In the ever-evolving world of digital marketing, staying ahead of the curve is crucial for success. While many marketers are familiar with common strategies like SEO, content marketing and social media advertising, there are several lesser-known elements which can significantly impact your online presence and search engine rankings. However, broken link outreach is just one piece of the puzzle when it comes to effective link building. For a truly comprehensive strategy that drives sustainable results, consider partnering with a specialized link building agency. These agencies offer a range of services, including quality link building, content marketing, and outreach strategy development, to help you achieve your online goals. Interestingly, 90% of link builders state that nofollow links impact search rankings. This highlights the importance of understanding the nuances of link-building strategies and their implications for SEO.
Thankfully there are digital marketing agencies out there who know the tricks which fly under the radar for 98% of digital marketers. In this article we’ll explore six essential digital marketing elements you might not be aware of, but should definitely incorporate into your strategy.
- Site SILO Structure
A SILO structure is an organisational framework for your website which groups related content together, creating a clear hierarchy and improving both user experience and search engine optimisation.
The site content is organised into main categories (silos), with each silo containing closely related subcategories and individual pages. These are then linked strategically, pages within the same silo being connected, so one page leads to another which is related to it rather than the reader having to dig them out themselves.
Silos improve site navigation and user experience and help search engines understand your site’s structure and content relationships. They also boost topical authority for specific subjects and can thus lead to better search engine rankings for targeted keywords.
To implement a SILO structure, start by developing a clear content strategy and undertaking keyword research. Then create a logical hierarchy of main topics and subtopics, using consistent URL structures which reflect the SILO organisation.
On the basis of this, you can construct strategic internal linkages within the silos and regularly audit and update your SILO structure as your content grows.
- Broken Link Outreach
Broken link outreach is a white-hat link building strategy which involves finding broken links on other websites and offering your own content as a replacement.
You begin by identifying websites in your niche which have resource pages or extensive outbound links. By using tools such as Ahrefs (you can check out an Ahrefs review for more details), Moz Link Explorer, or Screaming Frog, you can find broken links on these pages. You then create high-quality content which could replace the broken link and reach out to the website owner, inform them of the broken link and suggest your content as a replacement
This process builds high-quality backlinks to your website and helps establish relationships with other website owners in your niche. This provides value to both the website owner and their users and can improve your own site’s authority and search engine rankings.
The new content you create should of course be equal to or better than the original broken link content in quality. But having created it, you then need to personalise your outreach emails and focus on the value you’re providing.
Follow up politely if you don’t receive a response from the site owner, and track your success rate and refine your approach over time. If you are able to help one website in this way others should follow, all of which creates more convertible traffic to your own site through the backlinks.
- Infographic Creation and Outreach
Infographics are visual representations of information or data which can act as a powerful tool for content marketing and link building.
You start by creating informative, visually appealing infographics on topics relevant to your niche. You then publish each infographic on your website, including an embed code for easy sharing, then conduct outreach to relevant other websites, offering the infographic as a valuable resource for their audience.
This process increases engagement with your own content, and thus your own offer. It makes complex information more digestible and shareable and can attract backlinks from high-quality websites. It also establishes you as a thought leader, and thus makes your site and your brand go-tos for other companies and consumers. You can also use a backlink checker to see what backlinks your competitors’ content attracts and adjust your content strategy accordingly.
Your infographics should be on topics which are data-rich and visually interesting. You can create them with tools such as Canva or Piktochart, or hire a professional designer from a reputable agency which does wider work.
Your infographics must be factually accurate and cite reliable sources, but must also include your own branding and website URL. A targeted outreach strategy is necessary for promoting infographics, which can be logically extrapolated from their original purpose.
- Core Web Vitals Factors
Core Web Vitals are a set of specific factors Google considers important in a webpage’s overall user experience. They are part of Google’s Page Experience signals, which are used in ranking websites.
The three Core Web Vitals are:
- Largest Contentful Paint (LCP): measures loading performance
- First Input Delay (FID): measures interactivity
- Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS): measures visual stability
Optimising Core Web Vitals improves the user experience on your website and can lead to better search engine rankings. It reduces bounce rates and increases engagement, thus improving conversion rates.
You begin by using Google’s PageSpeed Insights tool to analyse your Core Web Vitals. Having done this you optimise images and minimise CSS and JavaScript where possible and implement lazy loading for images and videos.
Server response times also need to be optimised to ensure the Core Web Vitals are actually having an impact. Ensuring stability of content during page loads is also essentiaL, for the same reason.
- Google Manual Actions/Penalties
Google manual actions are penalties applied by human reviewers at Google when they determine that pages on a website are not compliant with Google’s webmaster quality guidelines.
The types of content which provoke manual action penalties include:
- Unnatural links to or from your site
- Thin content with little or no added value
- Cloaking and sneaky redirects
- Pure spam
- Cloaked images
- Hidden text and keyword stuffing
Manual actions can result in your site achieving lower search rankings or being completely removed from search results. This in turn negatively affects your site’s credibility and traffic.
You address manual actions by checking the Google Search Console for any manual action reports, and then understanding what the specific violation is and exactly which pages it affects. After taking corrective action you submit a reconsideration request to Google.
You can prevent manual actions by adhering to Google’s webmaster guidelines and regularly auditing your site for potential issues. Focus at all times on creating high-quality, valuable content and avoid black-hat SEO techniques used by those looking for shortcuts. Moreover, leverage various efficient and free SEO tools to enhance your site’s visibility and optimize your content strategy.
- Spam Score Removal
Spam Score is a metric developed by Moz which predicts the likelihood of a website being penalised or banned by search engines based on an analysis of known penalised sites.
Factors which can contribute to a high spam score include:
- Low-quality or spammy backlinks
- Thin or duplicate content
- Keyword stuffing
- Cloaking or redirects
- Site structure issues
A high spam score can negatively affect your search engine rankings and thus decrease organic traffic. It can also attract manual penalties from search engines, as discussed.
You improve your spam score by conducting a thorough backlink audit and removing or disavowing toxic links. It also helps improve your site’s content quality and relevance by ensuring your site structure and internal linking are logical and user-friendly and fixing any technical SEO issues like duplicate content or improper redirects.
You can monitor your spam score regularly using tools like Moz or SEMrush. Fix the most critical issues first and adopt a regular site audit schedule to catch potential issues early. Focus on building high-quality, natural backlinks and continuously create valuable, original content for your audience, which can only improve all aspects of your SEO performance.
Conclusion
While these six elements of digital marketing might not be as well-known as some other strategies, they can have a significant impact on your website’s performance, search engine rankings and overall online presence. By implementing a strong SILO structure, leveraging broken link outreach, creating compelling infographics, optimising for Core Web Vitals, avoiding manual actions and maintaining a low spam score you can give your digital marketing efforts a powerful boost.
Digital marketing is an ever-changing field, and staying informed about these lesser-known tactics can give you a competitive edge. This is the value of partnering with a credible agency: you don’t have the time to keep up with all the developments and understand their implications, but the agency does nothing else, so its solutions are the product of the heavy lifting you will never be able to do. Consider enrolling in a digital marketing course to deepen your understanding and stay ahead in the ever-evolving field.
As with any aspect of a marketing strategy, it’s important to test these methods, measure their impact and refine your approach based on the results. But by incorporating these hidden gems into your digital marketing toolkit you’ll be well-equipped to improve your online visibility, engage your audience more effectively and achieve your marketing goals.
There are various ways to find a credible agency. One of the best is to question its representatives about these very topics: if they can answer your queries in terms which make sense, having read this guide, you are on the right track.
