Think link earning strategies are too good to be true? Think again - One Brafton client successfully generates organic links with custom content.

Industry: Telecommunications
Content: Daily news content
Highlights: Content generates higher organic traffic and longer time on site

You’ve heard link-building strategies are on their way out and that Google’s Penguin algorithm in on the lookout for links purchased during a time when the web was fast and loose. Over time, Google has made it clear that anything besides thoughtful content syndication can do more harm than good. The alternative is quality content creation, and although this may sound too good to be true, one Brafton client’s results show that it’s real and it works.

Attract the right audience with thoughtful content

Brafton provides ongoing content for this telecommunications client, and we initially worked with them to build a content strategy tailored to its target audience. The campaign includes a corporate blog that primarily educates and engages readers (i.e. information prioritized over promotion). A year after the strategy had been put in motion, the brand’s site was already exhibiting a number of positive metrics that indicated it was successfully bringing in ideal readers and capturing their interest.

Unique visits coming to the site through organic traffic increased 33 percent year over year, and the content was effectively keeping people on the pages. It’s common for sites to see bounce rates increase and time-on-site decrease when they bring in more traffic because those visitors may be at different places in the sales funnel. However, this company experienced a 15 percent uptick in the length of time people spent on its blog content.

Content readers = quality links

Marketers should create content strategies that earn white hat links naturally.

Higher time-on-site metrics generally indicate readers are finding value in content, and theoretically, high-quality articles that interest readers will organically earn backlinks. This was indeed the case with this client. It consistently acquires backlinks from a healthy mix of sources with strong domain authority and high PageRank.

A snapshot of sites directing links back to the website reveals that most are relevant domains and reference the client’s content in recognition of its industry authority. In some instances, the links are going to individual blog posts, and overall, links from industry-relevant sites have increased as the site continues to publish its blog.

Moreover, a list of the most recent links going to the site show that it receives references for brand terms (like its business name) rather than keyword-rich anchor text – too much of which can set off red flags with Google.

Best content marketing practices DO earn links

The moral of the story: Keep things white hat and good SEO results will come to your website. If you develop a blog strategy specifically for your customers and consistently produce top-notch content, other publishers will recognize that and generate the kind of links that increase ranking signals naturally.

Lauren Kaye is a Marketing Editor at Brafton Inc. She studied creative and technical writing at Virginia Tech before pursuing the digital frontier and finding content marketing was the best place to put her passions to work. Lauren also writes creative short fiction, hikes in New England and appreciates a good book recommendation.