Backlinks are one of the most important ranking factors for search engines, but it's not always easy to get them – you know the hustle, right? Broken link building is one of them and if you're an online marketer you're likely familiar with it.
Did you know that broken link building is among the top five practices when it comes to gaining backlinks – making it a sweetheart of the SEO agencies out there.
Broken link building is a powerful strategy to improve your website's SEO, but it also provides value to the site owner by pointing out broken links on their site – hence aiming two birds with one stone.
In this guide, we'll take a closer look at broken link building and provide you with a step-by-step process for implementing it in your own digital marketing.
Let’s build the links…
What is Broken Link Building?
Broken link building is a technique for finding broken links on other websites and using them to build backlinks to your site. The basic idea is to find links that point to pages that no longer exist (i.e., 404 errors), and then reach out to the site owner to suggest a replacement link to your content.
Why build the broken links?
Broken link building is effective for an online marketer for several reasons.
First, it helps site owners fix a problem on their site (broken links), which can be a win-win for both parties. By finding broken links on other websites and suggesting a replacement link to your own content, you are providing a valuable service to the site owner while also building backlinks to your own site.
Second, broken link building allows you to suggest a replacement link to your own content, which can help you build high-quality backlinks to your site. Building backlinks from high-authority websites can help increase your website's domain authority, which can help your site rank higher in search results.
A Step-by-Step Guide to Broken Link Building
Step 1: Use a Broken Link Checker
The first step that SEO agencies do to build broken links is to find broken links on other websites. There are a number of tools available for this, but we recommend using the following broken link checker options who effectively scan the target website for broken links and provide you with a list of results:
Google Chrome extension "Check My Links": This tool scans webpages for broken links and highlights them in red.
Online tool "Broken Link Checker": This tool scans a website for broken links and provides a report of all the broken links found.
Desktop software "Xenu's Link Sleuth": This tool crawls a website and checks all the links for broken links.
Once you've found a broken link, you can use a tool like the Wayback Machine to see what content used to be on that page. This will help you suggest a replacement link that is relevant to the original content.
Step 2: Evaluate the Broken Links
Once you have a list of broken links, it's important to evaluate them to determine which ones are worth pursuing for broken link building. Look for broken links that are related to your website's content and could be replaced with a link to your own website. You should also consider the authority of the website where the broken link is located.
Step 3: Reach Out to the Site Owner
Once you've identified broken links worth pursuing, it's time to reach out to the site owner. You can do this by email or through a contact form on their website.
When reaching out to site owners to suggest a replacement link, it's important to be polite and professional. Here are some tips for reaching out to site owners:
Find the site owner's contact information on their website or use a tool like Hunter.io to find their email address.
Explain that you found a broken link on their site and suggest a replacement link to your own content.
Be sure to explain why your content is a good replacement for the original content and how it can benefit their readers.
Offer to help the site owner fix the broken link by providing the HTML code for the replacement link.
Step 4: Follow Up
After reaching out to the site owner, it's important to follow up if you don't hear back from them. It's possible that your email or contact form submission got lost or went to spam. Give the site owner a few days to respond, and then follow up with a friendly reminder.
Step 5: Track Your Results
As you implement broken link-building in your digital marketing strategy, it's important to track your results. Keep track of the websites you've reached out to and the results of your outreach. This will help you to identify what works and what doesn't, and refine your strategy over time.
Some metrics to track include:
The number of broken links you find and the number of replacement links you suggest.
The number of site owners who respond to your outreach and agree to use your replacement link.
The domain authority of the websites that link to your site.
The keywords that your website is ranking for in search results.
By tracking these metrics, you can see how your broken link-building strategy is working and make adjustments as needed.
Additional tips
Creating High-Quality Content
In order for broken link building to be effective, you need to have high-quality content on your website. When suggesting a replacement link to a site owner, it's important to make sure that your content is relevant to the original content and provides value to their readers – which should also be eventually your prime goal as an online marketer.
Some tips for creating high-quality content include:
Conducting keyword research to identify topics that your target audience is interested in.
Creating long-form content that provides in-depth information on the topic.
Including visuals such as images, videos, and infographics to make the content more engaging.
Making sure that the content is well-written and free of spelling and grammar errors.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Here are some common mistakes to avoid when using broken link building to build backlinks to your website:
Sending generic outreach emails that don't provide value to the site owner.
Suggesting replacement links that are not relevant to the original content.
Failing to follow up with site owners after sending outreach emails.
Not creating compelling and high-quality content on your website that is worth linking to.
Focusing solely on quantity rather than quality when it comes to backlinks.
Neglecting to track your results and adjust your strategy as needed.
By avoiding these common mistakes, you can ensure that your broken link-building strategy is effective and provides long-term value to your website.
Using Broken Link Building as Part of Your Overall SEO Strategy
Broken link building should be just one part of your overall SEO strategy. In addition to building backlinks, it's important to create high-quality content, conduct keyword research, optimize your website for search engines, and engage with your target audience on social media.
Working with an SEO agency or a digital marketing company can be a great way to develop a comprehensive SEO strategy that includes broken link-building and other tactics. An experienced online marketer can help you identify the best opportunities for building backlinks to your site and ensure that your overall strategy is aligned with your business goals.
Summing up
In conclusion, broken link building is an effective tactic for building high-quality backlinks to your website. Broken link building is a powerful strategy for improving your website's SEO and providing value to other website owners. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can implement broken link-building in your own digital marketing strategy and see results over time.
So, get started today, and start building those broken links!
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