Backlinks: A practical summary
Sometimes called off page links, backlinks are the oxygen of search engine positioning and traffic generation. Backlinks have three key elements, the web page from which the backlinks originate, the anchor text of the backlinks and the content of the page to which the backlinks sends the visitor to.
The volume of backlinks
The quantity of backlinks to a page is one of the elements the search engines consider when deciding how to position the page in the SERPS (Search Engine Page Results).
The source of the backlinks
The source of a backlink can pass authority and indeed traffic to the page to which it points. But ‘votes’ cast via backlinks from trusted or authoritative pages to a page have greater influence over the search engines perception of this page than backlinks originating from pages with less ‘trust’ or authority. Pages from sources such as educational (.edu) or government (.gov) sites naturally posess more trust and authority.
Google Page Rank
Google has the concept of ‘page rank’, this is the property it attaches to a page it considers to have accumulated authority over time from backlinks pointing towards it.
The ‘anchor text’
When you see a backlink on a web page it often has a label a word or text related to the subject at the page to which this backlink is pointing, what this ‘anchor text’ says has influence upon the value the search engines attribute to the link. If the content of the page is about ‘parenting’ and the backlink on the page is labeled or given the ‘anchor’ text ‘parenting’ then the search engines consider this to be of more value to the searcher looking for content related to ‘parenting’ than if the backlink was labeled ‘babycare’.
Common issues
The majority people screw up their backlinks building activities because they fixate on quantity as opposed to quality of backlinks. For instance if the volume of your backlinks to your ‘parenting’ page originate from pages not related to ‘parenting’ then whilst you have backlinks they will almost always bring you the wrong traffic.
How to manufacture backlinks
So here is my risk free advice for getting backlinks to your pages, good visibility in the search engine results pages and quality traffic to your web pages.
- It is critical you get the right keywords before you expend any effort whatsoever.
- I like to build a keyword ‘cloud’.
- You should always begin by identifying a key word or phrase which has a good traffic.
- To uncover how much visitor traffic is being coming from searches for my primary keyword I use the Google keyword analyzer tool.
- I look at words and search phrases relative to my primary phrase and create my ‘cloud’.
- Using this cloud I generate a selection of content containing articles, videos and blog posts each with backlinks embedded with the related anchor text and then utilize a portfolio of content distribution tools to disperse my materials to a group of directories.
- My guiding principle is to author content that will attract traffic and compel them to follow the backlinks to my target pages as well as send backlinks.
Using Backlinks to get Google Authority
OK, this is a big subject and I want to emphasise it’s not clear cut. But here is what I know in my work at the Backlinks clinic:
Authority – basics
The more authority your site has the better you will rank on Google. Authority means that people trust you and your content. The good news is that authorities trusted by humans are also trusted by Google. A good illustration is the .edu and .gov suffixes. These suffixes imply they are trustworthy sources of information and it’s a proven fact that in the eyes of Google backlinks from these domains to your web pages will “pass on” authority to your web pages. Another perfect example is Wikipedia as the entries here are largely contributed to by group of humans as opposed to a single person.
So it follows that authority is significantly influenced by the source of your backlinks and if authoritative web pages link to your web pages then you receive their authority and as far as Google is concerned you become more authoritative and so the trust in your content by Google goes up.
How Google pronounces what is and isn’t authoritative is confidential for good reason and falls in line with Google’s philosophy of “Do no evil”. The last thing the Internet needs is someone exploiting the methods that Google employs in its efforts to try and regulate probably the most significant technological resource of this period in history.
Backlinking methods you should avoid
In the same vein it’s worth my while stating some ‘black hat sources and methods of acquiring backlinks that Google not only dislikes but appears to be acting to ‘’categorize as illegitimate authorities. In no particular order of merit, the prime examples are:
- Paid backlinks – web sites where people buy and sell backlinks
- Comment spam – entries that have links on web pages that are just not related to the main content.
- Low quality and *duplicate content – ‘scraped’ or copied
- Fast growth – there are plenty of ways that this is achievable, Google isn’t dumb. Any sudden increase in the amount of backlinks is going to register on Google’s radar, especially if it’s a recently registered domain.
- Backlinks from villainous web pages – these are particularly destructive as you are guilty by association – need I say more.
*There is another factor where I may be on shakey ground, but key media properties appear to get a lot of authority and I have definitely found significant numbers of the same article over and over again on different portals with no penalties, I am still monitoring this, only as a percentage of the results I am seeing go against the normal behaviors I normally expect to see. More on this is in a future post….
This guy wants to help you get more back links
I am going to be giving away guidance, training and advice to people who want to create a presence on the web or are struggling with their current web sites, here is why.
I remember clearly the highs and lows of developing my first web site. Anyone who embarks upon the challenge of building a web site should have someone to help. Creating your first web presence can look complicated if you are inexperienced.
Topics like comprehending the influence of back links and keywords, how they influence search engine page rankings and page authority, and the connection between these and traffic volumes are complex and often badly explained by significant numbers of “experts” on the internet. I have talked to so many people on and offline who are really driven to do this and haven’t got the skills that I resolved to take some action.
After many years of working on the web, finding, learning and practising techniques to develop successful web presences by attracting substantial volumes of traffic. I have decided to start teaching.
I have been contemplating this for about twelve months now and whenever I have had some spare time I have been creating my teaching material. Most people who is starting out or already building a presence on the web wants a short cut, I’m no different and therefore whenever I have discovered really good material and tools that work I am going to route my students at these rather than try and reinvent the wheel.
Everything I have reviewed that has produced good or excellent results will be incorporated in my training material and where there are gaps I have filled them in. Obviously along the way I have created some techniques, tools and methods of my own that I consistently use which I will be including in the education.
To find out more visit my back links clinic by clicking on any of the links in this article….
PS: If your’e a blog owner then I have 12 new articles heading your way on back linking tactics and strategies….
How search engines see back links and what they do about them
There is no point in creating a website unless you have thought about how you are going to get visitors. It doesn’t matter what content you intend to put on your web pages there can only be one reason for a web pages existence and that is to get people to visit it. You need a significant proportion of your traffic to come from the search engines. The search engines generate targeted traffic and the great news is its costs you nothing.
Search engine incomes are directly related to the number of relevant results they present to their users. The more relevant and precise the search results the better the user experience and therefore the greater the chance the user will user will return. The more often the searchers return the greater the search engines fortunes. The challenges are the exactly the same for you and your website.Persuade users to come back to your web pages over and over again.
So how do you go about doing this?. You have two options and you can use both. You can create and publish great content and persuade other web site owners to link to it or you can advertise on the search engines using PPC (Pay Per Click).
As far as all of the search engines are concerned nothing exists on the internet without a keyword or a key phrase. Keywords tell the search engines what the user is looking for. The search engine goes and looks in its vast index of web pages and selects the most relevant web pages and then returns them in a list that is ordered in terms of relevance and authority. All search engines determine what will be returned in the SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) by using two measures authority and relevance.
Relevance means the page contains the keywords and authority means the page has back links to it from other web pages. Search engines calculate the position of a web page in a returned list of results by measuring the authority and number of backlinks to each page.
Back links are the sledge hammers of SEO (Search Engine Optimisation).
Back links play two important roles they direct traffic to your web site and factor in the search engines deciding the position of your web pages in the index of results. Users finding web pages with back links to your web page will click on your back links and visit your site if the keyword text in your back link is relevant to what they are searching for. The text label on a back link is often commonly called ‘Anchor Text’ and is used by search engines in the algorithms that determine back link value. Whilst all back links are of value some are more valuable than others.
The authority on the page from which a back links originates can influence the potency of the link to your web page.Significantly authoritative web pages can pass some of their authority through the back links to your page.
Offsite SEO-Building Backlinks
Offsite SEO (search engine optimization) is all about back links! Onsite SEO (search engine optimization) can only take your site so far, but good offsite SEO can propel you site to page one of the SERPs (search engine results page). This is where you want to be-if making money online is one of your goals:o)!
Back links come in many forms, and importance in the eyes of the search engines. So which backlinks are best, and deserve your attention? Here’s a list of some of the best sources of backlinks:
Completely “natural” back links-These would be links from other webmasters who feel your content is so good, or so complete, or so…you get the picture. Write high quality content that will “bait” other webmasters to link to it! These types of links are the very best (to my way of thinking) and I think Google would agree with me! It’s nice to check your backlinks and new ones are there with no more effort on your part!
One-way links from high quality, high page rank, sites in your niche-Not easy to come by (especially for new sites) but very powerful none the less! Whether you trade for them, buy them (frowned upon by Goog!) or whatever, they can give you blog a much needed boost up the serps!
Article Marketing-This is becoming my favorite way to obtain back links for several reasons-you have complete control of the article title, content, keywords used, anchor text used, etc. If you know your subject well enough, you will need to do very little research, you can devote all your time to just writing! You would be amazed at how quickly you can turn them out. I’ve written five good 500-800 word articles in just a few hours, a new record for me! Article Marketing tends to be a numbers game with more just about always being better.
Offer to write “guest posts” in blogs in your niche-Start with the high PR blogs and work your way down, always offer high-quality, unique content. You might be amazed at the number of webmasters that will trade a few links for good quality content (I will!). Of course you need a link or two in the guest post back to your site;o).
Add Hubpages, Blogspot blogs, Squidoo Lenses, etc-As they can bring much needed link-juice to your money site, and by themselves gain some authority. Once you realize some success, you need to expand in that very same niche to make even more money! Inter-link your relative online real estate (sites), and become your own toughest competition.
Use Blog Directories-Most are free (I love the free stuff!) just takes some time to sign up.
Post in forums, and comment on blogs-Get involved in related forums and leave quality, helpful posts. Comment on blogs that offer do-follow links, and sport Keywordluv/Commentluv/Top Commentator plugins.
Get involved in the online social scene-Better start twittering, digging and all the other “inging”!
It’s said by people whose opinion I respect that you should spend only about 20% of your online time creating content and on onsite seo, spend the other 80% of your time getting high quality back links. Because search engine traffic is hands down the easiest to monetize, it behoves you to build all the high quality backlinks you can, which in turn will move you up the serps! Good luck, and remember it’s all about backlinks, backlinks, and even more backlinks!
For more info on offsite seo, onsite seo, link baiting, etc. visit my site and learn how to Make Extra Cash!
Killer strategies for Wordpress Blogs to be released in first of +600 Internet Marketing Product Reviews
BREAKING NEWS: Help for all Wordpress Blog Owners
About me
I purchase and try hundreds of internet marketing ‘solutions’ every year. On average I personally answer around six hundred questions about Internet Marketing through my blog every week. Naturally my work earns me a modest income but I have a serious reason for doing what I do and this is to help people who are genuinely determined to earn money to support them selves and their dependents.
Disappointingly a significant number of Internet Marketing content and tools I evaluate doesn’t do what it says on the ‘tin’. Until now I have focused publishing my experiences to a tiny group of sites because their owners have been very useful in assisting me with my evaluations.
Over Six hundred reviews
Over a five year period I have evaluated more than 600 products and I will only be publishing reviews on products that are still on the market. I have tested all of the products I review and whilst in some cases I know the authors well this doesn’t divert me from telling what I really think about what works well and what doesn’t in each product.
Easy to use and organised catalog
To help you make the decisions that will work best for you I am going to organise the product summaries into a simple and easy to use directory and every product will be classified by the amount of experience required, price, effort and how soon you can expect to see results.
First Report – The ‘blueprint’ for Wordpress blog success
The first subject I’m going to tackle is Wordpress Blogs as this is not just a great subject for newbies to begin but a lot of blog owners don’t realise the opportunities they are missing. Blogging is an easy thing that everyone can do and can earn income from and so everyone who signs up to my e-mail list will receive clear and detailed instructions on how to install a Wordpress blog and turn it into a site that can generate cash.
Create once and replicate
I will also share with you a ‘cut and paste’ strategy anyone can use with blogs so once you have set up one blog and mastered the art of earning cash from it then you just replicate it over and over again. But getting the first blog correct is the key and this is where you need the knowledge about how to set up a ‘blueprint blog’ and what Internet Marketing ‘products’ and strategies you should use to build a solid foundation for growth and a regular income.
No bullshit, just answers.
So if you own a Wordpress blog or you need some real assistance with your choice of Internet Marketing products then please do sign up to my list at www.backlinksclinic.com.
See you there
NJC
Killer strategies for Wordpress Blogs to be released in first of +600 Internet Marketing Product Reviews
BREAKING NEWS: A message for all Wordpress Blog Owners
About me
I am self taught and have closely followed the evolution of Internet Marketing for just over five years. I answer hundreds of questions a week on my blog from Internet Marketers of all different backgrounds and levels of skill. I know a lot of people who are really up against it at the moment and whilst I am making a half decent income on the internet from my work I am more and more doing what I can to help others to avoid the mistakes, choose the right approaches and get off to a good start.
From my work I know that probably half of the Internet marketing community are bona fide people but the problem is a significant number of them are not very adept at what they do and teach. Until now I have restricted publishing my discoveries to a select group of sites because their owners have been very helpful in assisting me with my evaluations.
Over Six hundred products tested
This represents just over six hundred ‘products’ that I have tested over a timescale of nearly five years, obviously a number of them are obsolete and I will only be including ‘products’ that are still available. Every product I write about has been thoroughly tested by me and I still use it where and when I need it.
Easy to use and organised directory
I am really keen for everyone makes the journey to site has a good experience so I am making sure that every ‘product’ summary is classified in terms of the amount of money they will have to spend, the level of skill they will need, how much effort they should spend and how long it normally take to see some results.
First Review – The ‘blueprint’ for Wordpress blog success
Wordpress Blogs are probably the simplest way to get started in Internet Marketing so I am going to begin with a set of articles about products that can turn these search engine ’attractions’ into income makers. Blogging is something that everyone should do and can make money from and so everyone who signs up to my e-mail list will get clear and detailed instructions on how to install a Wordpress blog and turn it into a site that can generate cash.
Create once and replicate
Blogs are amazing in as much once you get one working properly and earning cash then you simply copy it. But getting the first blog right is critical and this is where you need the knowledge about how to set up a ‘blueprint blog’ and what Internet Marketing ‘products’ and strategies you need to build a robust foundation for growth and a regular income.
No bullshit, just answers.
So if you have a Wordpress blog or you need some practical and personal guidance with your choice of Internet Marketing products then please do join my list at www.backlinksclinic.com.
See you there
NJC
Struggling with Back links? – Here is someone who wants to help
I am giving free training and mentoring to folks who are struggling with getting traffic to their sites, here’s why.
I remember clearly the joys and the headaches of creating my first web presence. Anyone who embarks upon the task of creating a web site should get a helping hand. Creating your first web presence can appear hard if you don’t have the right skills and understanding.
Areas like comprehending the influence of back links and keywords, how they manipulate search engine page rankings and page authority, and the connection between these and visitor volumes are complicated and consistently badly explained by significant numbers of self proclaimed guru’s on the internet. I constantly meeting people who want to create a business or build a presence on the net so I have set out to do something about it.
I am fortunate enough to have spent years uncovering, rounding up, trying out, getting to know and mastering the large selection of different systems and approaches for establishing a presence on the web, attracting surfers to my web sites and consistently refining my approach. I suddenly discovered I wanted to teach.
Because of my pain and success I am lucky enough to be in a position to do this and devote a large amount of quality time to it. Everybody I have met who is not sure where to start or already building a presence on the web wants fast results, I’m no different and therefore whenever I have come across high quality material and tools that work I am going to direct my students at these rather than try and reinvent the wheel.
Everything I have tried and tested that has delivered good or excellent results will be included in my training material and where there are gaps I have filled them in. In my work I have created some techniques, tools and methods of my own that I regularly use which I will be including in the training.
To find out more visit my back links clinic by clicking on any of the links in this article….
PS: If your’e a blog owner then I have 12 new articles heading your way on back linking tactics and strategies….
The effect of back links on your web pages
The main goal of any web site should be to get attention and get as many people as you can to visit your web site. Be it selling a product or service or conveying an opinion or information you want to get attention and this means getting traffic. You should devote your energies to getting the search engines to direct as many visitors as possible to your web pages. Certainly the lowest cost and best targeted traffic will always be brought to you by the search engines.
Search engine incomes are directly related to the number of relevant results they present to their users. Searchers will return over and over again to a search engine that delivers the most relevant results. The more often the searchers return the greater the search engines fortunes. You and your web pages face a similar challenge.Position yourself in the mind of your users as a relevant source of information and make them visit over and over again.
So what should you do?. You have two options and you can use both. You can submit high quality content to the web or you can use advertising often called Pay Per Click (PPC) or in the case of Google ‘adwords’.
Without a keyword or a key phrase search engines will simply ignore content. Searches always begin with the entry of a keyword or phrase into the ‘search box’. The search engine goes and looks in its vast index of web pages and selects the most relevant web pages and then returns them in a list that is ordered in terms of relevance and authority. The search engines decision about what pages to display in the results are based upon two key factors relevance and authority.
Authority is a function of the back links to a web page and relevance is largely down to on page factors such as the number of times a keyword appears on the web page. The search engines determine the order in which web pages are indexed on the results pages by the number of back links to the page and their respective authority.
Back links are the number one priority you should focus on in web page optimisation.
Back links have two key uses – influencing the search engines ranking decisions and directing traffic to your web site from other internet properties. Users will follow links they find in content if the back link is labelled with relevant text. ‘Anchor text’ is the correct term to describe the text appearing as a link and contributes to the value given to the link by the search engines. Whilst all back links are of value some are more valuable than others.
The search engines give authority to web pages which can be passed on to your web pages through the back links.The higher the authority of the web page ‘sending’ the back link the more authority is likely to received by your web pages.
Content is important, but links are even more so!
You’ve probably heard the old phrase content is king you know? My tests have shown this is B.S.
I know this article is not what you are probably used to hearing but it’s true. Because they aren’t my sites, I won’t give their names. However, I will reveal to you some things that I have discovered and why content is NOT King but ONE WAY LINKS ARE KING!
Here’s the deal I have recently started working for a new client because their pages couldn’t seem to get to the first page of Google so I took the challenge and went to work for them.
As with any new client I take a look at what they’re already doing and I was appalled they even were able to get the rankings they currently had. All of the content was extremely poorly written as if someone with no or very limited English speaking and writing skills had attempted to write the article. There were even hints and some evidence pointing to some of the content being created by a cheap and crappy version of an article spinner and maybe even a free spinner.
Apparently due to an oversight or an over estimation of his abilities the previous SEO guy was going after competitive keywords he had very little hope of ever ranking for especially with these crappy content pages.
Spinning this article is so easy that even a kindergardener could do it with the right software download.
The site was so poorly formatted internally, the anchor text were things like home and now, they weren’t going after their key words with their inner text links, and there was no site map for the search bots to easily follow. This is SEO 101 and none of it had been done.
This is what seems to be clear from the results and that is if content was king then there is no way that Google should be showing those pages on the first page of any search. After doing my research, what were the results?
All of the sites had mucho one way links to their domain even if they were trashy links from low quality and low authority websites. Next I took a look at their poorly ranking pages to see if there were problems immediately apparent and sure enough there were because these pages had no or very few incoming links.
So I just copied the links from the other pages and in two weeks I was a hero in my clients eyes, due to the fact that they are now on the first page of Google for all the sites they hired my for initially.
My primary aim is to make them understand that they can get fast results. I will now get them quality links from power and authority domains. Their sites will stay in their first page rankings.
They’ve entrusted their SEO needs to me, and I’ve found that the best way to maximize SEO using web 2.0 marketing blog tactics with lots of links.