According to some statistics, 90% of content on the internet goes unread. Link building, a part of the SEO process, can change that.
What is link building?
Link building is one of the most important elements of the SEO process and the foundation of SEO activities. It involves acquiring links - sometimes also called references or backlinks - from other websites (or electronic documents) to your own website. Sometimes it is also referred to as building a link profile. The majority of it is classified as off-site SEO.
What matters in link building?
Originally, the matter was simple - the more backlinks to a particular page, the better and the higher the position in search engine rankings. However, this provided huge opportunities for abuse and the proliferation of fictitious or low-quality entities.
Therefore, in October 2013, the so-called Penguin algorithm was introduced (marked with the symbol of this friendly flightless bird). This algorithm was able to separate the quality of the links and distinguish the good ones, as well as determine whether a particular page is credible. From that point on, the quantity of links to a page became a secondary or even marginal issue, as their quality began to determine positioning in the first place. The highest ratings are given to links from pages that are thematically related to the one with the backlink, and have a high authority/high position in rankings. Domain strength is precisely measured, and information about it is meticulously calculated into points comparable to competitive domains. Metaphorically, it's a bit like a master passing on his power to a student - the greater the authority of the master, the higher the student's ratings.
However, it cannot be denied that changes in the internet, social media, and algorithms themselves have somewhat changed the position of link building - primarily, newer criteria are being introduced in the algorithms and one must stay up to date with them in order to see results. The level of one's own content is becoming increasingly important, large companies are less likely to place links to pages that they deem to be not good or catchy. An important, yet often overlooked element, is the age of the page to which the backlinks are directed. Google has tools to check how long it has been around - and let's not hide the fact that these "long-lived" pages, created not for whim or quick promotion, are appreciated and better perceived, which reflects on positioning.
How do we divide links?
Links are divided into internal and external (also called outgoing). The first ones concern moving within the area of a given page - we navigate through various categories, subcategories, sections, comparators within one domain, etc. The second is related to links on other pages. These are references to a specific page, which in turn are divided into natural and unnatural links. Natural links are inserted due to their substantive value, style, content. Unnatural links are advertisements, which are sometimes synonymous with spam and clickbait.
What does link building give us?
Link building, like other off-site SEO techniques, aims to increase the credibility of our website and its exposure in search engines (in the latter case, we are mainly talking about subpages shown in Google). This includes both raising these values in the eyes of visitors to the site, as well as programs - or robots - associated with search engines. High rankings affect the reputation and recognition of a brand/company/person, improve its positive image, and eventually generate traffic to its own website.
Allegedly, up to 90% of content on the internet - often valuable content - goes unread by anyone or almost anyone. This is primarily determined by positioning: only the highest-ranking pages are displayed, while no one looks at the rest (this of course raises controversy, as Google itself sets the criteria). And since off-site SEO influences rankings and display position, the matter is clear - for now, link building is incredibly important and decisive in the market.
