Link Building in 2024: What Works, What Doesn't, and What's Next
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The document discusses the evolution and current state of link building strategies in SEO, emphasizing the importance of high-quality, relevant links given recent algorithm updates like Google's Spambrain. It outlines ineffective tactics, such as spammy guest posts, while recommending sustainable practices, including digital PR and resource link building. The document encourages the use of human evaluation and relevant metrics in link building efforts to adapt to the changing SEO landscape.
Link Building in 2024: What Works, What Doesn't, and What's Next
- 2. POLL! Does Your Organization Actively Try To Build Links?
- 3. What We’ll Cover Today! - The History of Link Building: Why do we think about links the way that we do? - Tactics That Should Be History - Tactics that Still Work and HOW TO EXECUTE THEM. - Where we are headed! Trends to look out for!
- 4. “I can tell you what they are (Google’s top ranking factors). It is content. And it’s links pointing to your site.” - Andre Lippatsev | Google What Matters To Google (according to Google)
- 5. - Google Started in 1996 - Shortly Thereafter Links Were a Core & Distinguishing Part of the Algorithm (Page Rank) - SEOs figured it out and did what SEOs do… ABUSED THE HECK OUT OF IT. The History
- 6. - PR (PageRank) was ultimately how link quality was measured. - This why today, we are OBSESSED with DA, PA, DR, UR, Etc. The History
- 7. - In Nov. 2012 Google released the Penguin update to battle link spam. - It was the first of many link focused algorithm updates that we’ve seen over the past decade. The History
- 8. - 10 years after Penguin, Google launched the SpamBrain update. - Google uses machine learning to detect what links are likely spam/bought and what links are earned. SpamBrain Update
- 9. - Correlation studies say… Yeah, probably! - SEMRush in January 2024: 8 out of top 20 factors were link related… Do Links Still Matter?
- 10. - If you are still looking at links from the same lens as 10 years ago. You’re not thinking about it right - Google cares about links & they affect rankings. Why invest time/resources into something that doesn’t matter? - Google is trying to cut out the noise, so they can get to the links that really matter. What Can We Learn?
- 11. - Understanding Spam Brain - What is machine learning? - What are patterns of paid links vs. patterns of earned links? What Doesn’t Work?
- 12. - “A Branch of AI that focuses on using data and algorithms to enable AI to imitate the way that humans learn” - IBM - AI is learning from data, from studying patterns, identifying outliers, etc. What is Machine Learning?
- 13. Officially Launched Last Week! SGE
- 15. - Why Will Links Matter in an SGE World? - Google is using SpamBrain to be more nuanced in how they view links. How do we not just award sites based on shallow metrics? - Relevant links from trustworthy sources can serve as a human factor to judging authority. SGE
- 16. - Anchor text is user friendly - Linking to a page that is contextually relevant - Linking to valuable information - Non-Promotional - “Helpful Content” → “Helpful Links” Patterns of Quality Links
- 17. - Anchor text is SEO Focused (exact match?) - Relevance may not matter, mainly focused on DA/DR, General Sites. - Linking to promotional pages - Disregard for users, just in it for the JUICE. Patterns of Spam Links
- 18. - Guest posts on general news sites, linking to product/promotional pages, using exact match anchor text. IF YOUR LINKS LOOK LIKE THIS → You/Your Agency are doing it WRONG. What Doesn’t Work?
- 19. - This is the traffic from our client who was doing this link building before they started with us in January. - HUGE HIT RIGHT AROUND WHEN SPAMBRAIN DROPPED. What Doesn’t Work?
- 20. - Spambrain tells Google to ignore/devalue links that follow those patterns. - The client wasn’t PENALIZED in the traditional sense. - This was a correction. To neutralize the effect of the spam links. What Does Spambrain Do?
- 21. - Once we started building better quality links… the client started recovering but it’s going to take time to build this up naturally. What Doesn’t Work?
- 22. - BUILD HELPFUL LINKS. - BUILD RELEVANT LINKS. - USE DA/DR as a secondary/tertiary metric. - USE DIVERSE TACTICS. - A backlink profile full of guest posts doesn’t look natural. What Does Work?
- 23. - How To Evaluate Target Sites
- 24. - RELEVANCE!!! - Use your human brain! - Human Value - Does this site mean anything to anybody who is NOT building links on it? - Trust - Authority, Backlink Neighborhood, etc. THINK OF LINKS AS ENDORSEMENTS. Who do I want endorsements from? How To Evaluate Target Sites
- 25. - These are the tactics that I recommend using, that are replicable, and sustainable. - Not all of these work for everybody but you should be able to find 1-2 of these that you can execute for your brand. Let’s Build Your Link Building Toolbelt
- 26. Digital PR ● Create a piece of newsworthy information that will pique journalists’ interest. ○ Public Data ○ Proprietary Research ○ Fun/Zany ● Identify the relevant beats ● Identify Trends, Topics, etc within those beats (demand) ● Create content that satisfies that demand
- 27. Digital PR Example ● https://visitseaquest.com/blog/10-most-googled-monsters-in-the-u-s/ Links: - https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/weird/nys-mythical-lake-creature-njs-j ersey-devil-among-most-searched-for-monsters-in-us/4275648/ - https://news.yahoo.com/tacoma-deemed-hot-spot-bigfoot-191141740.html - https://myq105.com/2023/04/14/floridas-most-googled-monster-have-you-s een-it/ - https://k2radio.com/ixp/102/p/its-finally-proven-that-wyomings-jackalope-is -realish/
- 28. (Good) Guest Posting ● HELPFUL CONTENT/HELPFUL GUEST POSTS ● Is this information valuable to the audience that I’m writing for? ● Is the link I’m placing in the article providing further insight/value to the article? ● Will the user expect to come to the page they landing on? ● RELEVANCE, RELEVANCE, RELEVANCE. ○ Domain to Domain, Page to Domain, Page to Page. ● If you are paying someone to throw up low value/quality or advertorial content for your brand, this isn’t going to work.
- 29. Resource Link Building ● Purely Editorial ● Associated with Legit Organizations ● Sometimes from .edu, .gov, .orgs ● Pre-existing pages ● Will generally require a resource worthy of links on your site.
- 30. Resource Link Building ● Purely Editorial ● Associated with Legit Organizations ● Sometimes from .edu, .gov, .orgs ● Pre-existing pages ● Will generally require a resource worthy of links on your site.
- 31. Let’s Say You are Dentrix.com, a dental software company. We want to find a way to connect dental software with an audience that has a lot of resource pages dedicated to them… Let’s Do Some Research! Example
- 32. Start by thinking about what kind of pages link out…. Example RESOURCE & LINKS PAGES. - What kinds of audiences can you find? - What kinds of resources are they linking to - What topics are (or aren’t) being mentioned?
- 33. ● While I was searching I found a ton of resource pages on dentists websites, I also found a focus on children, and then eventually found this guide from Byte.com ● - This Guide has earned over 80 links for Byte! Including .edu and .gov links. Example
- 34. So if I’m Dentrix, there would be huge opportunities to create a dental health guide for parents of children with special needs. - Dental Resource Pages - Parental Resource Pages - Resource pages for certain conditions We created a guide that connects us with 3 spheres of relevancy! Example
- 35. Create Top of The Funnel, Audience Focused Content Begin looking at the kinds of pages people generally link from and see what trends you pick up Look for examples of successful linkable content Use that inspiration to create your own piece that is similar yet provides its own unique value. Creating Link Generating Guide Summarized:
- 36. What Makes a Good Target Site? How To Find Suitable Target Sites How To Find Contact Information Outreach Best Practices How To Promote Your Content
- 37. Take a balanced approach Look to create a backlink profile that provides a solid mix of the following quality criteria: Relevance Engagement Authority DON’T LET LOWER DA’s PREVENT YOU FROM GETTING GREAT LINKS. What Makes a Good Target Site?
- 38. Dentrix Example - Don’t set Minimum DA! Why wouldn’t links from dental practices be great links for a dental software company? https://scottstewartdmd.com/dental-links - DA 14 https://www.associatesfororalsurgery.com/referring-doctors/links-of-interest/ - DA 19 https://www.yoursmiledocs.com/useful-dental-links - DA 21 https://mountvistadental.com/patient-information/helpful-dental-links/ - DA 17 These are all HIGHLY relevant from topically authoritative sources. Think about links as endorsements! These are GREAT Endorsements.
- 39. Do They Actually Get Links? ● https://loveonetoday.com/nutrition/nutrition-for-cancer- patients-a-comprehensive-resource-guide/ ○ https://www.dcms.uscg.mil/Our-Organization/Assista nt-Commandant-for-Human-Resources-CG-1/Retiree- Services-Program/ ○ https://www.hepb.org/research-and-programs/liver/ ○ https://www.vbcf.org/nutrition-support-resources/
- 40. Unlinked Mentions - I LOVE UNLINKED MENTIONS. So underrated. - This only works if you’re a bigger brand or have a decent PR presence. - A great opportunity to get organic links to your main product pages. Especially if you have a product your brand gets mentioned in conjunction with - Use Google News to search your brand, C-Level, Owners, etc. - Mention.com, Brandwatch, Mentionlytics.
- 41. Do They Work? Yes!! - Cornell.edu - UCSC.edu - Clickup.com - StaxPayments.com - Berkeley.edu Over 150% Growth in 6 Months!!
- 42. Maximizing Results: Internal Links 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site Middle of Funnel Content Conversion Page Link Magnet
- 43. Maximizing Results: Internal Links 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site Middle of Funnel Content Conversion Page Link Magnet 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site Middle of Funnel Content Conversion Page Link Magnet 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site Middle of Funnel Content Conversion Page Link Magnet 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site Middle of Funnel Content Conversion Page Link Magnet 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site Middle of Funnel Content Conversion Page Link Magnet 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site 3rd Party Site Middle of Funnel Content Conversion Page Link Magnet This is Repeatable. It’s not just a campaign, IT’S A SYSTEM.
- 45. Or… We Can Do It For You. We’ll help you build your own content & link system: We’re offering a free ranking roadmap report: - Competitor Analysis - Keyword Opportunities - Linkable Content Idea If you choose to move forward we’ll give you 20% off your first month of services!
- 46. POLL! Are you interested in getting 20% off your first month of Link Building with Resolve?
- 47. THANK YOU! Michael Johnson CEO at Resolve GrowResolve.com Michael@growresolve.com @Michael_Resolve @michaeljohnsonresolve Extended Q&A in Virtual Booth!