Guide
Foundational Link Building
by Tom Richards - Lead SEO & Director
In the intricate maze of Search Engine Optimization (SEO), a core element that stands tall and pivotal is “Foundational Backlinks.” These are the bedrock upon which your website’s online reputation and credibility are built, serving as the unwavering pillars that fortify your SEO efforts.
Foundational backlinks are essentially high-quality inbound links sourced from reputable and authoritative websites. They lay the groundwork for your digital presence, signalling search engines like Google about your site’s relevance, authenticity, and trustworthiness. In an era where credibility is currency, these backlinks carry immense weight, influencing your site’s ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs).
In the upcoming sections, we delve deeper into the world of foundational backlinks – how to acquire them, strategies to optimise their use, and tools to monitor their impact.
What are foundational backlinks?
Foundational backlinks are like the structure underpinning your ‘website house’, serving as connections from other reputable websites to yours. They bolster your online reputation by acting as endorsements of your content’s quality and authenticity.
The more your site is linked by trustworthy sources, the higher its perceived value to search engines, enhancing its authority. These links aid in improving your site’s prominence in search engine rankings, expanding your digital footprint, and transforming your website from a simple digital presence to a towering entity in the online world.
Types of Foundational Links
The beauty of foundational backlinks lies in their diversity. They can be garnered from various sources, each type offering its unique contribution to your website’s credibility and authority. Let’s explore four key types of foundational links:
- Social Accounts: These are the backlinks from your social media profiles. When your website is linked on popular platforms like Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn, it strengthens your online presence and drives traffic to your site.
- Citations: Essentially mentions of your business on other web pages, citations often include your business’s name, address, and phone number. These play a crucial role in local SEO, increasing visibility and building trust in your business.
- Press Releases: When news sites and media outlets mention your business or publish your press releases, they often link back to your website. These high-authority backlinks boost your site’s credibility and reach.
- Infographics: These visually engaging pieces of content can be a goldmine for foundational backlinks. When well-crafted and informative infographics are shared and cited on other websites, they generate high-quality backlinks to your site.
Each of these foundational links offers unique value, and together they form a robust and versatile backlink profile for your website.
Consistently
It's crucial to maintain consistency in your business information, such as the brand name, phone number, and address, across all platforms. Any inconsistency in these details can result in a decline in performance, so ensure they align perfectly everywhere.
Essential Foundational Links for Every Site
In the realm of foundational backlinks, some sources carry more weight than others. Here’s a list of essential links that every website should strive to acquire:
- Google My Business: This platform allows you to list your business on Google Maps and local search results, making it crucial for local SEO. It also allows customers to leave reviews, adding to your business’s credibility.
- Apple Business Connect: Apple’s answer to Google My Business, this service ensures that your business is visible to Apple users, whether they’re searching through Siri, Apple Maps, or Spotlight.
- Bing Places: Similar to Google My Business, Bing Places allows you to list your business on Bing’s local search results and maps, extending your visibility to Bing users.
- Apple Maps: Listing your business on Apple Maps ensures that your business is visible to a wide array of Apple users, including those using Siri for voice search.
- Facebook: This widely-used social media platform allows businesses to set up pages, post updates, and interact with users. Your Facebook page can be a great source of backlinks to your website.
- Instagram: This platform is particularly effective for businesses with a strong visual component. Linking your website on your Instagram profile can drive significant traffic to your site.
- LinkedIn: This professional networking platform is ideal for B2B companies. A link on your LinkedIn profile or company page can boost your business’s credibility and visibility.
- YouTube: If you create video content, don’t forget to include your website link in the video description. YouTube’s massive audience can translate into a significant boost in website traffic.
- Yelp: Known for user reviews and recommendations, a Yelp listing can be especially beneficial for local businesses. A listing here can enhance your online reputation and drive local traffic to your website.
Remember, quality is more important than quantity when it comes to foundational backlinks. Focus on earning links from these reputable sources to create a solid backlink profile for your website.
At the very minimum build the above
Among numerous foundational links, no matter the type of business you have, the above foundational links are essential for all websites.
How to Create Essential Foundational Links
Creating foundational links requires a systematic and meticulous approach. The following steps guide you through the process:
- Input Data into a Google Sheet: Begin by gathering all essential information about your business, such as the business name, address, phone number, website URL, etc., and input this data into a Google Sheet. It’s vital that this information remains consistent across all platforms to maintain credibility and improve local SEO.
- Optimise Images: If you’re including images in your profiles or listings, make sure they’re optimised for web use. This includes reducing file sizes for faster load times and using appropriate alt text for accessibility and SEO.
- Input Links to Build into Google Sheet: As you identify potential sources for foundational backlinks, document these opportunities in your Google Sheet for organisation and tracking.
- Generate Unique Business Descriptions Using AI: To avoid duplicating content, utilise AI technology to generate unique descriptions of your business for each platform. This helps maintain the uniqueness of your content and avoids potential SEO issues related to duplicate content.
- Build Out Links One by One: Methodically go through your list, creating profiles or listings on each platform and adding the link to your website. Remember to utilise the unique descriptions you’ve generated.
- Index the Links: Once the links are created, it’s important to ensure they’re indexed by search engines. This can be done through various SEO tools or by submitting the URL directly to search engines.
- Maintain Indexed Status: After your links have been indexed, it’s crucial to ensure they remain so. Regularly monitor your backlinks’ status to catch any potential issues early and rectify them before they affect your SEO.
Remember, creating foundational backlinks is not a one-time task but an ongoing process. It requires regular monitoring and maintenance to ensure that your backlinks continue to support your SEO efforts effectively.
Pro tip: Track the index status of your links
If a link falls out of Google's index, it becomes ineffective and lacks value. We use tools such as Index Checkr to keep track and Index Me Now for reindexing, ensuring all links continue to provide significant benefits.
Final Thoughts
In the dynamic landscape of SEO, foundational backlinks stand out as a powerful tool to bolster your website’s credibility and improve its online visibility. They lay the groundwork for your digital presence, signalling search engines about your site’s relevance, authenticity, and trustworthiness. Remember, a well-connected website, much like a well-located physical store, attracts more visitor traffic, thereby fostering business growth.
Having explored the types of foundational links, the essential links that every site should have, and the process of creating these links, it’s clear that the strategic implementation of foundational backlinks is critical for SEO success.
Now it’s time to take action. Whether you’re new to the SEO scene or looking to increase your existing efforts, foundational backlinks present a fantastic starting point. Begin by creating or updating your profiles on the platforms discussed, ensure all information is consistent, optimising your images, and methodically build out your links.
However, if you’re feeling overwhelmed by the process or simply need guidance, we’re here to help. Our team of SEO experts is ready to assist you in building a robust backlink profile that will act as a strong foundation for your SEO strategy. Get in touch with us today and let’s start building your website’s authority together.
