What are inbound links?

Inbound links, or backlinks, are hyperlinks from one Web site to another Web site. You've probably heard someone say, "To rank high in Google, you need links."

Websites with many relevant and high-quality backlinks are more likely to rank high in search engines. So it is important for SEO (Search Engine Optimization). If your website's pages are linked to a lot, search engines see that you have authority on a particular topic.

Quality of inbound links

For search engines, not only the quantity of inbound links plays a role in judging the authority of your Web site. The quality of the links is perhaps even more important. In other words, search engines look at where the link comes from. For example, an inbound link from a website with high authority weighs a lot more heavily than a link from a website with low authority.

The following points are important for a good inbound link:

• The authority (strength) of the website linking to you.
• The relevance of the website linking to you (same industry, field of work is more valuable).
• The quality of the website linking to you. For example, the quality of the content.
• The position of the inbound link: a prominent link weighs much more heavily than a link in the footer, for example.
• How many external links are present on the page in question. The fewer, the better!
• The anchor text of the link: keywords are important, but it's even more important to keep your link profile as natural as possible.

How do you get inbound links?

Earning inbound links is not easy. That also makes it an important factor for search engines. You have to create really good content to earn backlinks.

Here are some examples of things you could do:

• Do keyword research so you know exactly where the demand is.
• Write guest blogs on other websites.
• Write about current topics.
• Make sure your visitors can easily share your content on social media.
• Write high-quality content worth sharing.
• Monitor backlinks.

Inbound link monitoring with HubSpot

If you are serious about link building (getting inbound links), it is recommended to keep monitoring your links. As a HubSpot user, you have a great tool at your disposal for this. By clicking on 'Links' via 'Reports', you get an overview of all your inbound links. This will give you insight into the following data:

• The number of links that link to your website.
• The number of websites that link to your website.
• The authority of the websites that link to your website.
• The anchor text used for the link.

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