Struggling with the principle of backlinks, all i can see for the competition is directories?
-
Hey everyone,
I have been using the open site explorer to check the linking domains/inbound links of competition for window suppliers. I've read that directories generate pretty much no link juice, yet all i can find for pretty much all of the well ranking competition (other than few very major companies) is directory listings. This leaves me wondering whether just submiitting to 5-10 good relevant directories would help tip me above some of the competition...
I've read quite a lot about generating quality backlinks but i still haven't got my head around how to actually do anything myself that would be potentially useful. All i've done so far is post to relevant high authority directories and a couple relevant forums.
I have pretty much £0 budget but a decent amount of time and strong graphic design and animation skills so feel like i can put that to use but again would have no idea what to do even if i created something share worthy. I can't imagine succesfully contacting anyone and getting them to link back to me or share my content..
Thanks for any advice...
-
Katarina shared some good advice.
Remember that the Open Site Explorer, good as it is, can't crawl the entire web, so might not discover every single link for a competitor.
And to displace an established competitor with consistent rankings doesn't mean matching their inbound links - it means exceeding them, as they'll also have the benefit of the domain history, existing traffic etc.
I've done some outreach in the past for a major window supplier in the UK, and if you use your graphics and animation skills in the right way, you should definitely be able to improve your situation. It's just about finding the right angle for the right audiences....
-
Hi there,
First of all, if your competitors have only links from directories, that's perfect for you! You can see they have no proper backlink strategy in place and your options are really open.
When it comes to directories, you are right, they are mostly ignored. I would still recommend you submit your business there as you might be found through their searches. So don't hesitate and list yourself everywhere relevant and make sure you use your details exactly as on your website and there is no discrepancy.
I don't know enough about your business and website, however I would recommend you make sure you have content. Since it's all that counts - amazing content and backlinks. If you neglect one, you might struggle. Keep adding relevant content, maybe blog articles such as case studies, industry facts etc. and share. Infographics can be a very interesting way of how to earn backlinks - you just need to select some interesting data and share - via your own social or getting in touch with third parties. I would prefer publishing infographics on your website and have a code to share. I always prefer activities that give me a bit of PR - so if your content (whether infographics or a guest post) can receive backlinks, get shared and bring relevant traffic, you won!
I don't like backlinks for the sake of having them as many as possible. Make sure you focus on relevancy. I would recommend to create a spreadsheet and search where your relevant traffic might be. Maybe you can team up with an online magazine and offer a competition (details on your site), maybe your customers/suppliers/institutions you are a member of are happy to give you a backlink. Very often they will want something in return, so it's up to you how creative you can be.
Have a look at Google mentions and find out where your business is mentioned. Just get in touch and ask if they could give you a backlink. Can you provide a placement for students, sponsor an event or provide an interesting article to benefit .edu organisations? .edu links are very powerful. Also, don't forget review sites - submit your company for your customers to review to receive a backlink and traffic.
If I were you, I would start here - with a brand new spreadsheet and I would just start generating ideas within your niche. If you get stuck at any point, just let me know! Also, any more questions, I'm happy to answer.
Hope this helps. Good luck!
Katarina
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Unsolved Can I exclude subdomain from a Campaign?
Also, I would like to track a subdomain without the root domain, is that possible?
Moz Pro | | AndreVa0 -
Unsolved How many sites can I track with one subscription?
Hello, We are currently a MozPro medium member and we are tracking amlrightsource.com but we have other sites we'd like to track as well. Wondering if we can track more sites with this subscription?
Moz Pro | | KassandraSharr0 -
How to create effective Backlinks and promote very small sites?
I want to create effective backlinks and promote websites with having only 8-15 pages with very poor/basic content. Where client is unable to provide content, increase number of pages etc. So kindly suggest..
Moz Pro | | 1akal0 -
Can the link acqusition tool / web directory list be used for non-english language enquiries?
Hi there, We are currently in the trial period of seomoz pro and have been testing all of the availiable tools. We are very happy with OSE and the other professional tools however we have discovered a barrier in our research methods. 1, Does anyone know how can you use the link acqusition assistant for non-english enquiries? The suggested search queries that are automatically generated are "submit site" "submit url" etc, but this has almost no use for a non-english keyword. - Also are the results only displayed for google.com - is there no localization at all of search enquiries? 2, The list of directories provided by seomoz link: http://www.seomoz.org/directories are anglo-centric. What are the availiable options for non-english speaking directories / local directories NOT based in the United States? Any help that can be provided would be greatly appreciated!
Moz Pro | | deliveryhero0 -
Cannot see Bing rank in Campaign
Hi guys I have included Bing en-GB in my engine list for rankings on one of my websites, however, the actual rank placements are not showing at all in the results, even though a search in Bing shows my site is top on some of the keywords and near top on some of the others. Am I doing something wrong here? Thanks Nick
Moz Pro | | Total_Displays0 -
Can I exclude pages from my Crawl Diagnostics?
Right now my crawl diagnostic information is being skewed because it's including the onsite search from my website. Is there a way to remove certain pages like search from the errors and warnings of the crawl diagnostic? My search pages are coming up as: Long URL Title Element Too Long Missing Meta Description Blocked by meta-robots (Which is how I want it) Rel Canonical Here is what the crawl diagnostic thinks my page URL looks like: website.com/search/gutter%25252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525 252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252 525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525 252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252 52525252525252525252525252525252525252525252525252Bcleaning/ Thank you, Jonathan
Moz Pro | | JonathanGoodman0 -
Where can I view all of the Questions that I have Answered?
AFAICT there's no way to filter questions to the ones that you have answered. Is there any plan to implement a filter like this? I realise there are email notifications available but no easy way to just go back and check on your answers. No doubt I'm just missing something here so if I'm completely wrong, please point me in the right direction 🙂 Thanks very much!
Moz Pro | | NickPateman811 -
Can you freeze my account?
Hi there, I was wondering if there was a way for me to freeze my account, e.g. make it inactive for some time and then reactivate it later, and keep all of my old info and settings. It would really encourage me to use your services again after a break/vacation/budget cutbacks. best, Rosa
Moz Pro | | rosa0