How to Get Natural Backlinks: A Guide for eCommerce Businesses

When it comes to running an eCommerce business, having a strong online presence is crucial. One of the key factors influencing your website’s visibility on search engines is backlinks. A backlink is a link from another website to yours, and search engines like Google view these links as endorsements of your content. The more high-quality, natural backlinks you have, the better your website will perform in search rankings. Today we will be looking at how businesses can acquire more natural, beneficial backlinks.

Why Are Natural Backlinks Important for eCommerce?

Before diving into strategies for acquiring natural backlinks, it’s important to understand their significance:

• SEO Boost: Search engines like Google use backlinks as one of the top ranking factors. When reputable websites link to your eCommerce store, it improves your SEO and signals to search engines that your site is trustworthy and offers valuable content.

• Increased Traffic: Backlinks from popular websites can lead to a direct increase in traffic. When your store is featured on a well-trafficked blog or resource page, curious visitors are likely to click the link and explore your products.

• Brand Authority: Earning backlinks from industry leaders helps establish your eCommerce business as an authority in your niche, leading to better brand recognition and trust among consumers.

Now, let’s explore some effective ways to earn natural backlinks for your eCommerce store.

Create High-Quality, Shareable Content

The foundation of a successful backlink strategy is high-quality content. For eCommerce websites, this often involves creating content that not only promotes your products but also provides value to your audience.

Blog Posts

Regularly publishing blog posts relevant to your niche can attract links from other sites. Create content that answers common questions, solves problems, or offers advice related to your products. For instance, if you sell eco-friendly home goods, writing an article like “10 Simple Ways to Make Your Home More Sustainable” can attract backlinks from sustainability blogs or online magazines.

Product Guides and Tutorials

Create detailed product guides, tutorials, and how-tos that explain how your products solve specific problems. Video tutorials, in particular, can be very engaging and link-worthy, especially if they are visually appealing and informative.

Infographics

Infographics are a fantastic way to present complex information in an easily digestible format. If you create an infographic that resonates with your target audience, it can be widely shared, increasing the chances of earning backlinks.

Case Studies and Research

Original research, case studies, and reports are excellent for acquiring natural backlinks. If you’ve conducted a survey or have exclusive data related to your industry, publishing these insights can attract links from news outlets, bloggers, and industry publications.

Leverage Partnerships and Influencers

Another effective way to earn natural backlinks is through partnerships and influencer marketing. Building relationships with other businesses and individuals in your industry can open doors for collaborative content creation and link-building opportunities.

Partner with Complementary Businesses

Find businesses that complement your eCommerce store and propose collaborations. For example, if you sell coffee equipment, you could partner with a local coffee roaster to create joint content, such as blog posts or product guides. When they publish this content on their site, they can link back to your store and vice versa, benefiting both parties.

Reach Out to Influencers

Influencer marketing is a powerful tool for eCommerce businesses. When an influencer reviews your products or mentions your store in a blog post or social media post, they often include a link to your website. While influencer marketing typically focuses on social media exposure, it can also generate valuable backlinks.

Guest Blogging

Guest blogging is another great way to leverage partnerships. Reach out to bloggers in your niche and offer to write a guest post for their site. In exchange, they can include a link back to your eCommerce store in your bio or within the content itself. Ensure that the blogs you target are reputable and relevant to your industry.

Get Listed on Resource Pages

Many websites curate lists of valuable resources, such as product recommendations, tools, or guides. Getting your eCommerce store or content listed on these resource pages can be a great way to acquire natural backlinks.

Find Niche Resource Pages

Search for resource pages in your industry by using search terms like “best [product category] tools” or “[industry] resources.” Reach out to the site owner and suggest your product or content as a valuable addition to their list. Make sure to personalize your outreach and explain why your store deserves to be included.

Directories and Review Sites

Submitting your business to reputable directories and review sites can also help you earn backlinks. Industry-specific directories often provide high-authority backlinks, and review sites give you the opportunity to gain more exposure. Be cautious with directories, though—stick to high-quality, well-known directories and avoid spammy, low-quality options.

Utilize Social Media and Online Communities

While social media links don’t directly affect your SEO, they can still help you earn backlinks indirectly by increasing your brand visibility. When people share your content on social platforms, it can get noticed by bloggers, journalists, and website owners who may link back to your store.

Shareable Content on Social Media

Post your high-quality content on social media platforms to encourage shares. Social sharing is a great way to get your content in front of a wider audience, some of whom may have websites and blogs where they can link to your content. Use appropriate hashtags, engage with followers, and participate in discussions to amplify your content’s reach.

Engage in Online Communities

Participating in online communities such as Reddit, Quora, or niche-specific forums can be another source of natural backlinks. When you provide valuable input in these communities, you can include a link to your content or products, as long as it’s relevant and not overly promotional. This works best when you’re genuinely contributing to the conversation.

Reclaim Unlinked Mentions

Sometimes, your brand might be mentioned in blog posts or articles without a link back to your eCommerce store. Reclaiming these unlinked mentions is an easy way to build backlinks.

Monitor Brand Mentions

Use tools like Google Alerts or Ahrefs to monitor mentions of your brand across the web. When you find unlinked mentions, reach out to the website owner and politely ask them to add a link to your site. Most site owners are happy to comply since they’ve already mentioned your brand—it’s just a matter of adding the link.

Broken Link Building

Broken link building involves finding dead links on other websites and offering your content as a replacement. This strategy requires a bit of research but can be highly effective.

Identify Broken Links

Use tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush to identify broken links on websites related to your industry. Once you’ve found a broken link, create or identify content on your eCommerce site that can serve as a replacement.

Reach Out to Site Owners

Reach out to the website owner and inform them about the broken link. Politely suggest your content as a replacement, making sure it’s relevant and adds value to their audience.

Build Relationships with Journalists and Bloggers

Lastly, building relationships with journalists, bloggers, and industry influencers is a long-term strategy that can lead to natural backlinks.

Pitch to Journalists

If you have a newsworthy event or product launch, reach out to journalists and bloggers in your niche. Pitch your story and offer them the opportunity to feature your business in their publication or blog. If they find your story interesting, they’ll likely include a link to your eCommerce site.

HARO (Help a Reporter Out)

Signing up for services like HARO can connect you with journalists looking for expert opinions. Respond to relevant queries, and if they use your response, they may link to your eCommerce store.

Earning natural backlinks for your eCommerce store is a gradual process that requires effort, creativity, and relationship-building. By creating valuable content, leveraging partnerships, utilizing online communities, and strategically reaching out to site owners and journalists, you can steadily grow your backlink profile, improve your SEO, and drive more organic traffic to your store. Stay patient and consistent, and you’ll see the long-term benefits of a strong backlink strategy.