How do you think one website is able to get a vote of confidence from another site? It is through backlinks. Backlinks are a signal that other websites vouch for your content and find it reliable. Also known as inbound links or incoming links, backlinks are created when one website links a part of its content to another. In other words, if site X has an external link to site Y, site Y is said to have a backlink from site X.

If there are many sites that are linked to your content, search engines find your content valuable and rank in higher on their SERPs, which increases your site’s visibility online.

If you are looking for ways to enhance your SERP rankings and garner more traffic, take a look at these 10 ways to earn backlinks.

Tip #1: Use “The Skyscraper Technique”

The Skyscraper Technique was created by Backlinko’s Brian Dean as a system for turning content into high quality backlinks. The system has been designed to create content that actually drives traffic. This technique works by searching highly popular trends, topics and well praised content on the internet, related to your niche. Come up with a unique angle to create a new and improved piece of content that conveys a similar message. Now, you are left with the task of reaching out to the associated websites and get your content seen by those who have linked to similar content to increase the chances of earning a backlink.

Tip #2: Use “The Moving Man Method”

A term coined again by Brian Dean at Backlinko, “The Moving Man” method is an innovative new technique for building quality backlinks with relevant sites in your field or industry. If you ask me, this is the easiest method to build high-quality backlinks from authoritative sources. The key is to find big companies that are no longer operational but have an active website through which they provide quality content, such that it has generated a lot of quality backlinks from other websites.

Tip #3: Build Internal Links

Internal links are an integral part of any website or blog, since they allow easy navigation and help establish information hierarchy, which helps in improving the overall user experience. This is a great way to keep visitors at your website, instead of them having to go through the hassle of typing another search query. Those who are running a blog on WordPress can take advantage of tools that help create internal links on the blog automatically. However, this should be done manually, while keeping internal links or backlinks, in this case, at less than 100 per page, for better SEO and usability.

Tip #4: Use Infographics

Several studies have shown that visuals are easier and faster for the brain to process. It is for this reason that more than 90% of online marketers use visual content in more than half of the articles they have published online in 2016, according to statistics published by Venngage. Easy scanability and higher engagement has significantly raised the popularity of infographics, leading to more eyeballs and better business results. Now, the easy to understand and share infographics are becoming an unbeatable tool to gain valuable backlinks and drive traffic to a website. Create a unique and interesting infographic, based on the current trends, using statistical data. Once it is published on your website, distribute it especially amongst users who have linked to similar infographics previously.

Tip #5: Guest Blogging

Guest blogging or publishing articles on other popular websites is the most effective way to increase exposure, reach new audiences and build brand awareness, all at the same time. This is also a great way to get one or two backlinks to your own website. In fact, backlinks is the major reason guest bloggers submit their content to other blogs for free. If the blog on which you are guest posting is really popular, stay assured of a boost in your online reputation and direct traffic to your site, which can even lead to sales. If you are a blogger, link to your social media profile when publishing a guest article. If people like your guest post, they will be able to follow you for more interesting content.

Tip #6: Follow Popular Content Formats

Just like what you choose to write, how you present your content is equally important. Different content structures show different results on search engines. How to, why, lists, quizzes, infographics and videos are the most popular content formats ruling the internet right now. Creating content in any of these formats can, therefore, help earn you high quality backlinks.

Tip #7: Publish Ultimate Guides

“The Ultimate Guide to… (topic),” covering an entire topic on a single page is a highly popular content type in the online world. The content can be as long as 4,000 words and is absolutely loved by Google, which prefers long form content over short articles. This long form content tends to get higher rankings on Google and thus earns more backlinks and shares. However, the key is to find a unique topic for the ultimate guide that has not been explained to death yet. Once you have found it, visit this link to know how to write the best ultimate guide.

Tip #8: Spy on Competitors’ Backlinks

Yes, I am asking you to spy on your competitors. If you really want more traffic to your website, you cannot afford to overlook your immediate competitors’ online marketing strategies. Check what your competition is doing to learn their content marketing methods and techniques for link building to be able to replicate them. Follow them on social media too and subscribe to their email newsletters to stay updated with their online activities. You can also set Google Alerts for the keyword (“site:yourcompetitor.com.”) to keep track of their new content.

Tip #9: Write Testimonials

You know that a testimonial is a written recommendation from a satisfied customer, affirming a product or service’s performance, quality, and/or value. But you may not have realized that it is also an easy way to earn quality backlinks. If you scroll through the websites of leading businesses, you may see that that they have published a few selected testimonials on the homepage or have created a separate page of customer success stories to publish customer reviews and experiences with the business. In many cases, business give a link in exchange for the testimonial.

Tip #10: Give Online Interviews

A really popular trend right now, online interviews are an amazing way to earn backlinks as well. Those who are considered authorities in their niche or industry stay in constant demand for online interviews. So, look for opportunities to get interviewed and position yourself as a thought leader in your domain. Look for websites, blogs and vlogs that conduct online interviews and request them to allow you to make your contribution. Share your knowledge and earn a few backlinks as a reward.

Earning quality backlinks can be highly challenging at times. But when you have the right resources and methods, it can turn into a fun, exciting and rewarding task.