What Is Off-Site SEO? The Power of Backlinks.

When most people think of off-site SEO (also known as off-page SEO), they assume it’s some sort of magic trick or in-the-know secret that they can only learn from the elite in the industry, but that couldn’t be further from the truth!

This post will walk you through all you need to know about off-site SEO so you can leverage it to improve your rankings and get more traffic in no time.

What Is Off-Site SEO?

Off-site SEO refers to all activities you can do outside your website to improve your rankings in search engine results pages (SERPs).

Many people use off-site SEO and link building interchangeably, but link building is just one part of off-site SEO. There are actually many other off-site SEO tactics you can use, including building, social media engagement and creating informative content on other platforms.

Understanding The Differences Between On-Site, Off-Site, And Technical SEO

When it comes to SEO, there are three main categories: on-site SEO, off-site SEO, and technical SEO.

  • On-site SEO refers to all the ranking factors within your control on your site itself, such as your content, keywords, links, etc. In short, it’s what you do TO your website.
  • Off-site SEO refers to all the ranking factors that are not within your control, such as inbound links and social signals.
  • Technical SEO refers to all the behind-the-scenes aspects of your website that affect its ability to rank, such as site speed optimization and indexation.

Why Does Off-Site SEO Matter?

Off-site SEO is important because it helps build your site’s domain authority (DA).

DA is a measure of how well your site ranks in search engines. While there is no direct connection, the higher your DA, the more likely people are to find your site when they search for keywords related to your business. It also means that you will be able to rank better in SERPs and ultimately have an easier time ranking on the first site.

Off-Site SEO Techniques You Should Know

Link Building

Link building is perhaps the most important off-site SEO technique. By building or acquiring quality backlinks (live hyperlinks that point to your website), you’re essentially vouching for the quality of your site. When high-authority websites link to yours, it tells search engines that your site is a credible source of information.

There are a few ways to build links, but the most effective way is to create quality content that other people will want to link to. For example, let’s say you write an in-depth blog post about the benefits of using email marketing for business promotion. Then you can reach out to blogs and websites that offer email marketing advice and ask them if they would like to share this post with their readers. They may say yes and give you a backlink in return.

Link building is a long-term and tedious process. But it can be extremely effective in driving traffic and improving your search engine rankings.

Content Marketing

Content marketing is one of the most effective off-site SEO tactics. Creating and distributing high-quality content can help you attract backlinks from authority sites, drive traffic to your website, and improve your search engine rankings. Plus, consistently creating new content keeps your audience engaged and coming back for more.

Here’s how to get started with content marketing:

  • First, come up with a content strategy. What kind of content do you want to create? Who is your target audience? What topics are they interested in?
  • Once you have a plan, start creating engaging, informative content that will resonate with your audience. Make sure to use keywords appropriately, so it ranks well on Google.
  • Next, publish your content on your blog and on other websites where it can be found organically through search engines and social media posts (don’t forget to include links back to your site).

If you’re just getting started with content marketing, then an excellent place to start is guest blogging. This way, you’ll not only build a following but also increase brand awareness at the same time.

Local SEO

Local SEO is a great way to build authority for your website. When you optimize your website for local search, you are more likely to show up in the search results for people who are searching for businesses like yours in your area.

To get started with local SEO, claim your Google Business Profile (formerly known as Google My Business) and make sure all your business information is accurate and up-to-date.

Then start working on building citations on popular directories and other relevant websites. Citations are mentions of your business name, address, and phone number on other websites. Google uses these citations as signals to help determine where your business should rank in local search results.

Social Media

To get the most out of social media, you must ensure you’re using it as part of your off-site SEO strategy. That means more than just creating a profile and posting now and then.

Here are a few things you can do to make social media work for your business:

  • Use keyword-rich descriptions and tags.
  • Post fresh content regularly.
  • Engage with your audience.
  • Promote your content across all of your channels.
  • Monitor your activity and analyze your results.
  • Make sure your profiles are complete and up-to-date.
  • Use relevant hashtags

Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing is a type of off-site SEO that involves working with people who have influence over your target audience. By getting these influencers to share your content or promote your brand, you can reach a larger audience and build authority for your site.

There are many ways to find influencers. Some will be obvious, like celebrities on social media. Meanwhile, others may take more time, such as researching industry experts, colleagues in the same field, or potential partners.

When approaching an influencer, it’s important to remember they’re often busy. So keep the request brief and send them something in advance that explains what you want from them, if possible. If they agree to help, make sure they know what kind of commitment they’re making before agreeing — like how often should they post? How long should their posts be? What do you want them to say about your product/service/website/brand?

Reviews

If you’re not actively working on getting reviews, you’re missing out on a powerful off-site SEO tactic.

Online reviews are one of the most important factors in local search rankings. Review signals make up a good part of what gets you ranked in local searches. Furthermore, 84% of people trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations from friends and family!

Remember to ask for reviews at various points of contact with your customers (particularly in-person interactions). Then, be sure to respond promptly when customers post their comments or questions about your products or services.

Parting Thoughts

You may have the best website in the world, but if no one knows it exists, it might as well not exist at all. That’s where off-site SEO comes in. Off-site SEO is everything you do to promote your website that isn’t directly on your website.