What is the difference between link building and backlinks? Backlinks and link building are terms widely used in SEO (Search Engine Optimization). SEO is the set of strategies used in digital marketing. SEO strategies basically optimize the website. This optimization improves the website’s ranking on search engine results pages. Link building and backlinks are interconnected. Both have a relation of process and product. It means one is the product of the other. They complement each other and boost SEO strategic influence on results.
What Are Backlinks?
When a website links to another website via a hyperlink, the channel is called a backlink. Sometimes this backlink is also termed as an inbound link. The reason for this terminology is that it directly connects to a particular website. So, using a hyperlink to connect one website to another is the basis. A backlink is often found in content. Quality content supports a particular site. Like PPC Pay Per Click, buying backlinks is not fruitful.
Importance of Backlinks
A backlink usually connects an authoritative website as part of an SEO strategy. These authoritative websites become a token of confidence. Search engines, while crawling on the content and detecting authoritative link building, assign the site a confidence score. It enhances the site’s authority. This authority can improve through backlinks, but it can witness backlash if the quality of those backlinks is poor. A poor backlink may have irrelevant content or spammy content. Therefore, developing backlinks is a tricky job. Negligence or inefficient processes, or strategies will negatively affect your site’s authority.
What Is Link Building?
Link Building is the process of bringing backlinks to your site. It is a strategic process designed to encourage other websites to link to your site. As speed optimization is necessary in technical SEO, it is necessary as a strategy of SEO. Marketers use different strategies to grow a website’s authority. For this purpose, they develop link-building strategies. These strategies provide backlink opportunities for their sites. Here are some link-building strategies that earn backlinks.
- Guest Posting: This term refers to writing articles for other websites. This content has a link back to your own site.
- Broken Link Building: You can offer content as a substitute or replacement for other sites’ broken links.
- Content Marketing: Content marketing involves creating valuable content that can be shared. This shareable information is a natural way of attracting links.
- Digital PR and Outreach: This strategy is hiring a journalist, blogger, or any other influencer from your business domain who can influence the public. They encourage and support your content and brand through their own Digital PR or Outreach. This way also creates links.
Though link-building is part of SEO, it works but takes a lot of time. Businesses have to wait. That is why patience, persistence, and creativity are the basic pillars on which these strategies work. Some people go after easy shortcuts —for example, irrelevant links, spammy or poor links, link buying, and manipulative links. Backlinks bear fruit in the long run. That is why a good marketer emphasizes earning high-quality, relevant links.
Link Building vs. Backlinks: The Core Difference
Now, come to the core difference between the two terms. To understand the difference, we may lay the foundation for the cause-and-effect formula. In this comparison, cause may be replaced by act and effect, with outcome.
- Backlinks are the result or outcome — they bring other users to your site to see relevant content.
- Link building is the process or strategy — it involves developing and implementing a scheme to earn backlinks.
Conclusion
What is the difference between link building and backlinks? Link building and backlinks are core components of SEO strategies. They are both interconnected and award your site authority and ranking. Pervasive Marketing is the centre of excellence. We have experts who formulate strategies for your businesses. These strategies are bound to earn your site authority.
