Today you are going to learn everything about off-page SEO.
(Step-By-Step)
In this article I’ll show you:
- What is the off-page SEO?
- Importance of off-page SEO
- High quality & low-quality off-page SEO techniques
- And lots more…
So:
Without wasting any time, let’s get started.
First thing first:
Off-page SEO (also known as “off-site SEO”) refers to all the actions taken outside of your website or blog to impact rankings within SERPs (Google).
In general, off-page SEO means building backlinks (link building).
However:
Off-page search engine optimization is not always just about backlinks.
For example:
Brand name mentions (your site URL or brand name mentioned on other websites without a link) are also a part of off-page SEO.
Backlinks are the heart of Off-Page SEO.
…And quality backlinks are one of the MOST important Google ranking factors.
Google and other search engines (Bing, Yahoo etc.) consider backlink as a positive “vote” for a specific page.
Google’s official statement on backlinks:
Bing Webmaster Guidelines:
Some People Say That: “Backlinks Are NOT Needed to Rank Well In Google.”
Is it true?
YES and NO!
Confused?
Let me explain:
If you are targeting a low competition keyword (when low-quality or weak web pages are ranking), you can rank without backlinks.
However:
If you are targeting a highly competitive and high search volume keyword, MOST of the time you need lots of quality backlinks.
For example:
I’m providing blogging training course (online & offline)…
…And, my target keyword is “blogging course in Kolkata”.
My blogging course page started ranking high on Google within a few days…
Currently, my page is ranking #1 on Google:
Without any backlinks…
How is that possible?
Because it’s a low competitive keyword.
Simple!
On the other hand:
I also provide an SEO training course for beginners.
The primary keyword for this page is “SEO training in Kolkata”.
This time, my page is NOT ranking well in Google…
(Hopefully, my SEO course page will start ranking on Google’s first page very soon)
…Though I have created the page before the blogging course page.
Also, I have promoted the SEO training page more than the blogging page.
Now the question is:
Why is this page (SEO course) NOT ranking well?
Answer:
It’s a high competition keyword…
So, what’s the solution?
My SEO course page needs backlinks (trust) to rank well in Google.
Don’t believe me?
Here is the official statement directly from the horse’s mouth (Google):
Here is another one:
Cool.
Want to rank your dental website on Google? Try our dental SEO services today.
If you want to rank high on Google…
…You have to concentrate on high-quality off-page SEO strategies.
But, you also have to avoid low quality off-site SEO works.
Unfortunately:
The Internet is crowded with useless information.
(Sad, but true!)
The following are a few low-quality off-page SEO techniques…
(You need to avoid at any cost)
It’s a pathetic off-page SEO process that worked well in the early days of SEO.
When Google was NOT smart enough.
But today?
It’s a BIG no no technique…
Why is that?
Google doesn’t give any value to this technique.
Here are some proves:
Source: Moz Blog
Google deindexed several directory submission sites:
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Now:
Try to understand one simple thing:
Backlinks are all about positive votes (trust) from other websites.
The truth is:
Anyone can fill up a form and submit it to directories (directory submission)…
Here is an example of a directory submission form:
If the directory site approves your submission, this will create a backlink to your website.
That means you gave a vote to your own website.
Funny.
You know this…
Google’s quality raters (humans) know this too…
Also, web directories were/are accepting low-quality website’s submissions…
…Which is against Google’s guidelines.
I hate it…
Google hates it…
You SHOULD also hate it…
Why?
Because it doesn’t work.
Matt Cutts, Google’s former head of search spam said that:
“Don’t Try To Build Links Through Article Directories.”
Source: Search Engine Land
Why are article directories bad?
- Article directories published bad articles from random writers (no value)
- Article directories accepted duplicate content from writers
The result?
Google doesn’t trust article directories anymore.
For example: Ezine
Search any keyword (especially high competitive) in Google…
…You will rarely see any Ezine article on Google’s first page.
In short:
Don’t waste your time, energy and money in article directories.
It is a perfect example of black hat SEO.
A risky link building technique, that can penalize your website anytime.
Buying backlink means, you are giving money for getting a vote or trust.
It is against Google webmaster guidelines:
If Google catches you…
…Then god bless to your website. Because Google will penalize your website.
Google is constantly trying to catch those websites that are participating in buying or selling backlinks.
Even, Google has an official page where people can inform Google if any websites are doing this (buying or selling links).
Google will manually start the review process to check if they are actually buying or selling links or not.
(Very few people know about this page)
Keep in mind:
If Google penalizes your website…
…then it will be extremely HARD to remove a Google penalty from your website.
This is one technique Google doesn’t like.
But:
What is PBN in SEO?
A PBN is a group of websites or blogs that you have complete control over and all of which link back to your main website.
For example:
Say you have 10 websites…
All of them are linking to your main website to rank in Google…
This process is called a private blog network.
It’s an awesome strategy to get penalized by Google.
Source: Search Engine Land
Source: Search Engine Land
Simply avoid it and be safe.
Link exchange means, Link to me and I’ll link back to you.
Again it is against Google’s guidelines.
Here is an interesting thing:
Have you noticed Google has mentioned the word “Excessive”.
Which means a handful of times link exchange is okay…
However:
I personally DON’T recommend participating in a link exchange strategy.
Do blog commenting help to get a few referral traffic?
YES!
Here is an example from my website:
My website got 28 referral traffic from a blog comment.
However:
Do blog comments help in SEO?
NO!
Why is that?
Almost all the blog commenting links are marked as “No-follow”.
That means:
Google will not count them as a ranking signal.
In the early days, people were trying to rank their websites by dropping links (URLs) in blog comments.
This technique is called “comment spam”.
The no-follow tag was created by Google to fight blog comment spam.
WARNING:
All the above mentioned useless SEO tactics can make your website a Google Penguin food.
Don’t get scared, my friend!
I’m with you.
Now:
You might want to know:
What are the best off-page SEO techniques?
Get ready: I’m going to show you one of the most POWERFUL off-page SEO techniques.
(I know you are waiting for this chapter for a long time)
When it comes to off-page SEO, you have to understand that every website is different.
Their business is different…
Hence, NOT all off-page SEO strategies suitable for every website.
Let’s say you have a local website…
In this situation, the following off-page SEO techniques are MOST appropriate.
When it comes to local SEO, Google My Business is HUGE.
Here is a real-life example:
My local business listing is doing well in GMB.
Here is the screenshot from my GMB analytics:
(last 28 days)
Also:
Google My Business data helps to rank your business in the Local Pack.
Like this:
But:
What is a Local Pack?
The Local Pack is a set of 3 local business results, with a map of their locations fetched from Google My Business.
For example:
When you search for “SEO expert in India”, Google has a local Map Pack at the very top of the results.
(The #1 result is showing from my Google listing)
You might be wondering:
How can you rank your local business in the Local Pack?
It’s simple.
Optimize your Google My Business profile properly.
First, go to Google My Business…
Then put your business name in the box…
Warning:
Don’t include any keyword in your business name. Google will suspend your listing.
Carefully select the business category…
Fill up the address properly…
All of these data will help to get rank in the local pack.
Lastly, don’t forget to get positive reviews…
Google officially announced that:
It is one of the MOST important local ranking factors.
Now the question is:
How to get more reviews?
Ask your customers to give reviews.
Simple!
NAP stands for Name, Address, and Phone Number.
It’s a super important off-page SEO technique for local SEO.
Keep in mind:
Your NAP data has to be 100% consistent everywhere (online).
It could be on your website.
On your Google My Business profile.
On business directories.
In short: any place that mentions your business name online.
Just search with “local business directory in location”…
You will get relevant local directory listing websites.
For example:
If you are trying to rank your website in “London”…
You can search for “Local business directory in London”…
You will get FREE and PAID local business listing websites.
When it comes to a local business listing, consistency is KEY.
Keep all the information 100% accurate.
Also, Name, Address, and Phone number should match with your GMB listing and website.
Look:
Search engines are all about confidence…
So, you must ensure Google understands exactly who and where your business is located.
Note: Inaccurate data can confuses Google. If Google confused, your website will not rank well.
Believe it or not:
Local guest blogging is one of the most underrated off-page SEO techniques.
If you have a local website, I highly recommend going for a local guest posting campaign.
Local links (do-follow) create local relevance signals to Google.
This will maximize the POWER of these links.
Visit for: Bluehost coupon discount
Visit for: Quality Backlinks
Now:
Let me show you how to do it:
Say you have a local yoga coaching center in London.
You need lots of backlinks from the UK domain.
Use the following search string to get a handful of local (UK) guest posting blogs…
…On yoga or health or fitness.
site:.Uk write for us + fitness
As you can see, all the blogs are from the UK domain.
Just awesome!
Keep in mind:
Don’t use keyword-rich anchor text in your guest posts.
Google doesn’t like this…
What’s the best way to get quality backlinks?
Creating informational content.
Here is the truth:
In general, people DON’T want to link to promotional pages.
For example:
Homepage, service pages, product pages.
Sure, with some creativity it’s possible to get backlinks to your commercial pages.
However, in the long run, you will struggle to get links to these pages.
On the other hand:
If you create amazing content (blog post) it will make your off-page SEO (link building) process much easier.
Why is this important?
Well, quality backlinks will boost your website’s overall authority.
Once your website becomes strong (high authority), it will become much easier to rank your new pages (in the future).
Now the question is:
How to create awesome content?
Here is the step-by-step exact process.
Say you are in the marketing niche and your company is providing SEO services.
Enter your top competitor’s homepage URL in Moz or Ahrefs tool.
(I’m using Moz here)
Once you hit the Analyze button, you will find all the top pages of your competitor.
(Top pages = MOST backlinks)
As you can see from the above screenshot, the following blog posts have the MOST backlinks.
- How Loading Time Affects Your Bottom Line
- Affiliate Marketing Made Simple: A Step-by-Step Guide
- SEO Made Simple: A Step-by-Step Guide for 2020
- Digital Marketing Made Simple: A Step-by-Step Guide
What to do next?
Create outstanding content on these proven topics.
Remember:
Your article MUST be 10x better and different from your competitors.
Otherwise, you will face trouble to get links to your blog posts.
Once you create your 10x better content, it’s time to promote your content like crazy.
How?
Email outreach Social media share Quora answering
Your first step SHOULD be doing competitor backlink analysis.
That way you can easily find link-building opportunities right off the bat.
First search for your target keyword (SEO career) on Google…
…and include all the top-ranking URLs in a Google sheet:
The next step is to find out who is linking to these top-ranking web pages.
Include each URL into a backlink analysis tool (I’m using Ahrefs tool here)
As you can see, one of the top-ranking content has 13 backlinks.
These backlinks are your opportunities.
Now, your job is to get these backlinks to your page.
How?
Email Outreach…
You need to send personalized emails to each of those blog editors to let them know about your amazing content.
Here’s an email script for you:
Hi Robert,
I was looking for some new ideas about (your topic) and came to this page: (URL)
I noticed that you have mentioned (your competitor URL) in your content.
The article is good, however, it’s NOT up-to-date.
Actually, I have created more thorough and up-to-date content for 2020:
(Your AWESOME content URL)
The article might make a nice addition to your content.
Keep up the great work!
Best Regards
(Your Name)
Do personal email outreach campaigns really work?
In short: YES!
Here is a real-life example:
It proves that strategic email outreach campaign works even in 2020.
Now It’s Your Time:
I have shown you the latest off-page SEO techniques for 2020.
…Also, the low-quality off-page SEO techniques you SHOULD avoid.
Now, I want to know from you:
Do you have any off-page SEO strategies in mind?
Or…
Do you have any questions?
Let me know by leaving a comment below right now…
I’m waiting.
Don’t have time? Try our link building services in India and skyrocket your Google rankings.