How to Identify High-Quality Domains For Link Building
Link building is one of the most effective strategies for establishing trust and authority with search engines.
So if you'd like to get to the first page of search results, working on your website's backlink profile is a must.
However, it's not just the quantity of backlinks that matters. Links from low-quality, untrustworthy websites might do more harm than good.
In this article, we will discuss the points to consider when evaluating a potential link-building opportunity.
So if you'd like to get to the first page of search results, working on your website's backlink profile is a must.
However, it's not just the quantity of backlinks that matters. Links from low-quality, untrustworthy websites might do more harm than good.
In this article, we will discuss the points to consider when evaluating a potential link-building opportunity.
Topical Relevance
Paying attention to the topical relevance of the linking domain is vital. It has to be directly or indirectly connected to yours for the search engine to consider it a valid ranking signal.
Let's say you have a tech blog. Having a fellow tech blog or a gadget store refer to your website will make much more logical sense and provide more SEO benefits than a fashion blog.
Not even to mention that you might drive traffic from those topically relevant websites, as they are more likely to have a similar target audience as yours.
Let's say you have a tech blog. Having a fellow tech blog or a gadget store refer to your website will make much more logical sense and provide more SEO benefits than a fashion blog.
Not even to mention that you might drive traffic from those topically relevant websites, as they are more likely to have a similar target audience as yours.
Link Authority
Search engines use the PageRank indicator and its alternatives to assess the website's authority and determine its rankings in search results.
As previously mentioned, the more, the better rule doesn't really work with backlinks. It used to but not anymore. As Google detected the PageRank manipulations through link schemes, it started considering unnatural links a violation. Not only will irrelevant, low-quality backlinks NOT improve your rankings in search results, but they may lead to a penalty.
So, the more high-quality links a webpage receives, the higher the trust.
Therefore, when considering a domain for link building, pay close attention to its domain authority and where it got its links from. Does the website get organic traffic? It's a great sign! Are there malicious websites or link farms in the website's backlink profile? Then it's not worth it.
As previously mentioned, the more, the better rule doesn't really work with backlinks. It used to but not anymore. As Google detected the PageRank manipulations through link schemes, it started considering unnatural links a violation. Not only will irrelevant, low-quality backlinks NOT improve your rankings in search results, but they may lead to a penalty.
So, the more high-quality links a webpage receives, the higher the trust.
Therefore, when considering a domain for link building, pay close attention to its domain authority and where it got its links from. Does the website get organic traffic? It's a great sign! Are there malicious websites or link farms in the website's backlink profile? Then it's not worth it.
Website Content Quality
To evaluate the quality of the potential referring domain, you should examine the content it publishes.
Are there intrusive ads? Poor grammar? Keyword stuffing? Spammy links? Sneaky redirects? Prohibited content?
If you notice those things, you shouldn't deal with such a website in any way.
These are some of the questions you should ask yourself when choosing a website for link building:
Are there intrusive ads? Poor grammar? Keyword stuffing? Spammy links? Sneaky redirects? Prohibited content?
If you notice those things, you shouldn't deal with such a website in any way.
These are some of the questions you should ask yourself when choosing a website for link building:
Is the keyword density appropriate?
Does the website content have any value for the users? Or is it just a list of keywords diluted with some meaningless text? Search engines don't trust websites that opt for keyword stuffing, so there's no way they could have high authority. Moreover, Google's 2022 August Helpful Content Update is specifically targeted at devaluing search engine-first content.
Does the website publish new content regularly? Is the theme consistent?
Websites that haven't been updated for several years are not that relevant for link building. You should give preference to active websites.
Is the content unique?
Unique content is essential. You should check potential link donors' content for plagiarism and spam. Any online analyzer will do.
Is the website optimized?
Pay attention to the page load speed, check titles, descriptions, headings, text length, micro-layout, sitemap, etc.
Domain "Background Check"
Conducting a background check for a potential backlink donor is definitely worth it, as it will help you avoid a lot of negative consequences for your website.
What's the domain age?
You should make sure that the website hasn't been created a week ago and has just been indexed. Opt for websites that have already built trust with search engines.
What's the ratio of inbound to outbound links?
There's also the Links Intersection report you can use to:
- Find common referring domains for several websites.
- Find websites that link to your competitors but not to your website.
- Create a visual graph comparing backlink profiles of the analyzed domains.
Conclusion
The backlink profile size and quality fundamentally impact the website's rankings in organic search results.
While on your link-building journey, you should analyze all websites very carefully for topical relevance, the domain's trust and authority, and content quality.
It's the quality of backlinks that matters!
While on your link-building journey, you should analyze all websites very carefully for topical relevance, the domain's trust and authority, and content quality.
It's the quality of backlinks that matters!
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