What Is A Backlink? Types And How To Get A Backlinks: Full Beginners Guide (2023)

Getting a high-quality backlinks is a very necessary step for every website that wishes to rank higher on google Se:arch Engine Result Pages. (SERPs)

three SEO pillars have an effect on your search engine ranking.

Backlinks are links that go from one website to a page on another website (sometimes referred to as "inbound links," "incoming links," or "one-way links"). Backlinks are viewed by Google and other top search engines as "votes" for a certain page. Pages with lots of backlinks typically score well in organic search results.

When it comes down to it, backlinks come in two flavors: dofollow and nofollow. A web page reader won't be able to tell the difference between a backlink that is dofollow and one that is nofollow. The source code is where the difference lies. The effect of a backlink on your SEO profile is determined by a special element in the source code that controls how Google and the other search engines evaluate the backlink.

Dofollow Backlinks

The most popular and effective sort of backlink for SEO is a dofollow link.
When you place a dofollow link on your website, you are informing Google that the link is organic — that the target website did not pay for the link — and that you are vouching for the accuracy of the information at the other end of that link.

Dofollow merely informs Google and other search engines that "the content on the other end of this link is significant and should be noted."

This link, for example, is a dofollow backlink to our pals at Internet Marketing Ninjas. The source code for that link is as follows:

Have you noticed how that link is identical? It's just a normal link. That's one of the reasons why dofollow links are so popular - they're the simplest to implement.

Nofollow Backlinks

Nofollow backlinks are becoming less popular. They're also worth less. They are used to instruct search engines to disregard a specific link.

"'Nofollow' provides a way for webmasters to tell search engines 'Don't follow links on this page' or 'Don't follow this specific link,'" according to Google.

The HTML syntax for these links is similar to that of dofollow links, with one major exception: the "rel=nofollow" tag. If we utilized a nofollow link in our previous example, it would look like this:

where do nofollow backlinks originates?

Despite the fact that nofollow links are less frequent than dofollow links, there are still plenty of sites to find nofollow links on the internet. Because those websites don't want to vouch for the accuracy of your information, you'll most typically receive these types of backlinks from websites where you can add your own links and content.

Nofollow links are typically found in the following places:

1. Social media platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter
2. Comments on blogs
3. Websites that aggregate content, such as Scoop It
4. Question-and-answer platforms such as Quora
5. Discussion boards such as Reddit
6. press releases

Aside from that, many authoritative websites, such as Wikipedia and the Huffington Post, use nofollow links to decrease the quantity of bogus backlink requests they receive.

Nofollow backlinks are beneficial to SEO.

Surprisingly, nofollow backlinks have SEO benefit.

The official Google position on nofollow links is, "In general, we don't follow them." That is, most of the time, Google does not follow nofollow links, but there are some cases in which Google does. It's difficult to say what those situations are because Google hasn't disclosed them. As a result, the SEO community has conducted extensive testing to uncover a few cases when nofollow links are followed.

Websites with a high level of authority

There is some evidence that nofollow links from well-known websites, such as Wikipedia, can help your organic rankings.

According to the theory, there are websites that Google absolutely trusts. These websites are well-known for their high-quality content.

In those circumstances, it's unlikely that they're fully ignoring the nofollow tag.Even if you obtained a dofollow link from Wikipedia, it would be far more useful than a nofollow link from the same source.

This category is likely to contain very few webpages.

Purchasing nofollow Backlinks

SEOJet's inventor, Adam White, wanted to see how nofollow links influenced SEO.He paid one website that ranked for a lot of SEO terms to put a nofollow backlink to his website. He requested that the anchor text "backlink software" be used because his website did not rank on page one for that search.He also made certain that no other links to his website used that anchor text.

When someone links to your website using specific keywords in the link, anchor text helps Google comprehend what your website is all about.

Within a week of the nofollow placement, SEOJet's website rocketed to the top of the search results for that term.

The timing could be coincidental, but Adam states that the nofollow link was the only update he made to his website during that time period. It's important to note that this is just one test, and it's not guaranteed to work, but it's worth investigating more.

This is frequently due to the fact that content writers use highly frequented websites to study their own content.

Fractl demonstrated this by obtaining a nofollow link from a Yahoo article. Following the publication of that Yahoo article, Fractl's content received an additional 700 backlinks from other websites, two-thirds of which were dofollow links.

Another indirect benefit of nofollow links is that they still send visitors to your website, which is certainly preferable than having no links at all.

To summarize, we don't have any empirical evidence that nofollow links are beneficial, but there is enough anecdotal evidence that they aren't. If you're planning a link-building effort, don't dismiss websites that only provide nofollow links, especially if they're large, authoritative sites. They're still useful for traffic, exposure, and even a little SEO.

1. Linkable Assets

This link-building technique consists of the following steps:

1. Creating high-quality pages that will generate backlinks naturally

2. promoting them in appropriate publications

It's a scalable approach to build quality backlinks for your site if done correctly.

Keep in mind, though, that you will need to generate assets that other websites would want to link to. Some common examples are:

Data-driven research
In-depth, long-form guides
Visuals and infographics

People may automatically mention you as a source if you produce an in-depth, compelling, and accurate resource.

The best thing is that these links are organically placed, which Google prefers.

As an example, consider our blog post on the top 100 most visited websites:

To begin writing this post, we conducted keyword research to identify a high-volume term. "Most visited websites" has a search traffic of 5.4K in the United States and 13.0K globally.
keyword summary most frequented websites

Here is the Education section: education overview

To summarize, we created a resource that is often updated, visually simple to understand, and applicable to a wide range of sectors.

As a consequence, our blog article received more than 9.5K backlinks from more than 1.1K referring domains.
backlink analysis most visited websites

Read our digital PR guide to learn more about this strategy.

2. Resource Page Link Building

One of the most effective—and simple—methods of obtaining backlinks is through resource page link building.

Resource pages are links that have been curated. (i.e., resources).

There are resource pages for almost any subject you can think of.

Like:

• Learning resources SEO
• Guidelines for Dog Trainers
  
• Career planning websites

As an example, consider the above-mentioned career planning resource.

This is how the resource page looks. It's chock-full of links to other websites that can assist people plan their careers in many industries:

Look at which pages already connect to your competitors to uncover more resource page opportunities.

Here's how to use the Semrush Backlink Analytics Tool to accomplish this.

Enter the URL of the competition you want to analyze and click "Analyze."
backlink analysis software

This will offer you an overview of the many types of backlinks a site receives, as well as a complete list of them.

Now, use the word "resource" to filter the URL column.This will return a list of pages that have the word "resource" in the title or URL and link to your competitor:
resource search for backlink analytics

This implies that they are likely to link to your site as well.

Examine the findings to determine if there is a page on your site that would complement one of these resource sites. If you don't already have a relevant page, you can always start one.

The final step is to browse the resource sites and either submit your resource using their forms or contact the site owners directly.

3. Broken Link Construction

Broken link building is the practice of locating broken links on pages within your specialty and contacting webmasters with your own resources to replace them.

Here's an example of a page with the 404 error: If a user clicks on a broken link, they may receive the following Not Found error:

This not only provides a poor user experience, but it also reflects poorly on the site's owner.

Broken link building is a low-effort strategy that results in a win-win situation: the site owner fixes a broken link, and you receive a backlink.

Here's how to locate broken links and contact site owners to request a replacement:

To begin, go to Backlink Analytics. Enter a domain relating to your niche and then select the "Indexed Pages" option.

For example, if your company is in the personal finance industry, you could look into nerdwallet.com.

This will display any broken links on the site.

You may find out what sites are linking to these broken pages by clicking the hyperlinked numbers in the "Backlinks" column.

If necessary, sort through your results using the filters (for example, type your desired phrase into the "Filter by title or URL" section at the upper right of the above screenshot).

To find the page URL, look at the "Anchor and Target URL" column. As well as the anchor text used by the sites to connect to the broken page.

Once you've identified a few solid prospects, such as the one described above:

1. Make a substitute page for your website.
2. Contact the owners of the sites that are connecting to the old page and offer your page as an alternate target.

4. The Skyscraper Method

2. Better content creation

Create the best piece of material on the web for your selected topic to improve the Skyscraper Technique.

Make a big bet on things like:

• Comprehensiveness
• Originality
• Images that are unique

While more isn't always better, it can be if all of the content is useful and covers the subject thoroughly.

Are you ready to put the Skyscraper Technique to the test?

Begin by conducting competitor research.

Your goal is to identify popular sites in your niche and determine which of their pages has the most backlinks.

Backlink Analytics can be used to investigate a competitor in your niche. As an example, consider Crate and Barrel.

Navigate to the "Backlinks" report, as shown below.
report on crate barrel backlinks

Scroll down to see where they are obtaining backlinks, their Authority Scores (overall quality), and other information.

construct a source page for barell backlinks

Consider the following:

• Which pages receive the most backlinks?
• What are they in common?
• If you wish to start your research by topic, you can also do this stage on Google.

Look for a topic inside your area that interests you. Then, look at the pages that appear on page one.

Enter individual pages into Backlink Analytics in the same way we did for Crate & Barrel above for more information:

Make sure you look at more than just traffic and backlinks.

Editorially analyze the pages to identify text, images, and other components that might be improved on your own website.

Create your own page to compete with the pages you identified during your study once you've gathered enough material.

Keep in mind that just rewording or adding more graphics to a piece that is performing well will most likely not work.

Instead:

Put your own twist on the topic by changing the angle, structure, images, and so on.

When authoring (or modifying) a page with the Skyscraper Technique, your goal should be to:
extra extensive

• Greater modernity
• better constructed
• improved organization

Now that your page has been updated, look for prospects who could be interested in linking to it.

The trick is to approach others who are already linking to comparable content. You'll provide them with a more comprehensive alternative to link to.

Return to Backlink Analytics and enter a page you wish to compete with to find people to contact.

Return to the "Backlinks" report and examine which pages link to the competition.

Here, among other information, you may discover precisely which pages link to the website of your rival. (like what anchor text they use).

Up till you have a list of prospective prospects for link building, repeat this procedure. But since this is a continuous process, you can always go back and add more.

Here is a sample message you could send:

Remember that quality is preferred than quantity in this instance. Therefore, even though you might only receive 10 or 15 links, if they come from authoritative, niche websites, they might have a significant influence.

If you've worked hard and made a quality page, linking to it should ideally come naturally to other people.

5. Help a Reporter Out (HARO)

The HARO website offers several excellent chances to obtain links from the media.

The journalist in this instance is looking for advice on how to make a home look more attractive. They specify requirements so that suppliers are clear about what to send.

Additionally, you can decide which industries you want to subscribe to. So, you would have received this advice if you signed up to receive inquiries about the interior design profession.

Visit the Best Life Online live website to find a range of advice with quotations from many sources. Or, backlinks.

The nice thing about this strategy is that, if your HARO account is properly configured, you won't need to put in a lot of effort.

Adapt to pertinent pitch requests Don't forget to send a link to your website and any further details the writer requested (as well as this).

All types of journalists need quotes and sources to support their work. They must specify where they found specific information in order to correctly cite a source.

Therefore, go ahead and answer to a request if it pertains to what you do since you might end up as a source for an article. (In other words, earn a backlink.)

Therefore, go ahead and answer to a request if it pertains to what you do since you might end up as a source for an article. (In other words, earn a backlink.)

Be as thorough as you can, and only respond to questions and requests about which you are truly an authority.

Not every pitch you make will be a hit. But if you react wisely, you can increase the number of authoritative backlinks.

6. Link Gap Analysis

Finding websites that link to your competitors but not to you is one of the quickest ways to uncover backlink chances. (yet).

A website is more likely to link out to yours if it includes links to several of your rivals' websites.

The Backlink Gap tool will greatly simplify this procedure.

Start by entering up to four of your competitors' domains.

A total of five domains may be entered. Click "Find prospects" after entering them to view the domains (and pages) linked to one or more of your rivals.

The main screen will appear as follows:

You can see which referring domains link to the domains you selected for evaluation on the left-hand side.

Click the arrow next to the number in the competitor's column to reveal exactly which pages are connecting to their websites:

You can access connections to the two nj.gov pages that link to them, information about those pages' authority scores, and other information by clicking on the arrow in the realtor.com column.

Not every page will match exactly. (You may find some spammy backlinks.)

Therefore, spend some time exploring the pages that connect to your rivals to determine whether they are worthwhile investigating.

You can start outreach right from the Backlink Gap tool once you've found a page that you want to link to your website from.

On the page's top, click the "+ Start outreach" button.

By doing this, a window will appear that enables you to drive potential customers straight to the Link Building Tool, where you can handle outreach and send emails from within Semrush.

7. Provide References

Customers frequently use endorsements and reviews to guide their purchasing decisions.

But did you know that you may use testimonials to increase the number of backlinks to your website?

This is how it goes:

1. Make a blog article highlighting the goods or services you adore.
2. then send a notification to the website's owners

They might post it on social media or link to your article.

Alternatively, if a website allows visitors to submit reviews, that is a quick and efficient method to get started.

Here is a screenshot of the testimonials page for HubSpot. You will be taken to the websites that recognized HubSpot by clicking the "Learn more" buttons:
testimonials page on HubSpot

8. Links to Suppliers

You may have a great chance to earn backlinks to your website if you sell other people's goods.

The "where to buy" pages that many suppliers and manufacturers have on their websites look like this one from a bicycle manufacturer.
purchasing page

Each of them is a store that specializes in selling bikes of that particular brand.The provider is pleased to link to these stores from its website because it highlights their merchandise. (win-win).

• This link-building strategy is easy to use.
• Make a list of all of your suppliers first.
• Next, go to each website to see which of them has pages that link to their stores.

Search for a button or link with the word "retailers" or "dealers" in it:
website to locate a dealer

9. Business Partnerships

If you belong to a company association, you can have a simple chance to obtain a backlink.

Business associations are groups that unite firms, typically in one region. (like a local Chamber of Commerce group).

Start by either becoming a member of a neighborhood business group or visiting its website.

then scan their website for a "members" page. Typically, this page will take the shape of a member directory, as in the following illustration from the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce:
Chamber of commerce website for Long Beach

10. Listicle Link Construction

List-based articles are known as listicles. Depending on your sector, they may cover a range of subjects, including:

• Best [kind of business] in [city]

• 20 best [items]

• Top 10 blogs on [subject]

The search results for "best vegetarian recipes" look like this:

All of the results are listicles.

The trick is to locate listicles that leave your site out of the list. Here's how to locate these pages so you may connect with them and introduce your company.

Try looking for "things to do in [your city]," "best restaurants in [your city]," etc. if you run a local business.

To find listicles in your sector that omit your site, you may also utilize Google search operators—commands to narrow down your search.

To omit words from your search that you don't want to show up, use the minus sign (-). It would be your company's name in this instance.

Say you are the proprietor of Chicago's Quartino Ristorante, an Italian eatery.

You could Google "best restaurants in chicago -quartino ristorante" if you wanted to find listicles that didn't (yet) contain your company.

"Quartino Ristorante" does not appear in any of the results.

Look at the listicles on page one and mark any that you want to highlight your website in.

Use our Surround Sound tool to discover this information as well, as a pro tip. Your brand should be referenced somewhere, but you can find out where by entering your keywords.

Consider that we would like Eater Chicago to highlight our example restaurant on this position one page.

To contact the site owner in the most effective method, do some research. In this instance, Eater Chicago provides a contact page where you can explain your motivation for writing:

If you think you'd have more success messaging them there, you can also click the social network buttons in their navigation bar.

Although Eater Chicago has a sizable following, this approach might not always work. However, it might be a fantastic opportunity to connect on a more intimate level.
Future Steps

As you may have seen, several of these link-building strategies call for getting in touch with website owners and requesting backlinks.

It takes a lot of effort. Create a free Semrush account and use our Link Building Tool to keep organized.

You are able to:

• Find excellent prospects for backlinks
• To contact potential backlink customers directly from the tool, connect your email account.
• Observe your development and outcomes.