What is the Reciprocal Link in SEO
It is essential for any SEO plan to have a reciprocal link; this is also known as a backlink. This means it is a link from a site pointing to another site and, in the process, getting a link back to itself. Search engines like Google need to give that website credibility and authority, and it helps the specific site’s ranking by using reciprocal links.
How Do People Get Reciprocal Links With Reframed SEO?
There are a few critical ways that reciprocal links help with SEO:
Increase Referral Traffic
Backlinks from other quality sites on the internet can direct other visitors to your sites. It may be a site with a large community in your topic of interest – if users see it and find it interesting, they might click on the link and visit your site. This builds referral traffic. So, if there are a lot of good sites linked to you, the traffic will increase much more.
Must Also Boost Rankings and Authority
One of the most valuable factors when it comes to ranking position is the backlink index. Google considers the links it finds equivalent to votes for the particular site. The cast votes from these reputed sites increase the credibility of your site. This informs Google that your content is informative and can enhance your ranking system.
Links originating from other domains are the best as they come from authority domains for highest ranking. For instance, a link from a “.edu” or “.gov” domain-approved area is also a lot more influential as people consider it a credible source.
Gain Exposure and Credibility
It is also essential to be linked to other familiar and popular websites. If authoritative sites in your niche send their visitors your way, then it is evidence of authority that it is worth visiting your site.
However, it can bring you much more exposure and, therefore, many implied endorsements that will boost your standings over time. The more one creates the link profile with sources from a diverse location, the higher his or her domain authority will be.
Link Exchange – Strategies for Proper Link Swap
While reciprocal link building can help with rankings, there are some guidelines to follow:
Concentration on the “Right” Sites
Just a link from any site you choose will not do it. The sites linking to you should be related to your topics of interest and should also have their own DA in your niches. For example, a link from a highly-rated parenting website will not help an SEO blog. However, a link from a digital marketing site would be relevant and credible. Specifically, the quality links should be those coming from industry leaders.
Avoid Link Networks and Farms
There are some websites whose primary purpose is to “trade” reciprocal links. They do not have organic traffic and are not viewed positively by Google because they are seen as link networks and farms. Linking from these sites may prove to be detrimental to the overall process. Do not waste time on fake sites with fake visitors.
Combine One-Way and Reciprocal Links
Having nothing but reciprocal links seems unnatural to Google’s SE. Maintain a good ratio of bi-directional links with unidirectional links. This helps to achieve a healthy, natural backlink profile.
Add Context to Anchor Text
Those links with generic descriptions like “click here” do not pass much linkage juice. Descriptive anchor text should be used depending on the information you are providing in a link. For instance, an SEO site may link a content marketing post with the anchor text “content marketing guide.”
Some examples of how reciprocal link outreach is done are discussed below.
There are a few options for getting sites to swap links with you:
Contact Site Owners Directly
Contact site owners in your field via email. Greet politely, compliment their site, and then kindly explain that you love their site and were wondering whether they would be up for an exchange? Add as an incentive to help you post their content or bring your visitors to their website.
Create and Publish Guest Blogging
Type positive messages about your business niche and post them to relevant web pages. Many will allow the guest post’s author to include links to the authors website at the time of publication. Since it also links back to those sites, it is also an exchange of links from your site to those sites.
Collaborate on Link Roundups
Encourage both you and another owner of a competitive site to post a collection of the best contents in your specialty, including articles taken from each of your sites. You will get a link in return in the roundups to your own blog where it’s beneficial and relevant.
Join Link Exchange Networks
Get into an existing reciprocal link exchange by contacting the link administrators on each of the sites in the network that you will get link from. In return, you will be adding a link feed which includes the network links.
Some may be:
BuzzStream – Locates influencer contacts
Pitchbox – Helps in identifying guest-posting prospects
Ninja Outreach – Potential sites that the firm needs to target
Ahrefs- It identifies links of competitor web pages (potential link exchange partners)
When it comes to website links, it’s Quality Over Quantity
Finally, while obtaining backlinks the quality is always better than quantity. Place a few quality reciprocal links from the trusted sites of your field and your domain authority will grow steeply. The preference is the contextual link from a good number of publishers rather than a large number of links. The use of reciprocal linking will need to be done correctly in order for it to help the SEO in the end.
Bill Yeager, Co-Owner of High Point SEO & Marketing in CT
