A link building company plays a critical role in your marketing campaign – choose yours wisely.
Finding a reputable link building company is vital to establishing an online presence. A link back to your site is a validation to Search Engines that your website is trustworthy, credible and authoritative — and that your content is worth being seen, read or shared. Building a link portfolio can be time consuming, at times frustrating and sometimes confusing but it is an integral part of any SEO campaign. Here are seven basic guidelines to help you find a quality link building consultancy.
Quality link building campaigns
Choose a link building company that only uses white hat SEO techniques and is focused on creating a campaign with only quality not quantity back links — this is very important. You also want links that are relevant to your industry, products or service. Don’t be afraid to ask the online marketing agency about their directory of links, where they find their links and whether they have worked successfully with businesses in your industry in the past.*
Own rankings
A link building company is only as good as their own rankings . Check out the firm’s position for link building and SEO-related keywords, how many back links they have and the quality of those links. You can use Google to find back links by typing in “Link:website address” without the quotation marks. This is not always completely accurate but it will give you a quick overview of the company’s link profile.
Local link building campaigns
If your business is targeting a niche local market, it is preferable to hire a link building agency that operates in that region, has a local presence and established contacts with business directories, industry associations, chambers of commerce, and relevant city and state governmental resources. Ask the link building analyst to show you examples of successful campaigns they have conducted for businesses in your targeted area. However a link building company will not always disclose what links they have obtained for clients (this may be proprietary).
Reputation and referrals
Make sure that the consultancy you choose has a solid reputation in the industry. You are looking for an agency that has been established for a few years and not a fly-by-night company that may just disappear and take your rankings with it. Ask people you know for referrals for link building firms and ask the company whether they have any case studies or testimonials you can view. If a company sounds ‘too good to be true’, it probably is.
Integrity and professional ethics
You want to work with a link building company that does not compromise its principles and will never work with a direct competitor of yours whilst you are an existing client. The very nature of creating a link portfolio is that you are trying to increase your rankings for relevant keywords by building your link profile. If they are working for a competitor of yours and also increasing their Search Engine visibility for the same search terms, this is a direct conflict of interest.
Level of customer service
Customer service is also a factor in choosing a company to create back links for you. If you choose a company that is located off-shore, keep in mind that you may not be able to contact them during your business hours or an emergency. Check how many websites the link building analyst will be working on at the same time, their level of seniority, the type of support e.g. phone, email etc and how many hours they will dedicate to your website.
Added value
Building a link profile is only one part of the SEO puzzle; you may want to look for a link-building company that offers complete SEO packages or a range of services including keyword selection, SEO audits, optimizing your website, SEO copywriting and so forth. They may also provide additional online services such as website development, website hosting and social media marketing.
Employing a disreputable link building agency can not only result in your website being banned or penalized from Search Engines, it can also impact on your online reputation. SEO Works is a leading link building company and has proven success in creating natural and organic link profiles for our high-profile clients in various industries. Contact us to find out more about our link-building services.
