It’s a common question that I hear all the time, and the truth is there isn’t one simple reason people aren’t linking to you. Your link building efforts could be failing for any number of reasons. Thankfully, I’ve worked on enough blogs to know the most common link building mistakes bloggers make, and I’m going to share them with you today. If you can identify with any of these mistakes, start correcting them now so you can turn your blog into a link magnet.
- You’re a “me too” blogger—There are hundreds of millions of blogs online. If you want to stand out from the crowd, you have to be different. This means sharing your unique insight, and creating an easily identifiable voice readers can connect with. You can do this by writing like you talk. Above all else, be authentic.
- You’re ignoring proven linkbait formats—Did you know there are certain ways you can format your blog posts to give them a better chance of attracting links? That’s right: You need to stick to the proven linkbait templates that get results. List-style posts (e.g. 10 Funny Pictures of Cats) and how-to posts (e.g. How to be a better blogger) are two examples of proven linkbait formats. One way to come up with good ideas is to use the Linkbait Generator tool. Simply enter your subject, and generate dozens of linkbait ideas. It’s a great way to get the creative juices flowing.
- Your social media marketing skills are limited—Just because you write great content doesn’t mean you’ll automatically gets tons of traffic and a lot of back links. If you build it, they won’t come. You need to promote it as well. The best way to promote your blog is through the various social media outlets available at your disposal. This includes everything from Twitter to Digg. The key to being successful is to connect with power users on the different social networks who can help you push your content further. To do this, you have to actually spend time on these sites getting to know people, building relationships with top influencers, and doing favors for them before you ask for your own favors.
- You aren’t linking out—You’ve heard the saying “You have to give if you want to receive”, right? Same concept applies to link building. By linking out, you catch the attention of other bloggers with trackbacks. This helps you build name recognition, and it increases the chances of earning more links in the future.
What are some other reasons bloggers have trouble getting more links? Share your best tips by leaving a comment.
I have found from blogging just a short time, there are numerous ways to promote your site, but one of the best I have found is to write great content, publish it often and link to others.
Forget about promoting yourself directly. I totally agree with the writer of this article that in order to receive from others you must give of yourself. Being a criminal law and psychology student, mentor to at risk youth and a born again Christian, I have seen this spiritual law work wonders in the church, within relationships, in businesses and even in the world of crime.
In my personal life, I try to let go of things and let God work in and through me. In the business world, I freely give of my time and gifts God has blessed me with and help others, every chance I get. In the classroom, I share what knowledge I have found and encourage other students to strive the do their very best, and a little better and be content in the journey. Finally, in the context of relationships with others, considering the other persons needs over your own, with the exception of abusive relationships, will reap rewards beyond anyone’s wildest expectations.
These strategies seem to work well for me and I know of countless others who have put them to the test and found spectacular results.
Frankly a lot of blogs posts are not well thought through and planned out before they are published – and many are just poorly written and badly formatted – I am wondering how many people actually take the time to learn about the importance of how a blog looks (after all the look is as important as the content)
Do you know of a class people can take to be shown how to format their work?
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When you mention ‘linking out’, do you mean adding their link to your blogroll, or do you mean linking to a specific article in one of your posts?
Aaron,
I believe the author can be addressing both, but specifically within the article you are writing. Blogrolls are a good tool, but they don’t carry the same weight (with search engines like Google) as links within articles on topics relevant to the site you are linking to.