The Google Search Engine has come a very way since its early days in the mid-1990s. It is now one of the most sophisticated search engines in the world, with engineers and data scientists working on its algorithms every day.
Ever since the Penguin Update which was introduced in 2012, SEO experts have been trying to figure how to incorporate link building techniques without being penalized.
Google’s algorithm gets more and more advanced every year and SEO experts have learned how to keep up with this rapid progress.
You have to introduce search engine-friendly content so that your web pages and websites fetch consistently high organic rankings.
Research has shown that 72% of desktop users and 84% of mobile users prefer to use Google over any other search engine. That is why you must know how to take advantage of Google’s algorithm so you can boost your business’s online presence.
Link Building: What It Basically Is
Link building is basically actions that are aimed at increasing the number and quality of inbound links to a webpage so that it has a higher organic rank on Google’s search results.
Since the 2012 Penguin Update, link building has become a sophisticated and complex task. Before 2012, search results were dependent simply on the number of times the link was mentioned.
However, post the Update, the algorithm has become much more sophisticated and the top results are the one providing good quality answers to the questions that are being asked.
The Link Building Test
Source: Advotisa
If your website/web page cannot adhere to the quality that Google expects from websites, then you will be penalized for breaching its code of conduct. To find out how well your website fares, you can take the following link building test and see how well you fare:
Step 1: Has your website been audited/upgraded recently?
The main objective of any link building and SEO campaign is to improve organic search results by boosting your reach and also increase user engagement.
If your website is not user friendly, then there is no point at all in doing a link building campaign. Google’s new algorithm does consider the state of your website while ranking results.
If there are broken links, outdated content, etc. then that could be holding your back. Thus, for link building to work properly, your website has to be audited/upgraded recently.
Step 2: Are you following a content marketing campaign?
Source: Search Engine Journal
The other factor that Google considers while ranking your site is the quality of content on your webpage. If your content quality is excellent, then it is ranked higher, and thus also gains more backlinks based on merit. According to research, good quality content that is ranked in the top five has the following properties:
1. Have at least 1000 words
2. Have at least one relevant image
3. Contains relevant information
4. Is easy to read/understand
Good quality posts can boost your engagement and reach and help you get a higher organic ranking.
Step 3: Optimize post format
The easier your website’s content is to read, the higher your organic ranking is going to be. Scannability is a very important factor and you can format your posts to be easily scannable.
This can be achieved with the help of short paragraphs, attractive fonts, sub-headers, relevant statistics, etc. You can also consider investing in infographics.
Infographics can increase organic traffic by a whopping 12% because they engage users and boost shares and reach.
Step 4: Locate where your backlinks are
Source: Print
Irrespective of whether you are a new company or an established one, it is always the best idea to locate your current backlinks. You can do this with the help of tools like Ahrefs or Majestic. Focus on your old backlinks and locate them. If they haven’t been updated recently, then they’re similar to deadweight and need to be disposed of.
Step 5: Can you monitor your backlink profile?
Source: Search Engine Journal
Your backlink profile needs constant monitoring because backlinks are always in flux. You have to keep a close watch on your links and publishers so that you can maintain consistent quality throughout.
If you pass this test, then you can determine whether your campaign is actually helping you or not. If you do not pass or are unsure of the results, then you can upgrade your SEO campaign and make the necessary improvements.
