How to Earn Backlinks Like a True Online Authority Figure
If you’re deep in your SEO practice, you may have realized that manually building links is simply losing its touch. Not only is it challenging and time-consuming to find relevant, high-PagRank link sources, but with recent Google algo changes, the effectiveness of classic link building tactics is diminishing. 
Instead of conducting relentless bouts of outreach for guest blogging and link sharing, you could be mastering your craft as a content marketer. As a result, you can earn backlinks naturally like a true online authority figure.
To begin your journey on the righteous path to earning backlinks, mentioned below are the cornerstones to building a strong link earning asset.
Offer a Clean User Experience
The user interface of a website (e.g. its overall design, navigation, and structure) can make or break your web presence. The better user experience a website offers, the easier it is absorb good content (the stuff that earns links.)
For example, the ever-glorious SEOmoz.com just released a subtle rebranding to simply “Moz.com.”
In doing so, Moz redesigned its website with a user-friendly, two-tier navigation, as well as an intuitive user interface.
Moz is a true authority figure in the SEO profession. Not only has Moz created a loyal community around SEO (and exceptional software,) but Moz educates, inspires, and motivates its audience with awesome content.
This, my friends, is the true variable to earning links.
Educate, Inspire, and Motivate Your Audience
The thesis of each piece of content you create will determine its potential for earning links. The fact of the matter is, only content that offers value, meaning, and purpose gets link to naturally. This approach will often provide education, induce inspiration, and/or compel motivation.
Think about how you can achieve one (or more) of these feats with you content marketing efforts.
Add Engaging Richness to Your Content
Look beyond text-based articles to populate your blog. Expand your horizons by delving into more engaging forms for rich media, such as videos, imagery (infographics, meme’s, etc.,) and podcasts.
Try conducting a creative mastermind session with your fellow content creators and bounce some fresh ideas off one another. If you want to really grab the attention of your target audience, you need to start diversifying your content portfolio. This will enable your brand to expand into new forms of social media (and thus new potential audiences.)
Be Socially Integrated, and Respected
In essence, earning backlinks hinges on a well-respected social media presence. The three networks that provide greatest potential are Facebook, Twitter, and Google+. These social media networks offer the most active users, as well as provide the most effective opportunities to make your presence known.
Below are a few tips to establishing a solid social foundation and getting your content in front of your audience:
- Facebook – Take advantage of Facebook’s promoted posts feature. Here you can have some of your best work exposed to a very precise audience. These posts will appear in users’ Facebook feeds, which rarely go overlooked.
- Twitter – Be socially proactive by following and re-tweeting posts from influencers in your industry or profession. Like Facebook, you can also promote your own Tweets for greater exposure. Just be sure they offer meaning and value, otherwise you’ll make an unwelcoming impression.
- Google+ – Similar to Twitter, you’ll also need to be proactive by encircling other people and pages. You can also join relevant communities on Google+. Here you can establish relationships and share your content (but avoid overly-promoting your work.)
The purpose of all this is establish a significant following. People who follow your brand are in some ways “opted-in” to what you have to say. Thus, the more people who are exposed to your content, the more opportunities you will liked and linked to.
Spawn a Community of Your Own
If you’ve done good enough job at carving your niche in your industry or profession, you may have the potential to spawn a community of your own. This will depend on how well-aligned all of the latter elements are. You must establish a respectable social presence, publish engaging content that offers value, and offer a central hub where people can collaborate.
Perhaps you’ve already established good rep and have a nice library of content to offer visitors, but your hub (e.g. website) is lacking. In this scenario, try creating your own Google+ community around your specific niche. Here you can actively invite qualified community members, share content of interest, and further make your web presence known.
If plan to be in the Internet business for many years to come, then you need take deep consideration in the latter components. In short, these attributes are the bare necessities to become an authoritative link earner.
About the Author
Tyler Tafelsky is the lead SEO analyst here at the Web Presence Group. Tyler is highly engaged in many different facets of SEO, social media, and Internet marketing. You can connect with Tyler on Google+ or follow him on Twitter.
