How To Get Backlinks With PR
If you are trying to get your startup’s website more prominent in the digital space, you have probably heard of backlinks. However, the ways (and, probably, the reasons) to get backlinks to your website in 2022 are totally different from what they were just 5-10 years ago.
Why are we even talking about backlinks in the blog about PR? Here’s the thing: good backlinks are not only an indication of a great SEO, but also a sign you’re doing things right with your PR. By using PR tactics to gain backlinks, you support your SEO and overall digital marketing activity in the best possible way - by gaining a vote of trust from some most authoritative media in your space.
But first things first…
What are the backlinks?
Backlinks are the links on the third party websites that link to your own website - it’s that simple. For example, you get coverage in Forbes with a hyperlink to your website, which helps the readers navigate straight to your site if they get curious to learn about your startup.
For years, SEOs used and abused backlinks to get better rankings in Google. About 10 years ago, Google started a crackdown on manipulative link building techniques, and now its ranking algorithm easily identifies whether the link is natural or not.
Tip: If you are keen to learn more about backlinks, simply google Panda and Penguin algorithm updates to avoid any pitfalls (and temptations).
What are the benefits of backlinks?
Here’s why backlinks are important:
They help you get better rankings in search engines like Google - backlinks give a signal of quality of your website
They drive referral traffic from the websites that link to yours
They provide a vote of confidence from the authoritative sources, which positively impacts brand awareness
Tip: when it comes to backlinks, both quantity and - more importantly - quality matters. Ten links from the high authority websites are way more valuable then 100 links from low authority websites. You can easily check the authority score of the websites already linking to yours, as well as the authority of the websites you want to get a link from by using free online tools. Or you can reach out to PR Guy to get a list of the high authority websites to pitch.
How to get backlinks with high domain authority?
As you might have guessed by now, you can get some quality backlinks with digital PR. Media websites are the ones with the highest domain authority, and each backlink from them is extremely valuable for your website. For example, Forbes website has a domain authority of 95/100, while Techcrunch - 93/100.
Tip: When picking the media to target with your digital PR for the purpose of earning backlinks, aim for the ones with domain authority of 40 and higher. Of course, in a perfect world, you would want the top-notch ones with 90+ DA, but in reality, a number of links from some local or industry media with a 40+ DA will help you create a healthy link profile quicker and more efficiently.
And finally - what are the ways to get those backlinks?
Here are some actionable tips you can use to get backlinks for your website:
Create original quality content on your website - an infographics and/or a blog post with unique industry research will do, as those content formats proved to be the most linkable ones.
Write an optimized media pitch showcasing the best of your content - oh, and by the way, PR Guy can help with that.
Outreach to the right media - and don’t forget to politely ask for a backlink. Please note - some media have a policy of not adding links to any brand websites, or adding nofollow links which do not pass authority. If unsure which ones do and which don’t, reach out to us for a media list.
Utilize thought leadership and guest posting opportunities, as well as become a source for reporter to obtain an expert comments.
Encourage reporters to try out your product or service, and ask for a backlink if they decide to write a review.
Do some link reclamation of your older brand’s mentions in media - if you see some mentions in high authority sources that are not linked to your website, email to the reporter and kindly ask if it’s possible to add a link. Reach out to PR Guy for the best email template for the link reclamation.
Tip: Don’t ever think about buying backlinks - Google will know and penalize your website for that. Regularly check your backlink profile - and if you see a lot of spammy low-quality links - it’s time to disavow those using Google Search Console.
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