3 Link Building Tactics to Improve Your SEO

Along with an SEO professional’s link building campaign, there will always be a need for easy link building tactics to help get started. This is especially true for amateur SEOs that have their work cut out for them when a client wants their newly established website to rank on the first page of the search results.

The absence of a stable base of links means that a website will not – at the very least – be able to compete in SERPs (search engine results pages).  Even if you properly perform every other aspect of your SEO campaign, without having a stable foundation for your link profile, then everything that you have done will be for naught.

That’s why I took it upon myself to provide 3 easy link building tactics you can use to help improve your link building campaign – even your SEO campaign. Let’s start.

 
#1. Names Related to Your Brand

The first strategy you can use is to look for links that are from your own brand name, the domain name, or the names of the company’s executives. Here’s what you should do:

Search in Quotes

This is really simple. Just search for any name that’s related to your brand, and enclose it with quotation marks. Here’s an example: If I was going to do it, I’d start by inputting “SEO Hacker.com” or “Sean Si” in quotes into the Google search bar.

Fortunately, there are only a handful of SEO Hacker.com’s or Sean Si’s in the world of search. This means that I do not have to use the plus sign (+) then an identifier. However, if there are other meanings for your domain name, or your company executives have a common name, you can do it like this: retain the quotation marks but add in the plus sign and the identifier. So, in my case, I would search for “Sean Si + SEO”. Afterward, your results will be filtered to only a Sean Si that’s related to the SEO industry.

Inspect the Top 50-100 Search Results

After searching in quotes, you should start inspecting the search results to make sure that they are:

• Linking to the Correct Site – If there are mentions of SEO Hacker in the search results, and when I check the results, there’s no link back to seo-hacker.com, I should fix that. Fixing this will involve contacting the people that handle the websites I’ve found.
• Updated – This is for the websites that you can actually edit the anchor text or where the link goes to. I usually do this for my social media channels. In LinkedIn, for example, I can update the company I’m working at, or if I changed SEO Hacker’s domain name, then I can edit the link in my profile.
• There are no mistakes – Sometimes, when you inspect the pages in the search results, you’ll find out that the links are missing or they’re linking to the wrong site, then you should fix that immediately.

Make sure that every mention of your brand or executives has a link back to the website because having these will improve your backlink profile and your SEO campaign.

 
#2. Websites That Include Your Competitors

This means that you have to do a little bit of competitor research and find out which websites link to those competitors. The typical types of websites that do this are comparison sites that focus on plural comparative intent, directories, listing websites. This is what you should do:

Find The Most Visible Competitors

To find out, you can just input queries that you would personally rank for. Then, when you see the results, find out which of them are typically shown in different queries that you want to rank for. Or, to do it in a simpler way, you can just read or watch news or articles in your niche. Doing a competitor analysis is certainly a must for any SEO campaign. You can do it manually but I personally prefer using tools to assist me. One way to scout your competitors easier is to use the tool GrowthBar. It allows you to scout your competitors right from the search results by looking at their backlinks, keywords that they rank for, and even the word count of their pages. I highly recommend that you check them out.

Search in Groups

Let’s say, for example, the brand is all about gaming laptops, I’d be looking for my top competitors such as MSI, Razer, Alienware, and Asus. I might search for Razer and Alienware at the same time. Then, I’d search for MSI and Asus next. Basically, group them up, then search for varying combinations.

Look for Sites That List Your Competitors

This can be in any format such as the ones I’ve mentioned above (directories, lists, comparisons). What you should do is to contact or submit your brand to the people that run the websites. What you’ll tell them that is that your brand should belong in the lists because you basically sell the same thing as the ones included on the website. This won’t always work, but it’s better than not having any links back to your site. However, if you succeed, then it’s good news for your link profile.

#3. Websites That List Things in Your Niche, Location, and Elements

Do not limit these attributes to being separate from each other. There are websites that create lists by combining these things. So, using the example above, there might be websites that are making lists about Philippine-based gaming laptops under $500. And by chance, your company is everything that list is looking for. So, you should try to get included in the lists because there is a unique attribute that none of your competitors possess. This is a great time to acquire good quality links while being able to have something that your competitors do not have. You can do this by:

Make a List of…

Your Company’s Niche – You can be in manufacturing, software, services, finances, or whatever your company’s niche is. Just make sure that you are able to list your areas of expertise from the macro to the micro level.

Your Company’s Location – Similarly, start from the macro level all the way down to the micro level. So, start with the continent, then country, region, and city.

Unique Elements/Attributes – List down anything that might interesting or unique about your company. Maybe your founder was a woman, or your company is eco-friendly, or that you only use the latest components available in the market. Basically, list down all of the things that you think is unique to your company

Search for Others

After making your list, you can search for other brands, websites, or businesses that you share some similarities with. They could have some of your elements, or they’re located in the same region, or they are in the same niche as you are. Through searching in Google, you can find the lists that look for the attributes that you have. Then, when you find these types of websites, getting included in their lists is a matter of talking and persuading them.

Key Takeaway

The best thing about knowing these easy link building tactics is that you do not have to shell out large amounts of money to make them work. You don’t have to use tools, think about link metrics, focus on the process of link qualifications, or paying for links (which is a black hat strategy).

You only have to use Google. That’s the only “tool” you’ll need and it’s free. The link building tactics I’ve highlighted above can help amateur SEOs get that first link for their websites without having to put in too much effort.

If you know any other link building tactics, just comment it down below so we can start a much-needed discussion.