3 Reasons why Backlinks Matter in SEO

In a world where to be seen, recognized and loved is of the utmost importance for building success, SEO is the go-to solution for the modern business owner and entrepreneur, putting their company on the proverbial map. Links leading back to your own website is a primary tool for enjoying success through SEO initiatives.

Making a name for yourself in the competitive online industry is becoming increasingly more difficult with the rise of digital technology and free markets across the world, and so you need to employ every measure imaginable to elevate your online ranking, and allow prospective customers and clients to discover and fall in love with your story.

However, in your attempt to establish lifelong business success and affluence, you must first master walking and running before attempting to jump and, eventually, fly. We're talking, of course, about mastering the basics of SEO, and how to create quality instead of quantity to increase your standing in the eternal battlefield that is the first page of Google's search results.

Ever since the implementation of the infamous Penguin update in 2012 and its subsequent iterations in the following years, webmasters have tried and done their best to remove bad and spammy links from their websites in fear of the search engine's reprimand. The sentence, of course, should you be caught harboring or distributing spam links across the online universe, will knock you down to the bottom of the fifteenth search page of Google. If you're lucky.

On the other hand, if implemented correctly and earned naturally, backlinks can help weave the success of your business in myriad ways for years to come. Here is why you should pay attention to, and how you can benefits from backlinks.

Backlinks Elevate Your Domain Authority

Google is constantly reviewing, updating and adjusting its search results, while employing some 200-plus relevant factors that will determine the ranking of your domain. And backlinks are a crucial part in this process. Earning links on authority websites within your industry will prove to be invaluable to your own ranking, as being granted a "follow" link will transfer some of the "authority juice" to your domain from the website the link was posted on.

How do you earn links to increase your own domain authority?

First, you need to create quality content. Before the Internet even existed, content already reigned supreme. Nowadays, the age-old adage holds truer than ever before, and when human beings transcend the use of the Web at some point, content will most likely still hold the marketing throne.

Therefore, you first need to adopt a "quality over quantity" mindset if you want authority websites to like your content and feel the irresistible need to grant you an organic link to your website. Why would they do that? Since they acknowledge that what you have written is of great importance and value to the community, that it must be shared with the audience, and that both their brand and yours can benefit from that link.

Remember, content is king...still.

Secondly, you need to be picky about where you post or earn your links from. If you build a link on a website that is outside your industry, you will not see too many benefits. If you build a link on a website with bad ratings, your own ratings might plummet as well, and sometimes there is no getting up from a punch like that.

In creating its Web of trusted and untrusted sites, Google examines the distance between your website and the most authoritative domains on the online market (such as the Huffington Post, Forbes, etc.), meaning that if your website is far away from these industry leaders, your ranking will suffer as well. You want to shorten this distance by earning links on as many of these websites as possible, to increase your own domain authority.

Lastly, you need to incorporate relevant anchor texts and keywords. Ideally, the anchor text that links back to your website will also contain your target keywords for an added punch of relevance. By incorporating keywords, you are letting Google know that there is a concrete relationship between you and commonly searched phrases.

Domain authority, however, is not the only way you can benefits from backlinks.

Backlinks also Boost Traffic to Your Website

In a natural and logical order of events, the links trailing back to your own domain will bring with them new waves of traffic, and thus potential customers. And customers lead to conversions if welcomed and greeted with more quality. This time though, the stakes are even higher.

It's a great feat to earn a link on an authority website, but it's an even greater one to exploit this link to its full potential. This means that if the link in question brings you new traffic, your visitors need to instantly find a compelling reason to stay on your website, and fall in love with your story.

The key to achieving this, and enabling new conversions, is to post more relevant and up-to-date content on your own website as well. Beyond writing compelling and valuable pieces people will love and Google will deem worthy, you also need to offer value in terms of promotions, trials, free insights and gifts.

Soon enough, you will find that people are visiting your website for the free stuff, and staying for the quality and service you provide. Never fail to reap the benefits of your newly established links across the Web.

They Build Your Online Reputation and Brand Awareness

If you go about building your link portfolio the right way, through quality content on authority websites, you will not only witness a steady rise in your online reputation in terms of rankings, you will also witness a rise in your brand awareness as well.

In essence, backlinks will enable your brand to rise above the smoke and the noise in the industry and come out on top as another authority resource people can always rely on and trust.

This will prove to be invaluable in building your brand success and ensuring you reach new heights in terms of organic reach, traffic, sales, and audience engagement. In turn, you will have an easier time earning a greater number of links on authority websites and thus spread your link Web across the online universe, and your brand will grow exponentially.

Backlinks are the lifeblood of SEO, they are the foot soldiers of the online realm conquering new territories bit by bit to bring your brand new fortune and fame. Treat them well, use them wisely and you will create your very own online empire in no time.