submitting will be used to provide me with the above-described products and/or services and communications in connection therewith.
Read our privacy policy for more information.
Copyright © 2022 Entrepreneur Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
Entrepreneur® and its related marks are registered trademarks of Entrepreneur Media Inc.
Successfully copied link
