Backlink for your Interior Design Blog

One of the best ways to get higher rankings for your interior design blog or website is to create backlinks. But, what is that? A backlink is an incoming hyperlink from one web page to another website. In normal speak, it is a link that someone else puts on their site that connects to your site.  

So if I put a link to WallsbyDesign.com in The Chaise Lounge blog and you can click on it, it will take you to my Walls by Design website. It is considered a link on this page, and a backlink on my Walls by Design site. Backlinks bring credibility but do not create as much value as a link (like on this page). Why is this? Because Google gives more value to others linking to you, and the bigger and more authority the connecting website, the more weight the backlink brings to your site.  In other words, a backlink coming to this site from Colorado Homes & Lifestyles brings more weight than a link from the Walls by Design site. Yes, think of it as a popularity contest. You want to be linked to the cool kids.  

So how can you get these backlinks? Well, there is a good way and a bad way. The bad way is to sign up for services that promise to create hundreds of backlinks for you for a small fee. I’ve already told you that the quality of the referring site matters, but there are also sites that can be negative for your website because they have a bad reputation for bad practices.  Just like hanging out with the bad kids. Google is the ultimate big brother, and Google knows all, so don’t try and cheat the system.  

Good links can be created in a few different ways.  Here are a few of the most common:

1. Referrals.  Have you ever written a testimonial or a reference for a company that they can use on their website?  Make sure they give you a link (or backlink) to your site. Here is an example of a testimonial I did for someone, and I am trying to get them to add the link for me. It is good to do these for the backlinks, but I think it is just good business as well. You can do it for products, the contractors that work for you on projects, and the services you use.

2. Blog posts.  Contributing to other blogs can be a great way to get links. Remember, the more traffic it gets, the higher the authority, and the better the link. I recently wrote an article for Stacy Garcia’s blog called Life-styled.net on Finding your Value as a Design Firm. For one, it is great to have the link for our site, but it is also great to be associated with a great brand like Stacy Garcia. I met Stacy when I covered High Point Market in the Spring of 2016. We hit it off wonderfully, and you can hear her interview in episode 60.

3. Simple quotes.  You don’t always have to write a whole entire article. I recently was involved in an event that was put together by our local ASID and NKBA chapters, but was also organized by Colorado Homes & Lifestyles, and received two links. One for wallsbydesign.com and one for thechaiseloungepodcast.com.

 Boom! A two for one! So, if you are ever asked to speak at an event, be sure to get links to any post-event marketing. Most of the time, these opportunities don’t pay off monetarily, but they can pay off in terms of marketing Google power.

4. Blog comments.  Some of these are better than others. It will depend on how they have their comments managed on the blog. I would recommend not doing random fly-by comments, but to give good, thoughtful comments, and then to make sure you input your website. These types of comments can pay off in other ways as well, but that is a topic for a different day.

5. Get listed.  Be a resource for different people. If you have vendors that have websites and list industry partners, make sure they include you. I see this more on builder or remodeling sites, but you may have a paint contractor you work with that would give you a mention on their site. I know I would if we were doing business together, and you asked me for a link.

6. Local listings.  Make sure you have an updated profile in Google Local (or maps, or whatever they are calling it these days), on Yelp (even just the free account), Bing, and any other listing services. These are low hanging fruit. If you are on the fence about the BBB and becoming a member, just know that the linking power is just about worth it, by itself. They have great Google power.

As you can see there is a lot that goes into creating backlinks. If you are curious to know how many you have, or how many a competitor has, you can use a fee service: semrush.com. It’s super simple, and it will give you a lot more information other than just how many backlinks you have. You can check it out for free, but as you can see, it gives you a lot of information like links, traffic, search words, and so much more. They do have a paid version that will give you more information, but that might be a little overkill for your purposes. I used it to research a competitor to find out that they have 2,700 compared to my 25. Ouch, I have a lot of work to do (but that’s okay, they refer us a lot). Better get started.

Go get some backlinks for your interior design blog too, and see what happens to your traffic!

-Nick

If you want to connect with Nick May and The Chaise Lounge, please do so on our website at TheChaiseLounge.com where we talk the business of interior design.