Link building is an essential part of SEO and will remain so in 2023 and beyond. Search engines like Google use links to measure the trustworthiness and authority of websites, but it goes deeper than that. A logical internal link structure can turn a single page visit into several and open up opportunities for cross-selling and customer retention while improving the customer experience. Backlinks from quality websites can also increase referral traffic to another source.
Overall, and as a result, link building is an important SEO strategy for businesses to improve their website’s visibility and rankings.
Creating an effective link-building strategy for SEO in 2023 requires a comprehensive approach. It is essential to think beyond the traditional link-building tactics and focus on the long-term benefits of creating quality content, building relationships with industry influencers, and improving your website’s user experience.
This article, courtesy of our eCommerce SEO experts, will explore the importance of link strategy, the types of links, and how you can improve your chances of building a stronger link profile in the coming year.
Why Link Building (Still) Matters for SEO in 2023
Link building has been a central component of eCommerce SEO since the early days and that shows no sign of changing. Search engines like Google use links to measure the trustworthiness and authority of websites. As a result, link building is an important SEO strategy for businesses to improve their website’s visibility and rankings. Many eCommerce SEO experts seem to agree that a strong link profile also protects domain authority and traffic from Google updates.
When done correctly, link building helps you build relationships with other websites and industry influencers, improve your website’s credibility, and increase referral traffic. It also helps search engines understand what your website is about and makes it easier for them to index and rank your pages.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is an ever-evolving field of digital marketing that requires an understanding of the different types of links that can be used to improve the visibility of a website in search engine results. Links play an important role in SEO, as search engines use them to determine the authority and relevance of websites.
That’s the “how and why” of the importance of links in eCommerce SEO, but links are not all the same. There are many different kinds of links – even “backlinks” are not all the same. So let’s take a step back and pick apart the details.
Understanding the Different Types of Links
Links are one of the most important factors in determining a website’s ranking in search engine results, but there are several different types of links that are used in SEO, each with its own purpose and importance.
Internal Links
Internal links are links that point from one page on a website to another page on the same website. Internal links are typically used to direct visitors to other pages on the website, as well as to help search engines understand the structure and content of the website. Not only can internal links improve site structure, they can help visitors on your eCommerce website find valuable relevant, related information or products, extending time on pages, sessions, and improving the customer experience. Internal links on an eCommerce website (or “people also liked” collections, which are basically just internal links) can also open up opportunities for cross-selling and upselling.
External Links
External links are links from your website to another. While some don’t consider them useful for your own website’s SEO, if they improve the user experience, they can be.
Backlinks
Backlinks are links from other websites to your website. These links are important for SEO, as they help search engines understand the authority and relevance of a website. Backlinks are also important for directing visitors to a website, as they can be used to increase website traffic. However, not all backlinks are the same; the two most important types of backlinks are nofollow and dofollow links.
Nofollow Links
Nofollow links are links that do not pass any “link juice” to the linked website. These links are often used to link to websites that are not relevant to the website’s content, or to link to websites that are not trusted. Nofollow links are not counted by search engines as part of a website’s link profile.
However – and this is important – even though nofollow links don’t technically improve your backlink profile by giving up the coveted “link juice,” they are beneficial for SEO in general and digital marketing in general.
For instance, all links from social media are nofollow links. While they don’t carry link juice, they can improve your referral traffic, they will improve your visibility, and they will improve your social presence, which itself can be considered a ranking factor.
So, in short, a link does not need to be a dofollow link to improve your website’s performance.
Dofollow Links
Dofollow links are links that pass link juice to the linked website. These links are used to link to websites that are relevant to the website’s content and are trusted by the website’s owner. Dofollow links are counted by search engines as part of a website’s link profile.
These are the links that are most valuable to eCommerce websites looking to improve their backlink profile, domain authority, and search engine rankings, and the ones which eCommerce SEO experts are quick to build or trade for their clients.
These are the major types of links that are relevant to eCommerce SEO. But there is more than one way to go about developing an effective link-building strategy. So what can you do to increase your website’s rankings and drive more organic traffic?
How to Create an Effective Link-Building Strategy
Creating an effective link-building strategy for SEO in 2023 requires a comprehensive approach. It is essential to think beyond the traditional link-building tactics and focus on the long-term benefits of creating quality content, building relationships with industry influencers, and improving your website’s user experience.
1. Create Quality Content
Creating quality content is the foundation of any successful link building strategy. Quality content can be anything from blog posts and videos to infographics and podcasts. It should be engaging, informative, and relevant to your audience. This is probably the most effective way to generate backlinks, organically. If users find your content and find it useful, they will be much more incentivized to tell others about it or link to your pages.
When you create quality content, other websites, and industry influencers are more likely to link to it. As a result, you can generate more organic traffic and improve your website’s rankings.
2. Build Relationships
Building relationships with other websites and industry influencers is a key part of link-building. This can be done by engaging with influencers on social media, networking at industry events, or even reaching out to them directly.
When you build relationships with other websites and influencers, you can increase your chances of getting high-quality links. Additionally, you can also get valuable feedback on your content and website. Even though social media links are nofollow links, they can still improve your brand visibility, boost your social presence, and send high-quality referral traffic to your website.
3. Improve Your Website’s User Experience
Improving your website’s user experience is an important part of link building. If your website is difficult to navigate or has a poor design, visitors are less likely to stay on your website and link to it.
To improve your website’s user experience, make sure that the navigation is intuitive and the design is modern and mobile-friendly. Additionally, ensure that the content is engaging and relevant to your audience.
4. Leverage Social Media
Social media is a great way to increase your website’s visibility and generate more links. When you post content on social media, other websites and influencers are more likely to link to it.
Additionally, you can also use social media to build relationships with other websites and industry influencers. You can engage with them on their posts, comment on their content, and even share their content on your own social media channels.
5. Monitor Your Progress
It is important to monitor your link-building progress. You can use tools like Google Analytics, Google Search Console, and Ahrefs to track the number of links your website is getting and which websites are linking to you.
Monitoring your progress will help you identify any areas of improvement and adjust your link-building strategy accordingly.
Working with eCommerce SEO Experts to Develop a Comprehensive Link Strategy
Link building is an essential part of SEO and will remain so in 2023 and beyond. To create an effective link-building strategy for SEO in 2023, businesses should focus on creating quality content, building relationships with industry influencers, and improving their website’s user experience. Additionally, leveraging social media and monitoring progress are also key parts of a successful link-building strategy.
Buy, beyond these tactics, working with eCommerce SEO experts with many years of experience building links and creating coherent internal link structures can also be highly beneficial.
Link building and internal link optimization are fundamental components of our SEO process. For more information – or to learn more about how we can generate additional organic traffic and sales for your eCommerce website – get in touch with us today at Sales@1DigitalAgency.com or at 888-982-8269.