Search engines use links as votes they help to determine which pages are important and popular. The engines themselves have refined link data to a fine art, and complex algorithms create evaluations of sites and pages based on this information.
Links aren't everything in SEO, but search professionals attribute a large portion of the engines' algorithms to link-based factors. Through links, engines analyse the popularity of a website & page based on the number and popularity of pages linking to them, but also metrics like trust, spam, and authority.
Trustworthy sites tend to link to other trusted sites, while spammy sites receive very few links from trusted sources. Authority models, suggest links are a very good way of identifying expert documents on a given subject. It is harder to generate quality authority links and therefore these links are given more weight by the search engines when ranking pages. The Hilltop Algorithm discusses how authority links can help determine authority. It demonstrates how links from relevant related non-affiliated sites will help with ranking. And also highlights the relevance of anchor text and the quality of the linking site.
The focus on link analysis makes link building critical to getting the attention of search engines and is required in order to rank highly.
10 Ways to Evaluate Links
1 - Links Higher Up in HTML Code Are More Powerful
All things being equal siteA till outrank B, which will outrank C. Other tests show the power of the higher link will win over other ranking factors such as the title tag.
2 - External Links are More Influential than Internal Links
3 - Links from Unique Domains Matter More than Links from Previously Linking Sites
This indicates the importance of link diversity. Increasing links from a site which has already linked is not as valuable as a link from a new site.
4 - Links from Sites Closer to a Trusted Seed Set Pass More Value
This is related to trust, links from trusted sites pass more link juice. Links which flow from a trusted seed site will have more weight. Sites will benefit if links originate from highly trusted domains.
5 - Links from "Inside" Unique Content Pass More Value than Those from Footers/Sidebar/Navigation
6 - Keywords in HTML Text Pass More Value than those in Alt Attributes of Linked Images
The alt attribute of an image link is often treated as the anchor text of a link, although these pass less value than HTML text links.
7 - Links from More Important, Popular, Trusted Sites Pass More Value
Links from a less important page on a trusted site are more valuable than a homepage link from a lower quality site.
8 - Links Contained Within <noscript> Tags Pass Lower (and Possibly No) Value
9 - Pages with fewer links pass more value
Pages with fewer links are better than being linked to by a page with many links on it (all other things being equal).
10 - Pages that Link to Web Spam May Devalue the Other Links they Host
- Sites which link to spam and use poison keywords can lower the value passed through links.
- More popular sites that link to you will help your site to earn trust and authority.
- Local and topic specific links matter more than links from general off topic sites.
- The web is full of spam, links from low quality sites can lower trust. Conversely quality links from high trust domains will boost your authority.
- Your link profile can also determine your spam score. Linking to spam sites can devalue your site.
- The freshness of links also has an impact, the recency if links can help judge current relevance.
- Social links on Twitter, Facebook and Google+ have an impact but they are not the same as links.
Types of links
Natural links are given by sites who want to link to your content. These links require the creation of quality content and the ability to create awareness about it.Manual links is when an SEO creates links. The SEO often provides a value proposition by explaining to the link target why creating the link is in their best interest.
Self-Created, Non-Editorial links is when an SEO creates links through guest books, forum signatures, blog comments, or user profiles. These links offer the lowest value, but can, in aggregate, still have an impact. In general, search engines continue to devalue these types of links, and have been known to penalise sites that solely pursue these links. Today, these types of links are often considered spammy.
Link building can also help to drive traffic. Links that send high volumes of direct traffic not only tend to provide better rankings, but also send targeted, visitors to your site.
Some ways to get links:
Get your customers, suppliers, partners to link to you.Create a blog and add valuable, informative and entertaining content. Blogs have the ability to contribute fresh material on a regular basis and earn links from other sites who find the content useful.
Public relations can be a great way to earn links, get the attention of the press. You could run a competition, release a new product or make a controversial statement.
Getting listed in relevant directories can help with ranking and driving relevant traffic.
Beware when paying for links as the search engines look to devalue these links.
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