Building links to a web site is not just a smart marketing idea, but a necessary practice in today’s virtual society. At a time when most customers rely on the Internet for their purchases both large and small, link building gives companies an edge over competitors. Being visible to prospective customers can be the difference between failure and success.

Benefits of Advanced Link Building

Basic link building is an excellent way to start getting your company noticed, but there are more advanced techniques that can nudge your business to the top. Advanced link building techniques work faster than the basic methods. They yield better results by giving you high quality links rather than multiple links of varying substance. When search engines like Google use their algorithms to determine page rankings, quality linking boosts a page’s rank in an expedient manner. Using these advanced techniques, you can get better, faster results than competitors who may be relying on old fashioned methods of link building.

Advanced Link Building Techniques

1. Guestposting
It can be difficult to continuously come up with content for blogs. Some of the most successful blogs regularly feature bloggers from outside of their companies. These professionals can supply fresh content that is then used by search engines when indexing your site. It may also open up a new crop of readers, assuming your guest blogger has followers of his or her own. Furthermore, because guest bloggers are motivated to promote themselves, they are likely to repeatedly post links to your blog through their own blog, web site, and/or social network.

2. Link Bait
Link bait is not as simple to create as many of the other advanced link building techniques, but it can be the most effective. Link bait is a well put together item, either an article or image, that is repeatedly shared throughout the web. When a number of individuals find a piece you have created to be particularly useful, humorous, or otherwise interesting, they will share the link with their friends and acquaintances, who will then continue the cycle. Infographics are among the best link bait tools. These easy to read images follow a thought or plan of action in an easy to share manner. They are most often shared through social networks, which can open your links up to the world very rapidly.

3. Press Releases
Writing a press release for link building is not as simple as sitting in front of a computer for a few minutes armed with a rough draft and a few keywords. Your press release must be exciting, informational, and newsworthy. Press releases that engage readers are more likely to be spread by multiple sources than those that act and read like a simple promotional piece.

4. Widgets and Embedded Content
Businesses that create useful or entertaining widgets can see link building grow almost overnight. Widgets can serve a multitude of purposes, and if you can create one that works either better or in a different way than those that already exist, you can have an excellent source of link building at your disposal. Widgets and embedded content do need to of the highest quality in order to get the best results, so it may be necessary to outsource their creation.

5. Video Testimonials and Reviews
When you place anchor text in your videos, you can create a true link building machine. Satisfied customers and clients are apt to want to share their good experiences with the rest of the web, so why not ask them to create short videos? Post video testimonials on your own web site or through popular social networking web sites like Facebook or YouTube. Link to your video testimonials as much as possible, then watch your link building grow.