(Photo : Image by Jason Goh from Pixabay )

Link building as it used to be practiced is dead. If you don't update the way you build links, your site runs a risk of getting penalized by Google.

That's why it's essential to know the latest and most innovative ways to make links, as highlighted below.

Ask For Links

If you're just getting started with link building, this is the first thing you have to do. Try to come with relatives, friends, partners, colleagues, and clients who own a site or blog -- and ask people you know for backlinks.
Also, you should ask for in-content links, not in the footer or sidebar. But -- and this is critical -- make sure the backlink is from a site that's related to your subject. If your site focuses on car maintenance and your neighbor's site is all about frogs, the link will not help ... and Google may penalize you.

Nurture Relationships

For the best in link-building success, you need to nurture relationships with other businesses and site owners. There are so many opportunities to grow and develop new contacts!

You can begin with only communities related to your niche, including blogs, social groups, and forums. Take the first step and create relevant and interesting posts and comments in those communities.

Do your best to offer value in every post and discussion. When you participate in these communities and show you have something to offer, you will develop quality backlinks.

Provide Testimonials

Link building with testimonials kills two birds with one stone. Many companies will offer you the opportunity to say a few words about using their product or service.

First, this is an ideal way for them to develop customer trust. Second, it's perfect for you to get a quality backlink and traffic from that website.

Typically, this method has a higher approval rate than a generic backlink email request.

Write A Blog

This is a great idea, but don't write one that consists of a single post with a backlink to your website. If you do that, you're wasting your time, and creating little more than a risky site link.

If writing a blog is what you want to do, it's vital to have it active and alive every week over a period of time. Write blog posts every day or week. Write about your niche and industry, and focus on what your clients want.

As time passes, you'll steadily gain site authority. Make certain all of your content is useful, relevant, and well written.

This is the way to persuade people they want to read your content and link to it. It's the best way to get high-quality backlinks: you work hard and earn them.

Write Quality Guest Posts

Many blogs and websites will gladly publish a post you write for them. Before you compose your post, make sure that blog and post are relevant to your work. Also, the article cannot simply be promotional and talk solely about how excellent your company is.

The focus must be on high-quality, relevant content for that niche or industry. Always keep in mind that circulating poor content can only hurt your company.

List Website In High-Quality Directories

There are plenty of online directories that are all but worthless. That's why Google has excluded them from their results. No one wants their website on those directories.

But not every directory is terrible. Niche directories and ones that are linked to significant websites for the particular industry can be a fine choice. Getting your site listed on those directories will make it much easier to be indexed by Google.

When you follow the simple link-building tips above, you will get a good start for your website or blog. Link building has changed, but it still works if you follow the most recent best practices.