Link Building - Creative Link Building Tactics

Link building is an important signal for people and for search engines that the content being linked to has value. There are hundreds of reasons and ways for interlinking web content with the most common being a blue, underlined hypertext link from one web page to another. Since the links to company web site content are important both for driving traffic as well as a signal to search engines that can increase rankings and drive even more traffic, it’s important to acquire links on an ongoing basis.

If you’re grappling with ways to building links, here is a list of link building tactics to consider:

• Build and host useful tools
• Offer testimonials on complimentary services
• Widgets (and submit them to directories)
• Awards (badge)
• Contest (badge)
• Cross link web sites that you own
• Write reviews
• Promote content on social news sites
• Article Distribution
• Submit Blog & RSS Feed to Directories
• Directory Submissions
• Ads on search friendly sites
• Sponsor newsletters archived to the web
• Job listings
• Forum Signatures
• Classified Ads
• Publish comprehensive resource lists
• Post an ebook or substantial whitepaper
• Exchange links with marketing and business partners, clients
• Post surveys
• Write guest posts on others blogs
• Contributed articles to online publications
• Optimize press releases
• Comment on industry blogs
• Sponsor events
• Social bookmark your worthy content
• Speak at events and offer your PPT deck with links embedded
• Donate where a link of donors is published
• Interview industry pundits
• Transcribe video interviews to text as separate posts
• Apply for industry awards, web site & blog awards
• Ensure industry groups you’re involved with link to you
• Create a wiki and ask others to contribute
• Create microsites for causes, events, specific purposes
• Leverage your affiliate program
• Be a resource on Q/A web sites like Yahoo Answers (indirect)
• Slideshare and similar content hosting
• Monitor 404 stats and ask link sources to fix links
• Solicit links directly from sources
• Provide “link to us” content on blog and/or web site
• Leverage publicity and media relations for links
• Digital asset submissions: images, audio, video
• Social profile optimization

As long as a web site expects to attract visitors via search engines, there needs to be an intentional effort towards link acquisition on an ongoing basis. “Build it and they will come” simply doesn’t cut it when it comes to web site marketing.
TopRank Online Marketing is a specialist with link building and the process of content promotion is a large part of what SEO clients receive with our consulting services. However, if clients and TopRank SEO consultants are working together to build links in concert, the effect can be compounded and have an even greater impact on search marketing performance.