14 Step-by-step Processes to Implement Off-Page SEO for Your Website
Start with Link Building - You Can’t Ignore This
There’s no internet without links, right?
You need a link to open any website, page, forum, review, or comment. It’s hardly surprising that link building is the primary focus of off-page SEO. But it’s not as simple as it sounds.
There are different ways to build a network that links to your website. And you should make sure to steer clear of black hat SEO techniques to avoid violating the search engine regulations. So how can you get quality backlinks and improve off-page SEO?
DA Score for Backlinks
Domain Authority score is something we’ve referred to more than once already. The source website’s overall quality can make or break your SEO efforts.
Use backlink analytical tools to check the DA score of websites you want to connect with. Afterward, keep an eye on the DA score and get rid of backlinks from sites with poor performance and suspicious activities.
Niche Relevance
Backlinks should not appear forced or out of place. Work within the niche first and move on to adjacent industries independent of yours.
A backlink to a bakery would come from food bloggers, food critics, food suppliers, local celebrities, local/ regional news portals, and more. Links from travel bloggers and websites would also work.
Domain Diversity
There needs to be more than one domain that backlinks to your website. A diverse set of referring domains will bring various visitors from different sources. It also shows that your business is famous across the market.
The search engine algorithm identifies and gives prominence to websites with diverse domain references.
Types of Links
What kind of links are you aiming for? A combination of the below three would work, though we recommend relying more on the first option.
- Natural links : A link provided by a customer who loves your brand and promotes it on their own.
- Self-generated links : Press releases, hyperlinked signatures in comments, etc., are links you generate to bring visitors to the website.
- Manual links : Collaborating with other websites, asking customers to review the business, talking to influencers, etc., are ways to create backlinks manually.
Publish High-quality Guest Posting
Guest posting is the act of writing blogs on other’s websites.
A guest blogger shares valuable information on topics in his/ her niche in the form of a blog post. But this blog is posted on another website rather than the one that belongs to the author.
As a guest blogger, you will have the choice to add a backlink to your website (as a part of your credentials).
You can also backlink to a page on your site that shares related information.
There is no limit to the number of platforms you can write for. Just make sure that you are sharing authentic information that is useful to the readers rather than blatantly promoting your business.
Your guest posts will create awareness about your business and increase organic traffic over time. Also, readers will appreciate your professionalism in sharing your knowledge with others.
It will help you connect with the readers and understand their preferences. The readers will see you as someone who genuinely wants to be of service rather than a business opportunist who only wants to get some backlinks.
It will help you expand your contacts as more website owners will ask you to write guest posts for them instead of contacting them for opportunities.
Here’s an example of how you can write to websites that accept guest posts.
Be Online, Be Active- Make Your Presence Felt
You cannot go offline and expect the business to survive for long in today’s world. You need to make your presence felt on the digital platform.
Be there on the search results page. Be visible on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Reddit, and other social media networking platforms.
Don’t you see the top brands being present just about everywhere? Their logo, the name, or the offers, something or the other related to the brand is always visible.
They could be active on Twitter, creating hashtags and tweeting stuff. They could be sharing discount codes on Facebook or posting mesmerizing pictures on Instagram.
The aim here is to be online on the internet. Your latest posts and tweets should show up when anyone searches for your business.
Customers would hardly like to do business with a brand that isn’t active enough, isn’t it?
Another advantage of being online is that you can use the latest trending topics to promote your business.
Correct, it doesn’t always work and can backfire if you start taking sides. But you sure can establish the values and ideologies of your business on the digital platform and attract like-minded users.
Here’s an example of a business using the latest trending topics to promote itself.
Make Use of Social Media - Make the Most of it
As we mentioned in the previous point, your presence on social media is the key to off-page SEO. But sharing posts alone is not going to bring you, followers.
Even if it does, they won’t stay long if there is no effort from your side to interact with them. Reshares, likes, and reviews can boost your brand visibility and support your SEO efforts.
Respond
When a user posts a comment, especially a query or a question, make sure to answer it. Replying will show that you are aware of the post’s activity, care about the customers, and want people to know more about your business.
Reply to messages, engage with the users and maintain active communication. Let them know that they can contact you with a question, and you will not ignore it.
Befriend
Social media is a ripe place to connect with some big names. Follow industry leaders and comment on their posts. Share important ones on your timeline.
Interact with influencers and marketers. They can bring a fresh round of visitors to your website through a single post. But choose them with care. The last thing you want is to annoy your existing customers.
Reputation Management
It is more in terms of the mentions your brand gets on the social media platforms. Use the online brand monitoring tool to see who has been taking your business’s name.
Since all of them don’t tag you directly, you will not get updates when someone refers to your business.
Use online tools to identify the mentions and learn if they are praising you or writing a bad review. Make it a point to respond to bad reviews with courtesy and inquire why.
Follow it up and update the customer after you sort out the issue.
Here’s an example of a brand responding to a comment on social media.
Relevant : Tips to Boost Your Reputation Using SEO
Comment on Relevant Blogs - It is Still Important
Yes. Blogs are still very much relevant. They have gained prominence as more and more businesses rely on off-page SEO tactics. Content marketing is an inherent part of SEO services, isn’t it?
Some people say that commenting on blogs is a black hat SEO practice and should be avoided. But we say it depends on the comment you post.
When you have to comment on a blog, you will enter the details such as the name and a website link. When you post the comment, it creates a backlink on your website.
Some people take advantage of this spam on blog posts with comments that are purely promotions or have no relation to the blog. Some also tend to comment on multiple blogs to gain more backlinks. It is a black hat SEO practice.
But when you post relevant, appropriate, appreciative, and useful comments on blogs, you will be generating backlinks and showing that you aim to interact on the post and not use it for SEO purposes.
You can create a rapport with others by leaving meaningful comments on their posts. Just take care not to overdo anything.
Here’s an example of comments on a blog post.
Focus on Local SEO - Do it Now
Google My Business
Creating a GMB profile should be on the top of your list when a user searches using a related keyword or a specific business in the region, the GMB profile.
A filled and verified profile with NAP (Name, Address, Phone Number) details will attract user attention. You can add business descriptions, the latest images of your business and ask happy customers to write a review on the GMB profile.
Relevant : Benefits of a Google My Business Listing
Directories
Directories come in various types- local, niche, paid, unpaid, aggregators, etc. Though you don’t have to enter all of these directories, being visible on the local directory and the aggregators are necessary.
Please do your research before listing on a directory to see that it is genuine and has a good visitor count. Paid directories are not necessarily more popular than unpaid ones.
Citations
A citation includes the NAP details of your business along with a link to the website. These are other forms of listings found on different websites. So, what’s the difference?
A citation is a link that shows where a particular piece of information has been collected.
For example, if a blogger provides statistics about an area and uses your website as a reference point, they will give a citation link to your site.
However, citations work only if the NAP details are consistent on all links.
Google Maps
It is both an on-page and off-page SEO tactic. While adding the Google Maps location on the website is essential, adding it to your GMB profile and social media profiles is also crucial.
Users who search for businesses on Facebook will find it easy when they can see your address on a map.
Here’s how GMB profiles appear in response to Google’s search engine search queries.
Stay Active on Relevant Forums - Forums are a Beehive
Like blog commenting, the forum was also considered black hat SEO techniques. It led to many business owners ignoring forums altogether. Platforms like Quora and Reddit have been able to bring the attention back to forums again.
That said, if you are looking at these platforms as a way to build links, we say it’s not going to work the way you want. Forums serve a specific purpose.
The aim is to create a community where like-minded people interact and discuss the niche. People looking for answers from experts join forums to get advice.
Relevant : Legit Ways to Earn Backlinks to Your Site
So, your off-page SEO tactic here should be to create an identity for yourself (and your business) using the forums.
Simply sharing links to your website and spamming query posts will even get you banned from the forums, and not to mention get your website flagged or blacklisted by Google.
Building long-term relationships should be your goal if you join forums. Get to know others, interact with them, and let them come to your business.
You will gain quality customers who are likely to promote your business even without asking them to do so.
Quora is a popular forum website.
Drive Traffic Through Influencers and Bloggers
Influencer marketing is not limited to asking a celebrity to share your website link. Sponsored posts are now not as useful as they were earlier and might violate Google’s regulations if you are not careful.
But thanks to technology, bloggers and influencers have reasonable control over their followers and can drive new traffic to your website.
Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, TikTok, etc., are social media platforms with billions of users. It led to people finding new ways to become famous and attract huge followers.
Such people are influencers as they can influence their followers through their posts.
Relevant : Influencer Marketing for Ecommerce
Here again, you need to look at influencer marketing to build your brand’s presence in the market and not limit it to link building. Search for influencers and bloggers in your niche and check their following. See if your business ideology matches theirs.
Then contact the influencer with a proposal to share a post about your business. It could a sponsored post (without links), a review, an analysis, or an introduction post. You can also send them a free product in exchange for a review and promotional post.
Here’s an example of a business promoting its brand through an influencer on Instagram.
Create Podcasts to Gain Followers - Let Your Voice be Heard
Do we even have to tell you how famous podcasts are? With most of us having barely enough to work and eat, extracurricular activities have taken a backseat.
Podcasts have gained prominence in this scenario by helping us listen to things we like while driving, working, cleaning, or simply relaxing. There are countless podcasts out there, and more show up every minute.
Not just that, Google’s and Apple’s podcasts act like search engines.
If you want to get closer to users, starting a podcast channel is a great way to do so. And since it’s a relatively new idea, not many businesses have entered the scene.
If you start early, you’ll have the advantage of capturing the market before your competitors even start thinking of podcasts.
You will be entering an all-new market with less competition. Your growth will be faster and easier. But your intentions in creating podcasts should be to share valuable information with your audience and build a large listener base.
Be regular with the posts. Plan a series and record them in advance to avoid last-minute rushes.
Here’s a screenshot of Google Podcasts.
Read & Respond to Customer Reviews
Do you know that more than 90% of users said that reviews affect their buying decision? Isn’t that scary? A customer review could bring you profits or losses. And you have no control over it.
Oh yes, you can get fake customer reviews praising your business, but Google is good at identifying and weeding them out. Even users are no less smart. It is easy to notice a falsely inflating review. Moreover, even genuine reviews might be considered fake and affect your business if you are not careful.
So where does that leave us, you wonder? We’ll explain. You can ask happy customers to write a review on the website, your GMB profile, or marketplaces where you sell your products.
You can sign up with third-party review sites like Trustpilot to get customers’ reviews and compile them in one place. A widget lets you place the real-time rating from Trustpilot on your website.
Responding to customer reviews is necessary and encouraged. Create a response template and follow it for all kinds of reviews, good or bad. Don’t ignore negative reviews, and don’t be rude or arrogant. Remember, it’s hard to guess the tone on the internet. You cannot afford to be careless.
Here’s an example of a business’s response to a customer review.
Syndicate Your Content - Share Valuable Information in Multiple Forms
Some of you might be wondering what this one is about, isn’t it? After all, we talked about content in many steps until now. How is this different from the rest?
Content syndication is the process of republishing your existing content in different forms and on other websites. It helps you reach a broader audience range and brings new traffic to the site. Catalogs, whitepapers, and green papers are some ways of content syndication.
A whitepaper is a comprehensive document that talks about your business in detail. It is used in B2B marketing as an outbound strategy to reach out to other firms hoping that they will want to sign a deal with you.
In off-page SEO, content syndication lets you reuse your existing content without having to create something new every time. The blogs shared on Medium are one example of this process.
You can post one of your old website blogs on Medium (after minor edits) and add a link to the original blog at the end of the post. It will work as a link-building strategy and a content marketing technique.
Use Competitive Analysis For Data
One of the most important things to do before a campaign is to start with competitive analysis.
SEO is a vast niche, and there are chances that your competition knows something that you don't. Getting an overview of what your clients are doing gives you great insights.
You can use a tool like Screaming Frog SEO Spider to do this. Another option would be a manual analysis of the source code. SEO tools can also review their keyword profile. Once you know what the competition is doing, you can adjust your site to be more like theirs.
The data you draw from these analyses can help you improve your pipeline. It can help increase rankings in a short time and drive relevant traffic.
SEMrush is a fantastic tool for analyzing your competitors.
Create Informational Content With Newsletters
When you're looking to rank in search engines, one of the best ways to create informational content is to build an email newsletter. Building a newsletter doesn't have to be a complicated task. There are many tools available to help you get started.
Once you've built a basic newsletter, there are several off-page SEO tactics you can use to make sure it shows up on search engines. Unlike what people think, you need to be creative to create informational content.
You may need to develop a newsletter, send out a press release, or create a white paper. An informational piece of content is more useful to your audience than an article. The reason is that it provides them with knowledge and answers to questions they might have.
Here’s an example of a newsletter.
Host Interactive Sessions On Different Platforms
Off-page SEO is not just about creating and sharing content. It even isn't about content at all. Sometimes you need to invite engagement through different platforms. This could be a talk show or podcast.
You can do this on any popular social media platform like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or Reddit. You can even invite people to chat on a particular topic through video conferences. It broadens the knowledge base for common topics in your niche.
These sessions can help your audience connect with your brand easier. It might answer questions they might have had about your niche or services. This can be extremely powerful and get increased views from your audience.
It can directly translate into better metrics for your website. Interested people might check out your brand online, and conversions can increase. Interactions can improve your brand image in your niche as well. All this happens off-page, and this is why it is so useful.
Here’s an example of a business tweeting about an interactive session.
Audit And Fix Your Backlink Profile
Backlinks are one of the most important components of SEO. They are essentially links pointing back to your website from other websites—the more links pointing back to your site, the higher your search rankings.
If you don't have quality backlinks on your website, you miss out on valuable search engine traffic and conversions. Google gives a higher preference to websites that have a strong backlink profile.
You may not be aware that every backlink is a potential opportunity for link building. Even if you're not planning to do any link building right away, you should still take a look at your backlinks.
You should audit your backlinks even if you're not planning extensive link building. If they're not up to standards, you need to fix them. If you don't, Google will punish you with a lower ranking. Some tools can do this for you to automate it to some degree.
You can audit backlinks using SEMrush.
Get People Talking About Your Brand
A great way to get more coverage is to ensure that there are conversations about your brand. The more people talk about your brand, the better it is for you. Of course, you need to ensure that it is for the right reasons.
One way to ensure people discuss your brand is to look at popular platforms people use. This could be socials, specific online platforms, or other traditional media platforms. You need to engineer campaigns to use these to your brand's strengths.
This also determines the choice of keywords for your brand. You need to focus on popular keyword trends from the platforms. For example, if you're using TV, research relevant keywords before creating content. A memorable jingle can help increase awareness.
Generate creative hashtags and brand slogans that you think fit your narrative. These can quickly take off and increase your brand's popularity.
KFC has a memorable slogan.
Reach Out To People To Showcase Content
People love interactions with other people. Reaching out to people can make your content relatable. When brands become part of this interactive process, it humanizes the brand. This is why many brands invite people to take part in their campaigns.
One of the easiest ways to gain new links is to show people the content you've created. If you're writing a blog post, send it to your social media contacts. Publish a link to it on your site or your email signature.
You can also put a note in your email encouraging them to share. This can help you showcase your content on different platforms. There are chances that it might go viral and help you connect with more people. All these can help get the most out of your content marketing.
Here’s an example of a business promoting an article on social media.
Opt For Social Bookmarking
Many webmasters who are new to social bookmarking opt for social bookmarking tools and sites. Some of them are Digg, Reddit, and StumbleUpon. But for some reason, many of them forget about the other social bookmarks sites out there.
Facebook and Twitter are still the most powerful social media websites, but they aren't the only ones. Thousands of websites are based around sharing content with the world, so do give them a shot.
Social bookmarking can help your website get people from a different platform. Some of these sites include Delicious, Google Bookmarks, and Pinterest. All of them are simple to use and powerful as well.
It doesn't matter what kind of website you own with social bookmarks. You can use social media to become a part of the community.
Connect With Your Local Chamber Of Commerce
If you want to improve your local business footprint, your Chamber of Commerce would be a good place to start. Getting your business verified and added to their website means you're now searchable on it.
The key is to identify your local chamber of commerce and connect with its members. The first step is to figure out who represents your area and contact them to get started. Once you've done that, get in touch with other community members from the same niche.
It can significantly improve coverage and let you connect with other business owners. You get improved networking and better business opportunities that can benefit your brand. You can also easily coordinate podcasts or interviews with other people.
You can also join a Facebook group of entrepreneurs in your niche to network.
Produce High Quality Videos - Let Users See You
What can be more attractive than knowing the faces behind a business?
Users cannot resist when they get an opportunity to learn more about the people who are successfully running a business. And tutorial videos are just as in demand by the users.
Not everyone wants to read the entire user manual, and some products don’t even come with manuals.
YouTube
YouTube is not just a place to post videos. It is a search engine in its own right and a popular one. There isn’t much you can’t find on YouTube, from DIY videos to cooking classes to language lessons, music, movies, and TV shows.
Post-behind-the-scenes videos of your business, share employee/ customer interviews, share videos of events you’ve attended in the region, and whatnot.
Facebook/ Twitter/ Instagram Live
Though YouTube live is popular, Facebook live and Instagram live have taken over the top positions.
Thanks to the new updates, you can now conduct live interviews on these social media sites. You can post the video on IGTV for those who missed the live session.
Facebook has it more comfortable as the live video stays on your timeline unless you choose to remove it.
Create & Publish PR - PR Will Always Play a Vital Role
Press releases, interviews, chat sessions, etc., will always work their magic. If you want to share an important announcement, a PR (Press Release) is a great choice.
The PR gets posted on the internet with a backlink to your website. You can post it on your website. Also, you can get it published in papers (e-papers and physical ones) as well.
PRs help optimize the content for search engines and bring more traffic to the website. They are useful marketing tactics and can help you earn authority links.
They bring referral traffic, take your business straight to the target audience, and help you build trust signals for the company.
Do you know that a recent study found that a carefully planned PR campaign can bring you links and referrals from as many as 10 to 24 different domains?
We saw the importance of other domains earlier in the post, right?
Here’s an example of a newsletter.
Improve Brand Image and Credibility - Gain their Trust
You are what your brand image is. Or rather, it could be the other way around. In a world with so many brands trying to woo the same crowd, being recognized for who you are is an achievement indeed.
You need to craft a brand image for yourself and your business that has nothing to do with SEO, links, and all that stuff.
Relevant : Image Optimization Tips
This off-page SEO strategy is all about creating an unforgettable impression on your target audience. One look at the logo or the brand name should make them smile or eager to see what you’ve got for the users.
When you achieve this, you don’t have to request users to open the website links you share.
They will wait for you to post and visit your website to stay updated with the latest information. They will share and retweet your posts out of their own will. Work on building the brand image and maintain it.
Do you need experts assistance in doing off-page SEO for your website? You can drop your details here to get a free consultation.