Found in the traffic sources section in Google Analytics, this describes the traffic generated from inbound links – links on other websites that refer traffic to you. Inbound links are important as they create “more exits off the information highway” to quote a phrase I used in 1997.

In addition to more traffic, search engines factor the number of inbound links into their ranking algorithm. With Google this is known as PageRank (Named for Google founder Larry Page, not because it rates a web page). You can check a site’s PageRank by the green bar in the Google toolbar.

Link building

The goal with this statistic is to increase the number of inbound links that can potentially send traffic. In referring sites you’ll see a list of URLs, ranked by number of visits from the links. To judge the best links, adjust the date range to get a wide enough view so you have enough volume to discount the anomalies. Identify the types of sites that send the most traffic. Also sort the list by pages/visit and time on site. Good quality links will deliver visitors that stay longer and view more so also look for a low bounce rate. A high bounce rate could indicate that the link is not relevant to your site, or it’s linked to the wrong page.

Invest some time researching online to find similar relevant sites and contact them to request a link. Good sources for links include:

• Topic specific/niche directories
• Resource sites
• Associations with which you are a member
• Niche blogs and forums – legitimate authentic participation - no sales pitches
• Vendors and partners

It's also a good idea to avoid link farms. Reciprocal links are fine if they are individually considered and relevant to each other. Search engines take note of mutual admiration. But any offer to get mass links, or pay for links should scream snake oil.

It’s likely you have other links than what you see in your analytics. To find out, go to Google and type link:domainname into the search field, i.e. link:isl.ca (www & http not necessary) The results will show all of the web pages that contain a link to your website. Use this to check out your competitors websites too, and request links where they are listed (if appropriate).

You should also check to ensure your links are good quality. You may be missing traffic because a link is not optimal. What makes a quality link?

1. Appropriate landing page - Not all links should go to your homepage. If ISL had a link on a directory of email marketing consultants, why send people to our homepage when a link directly to the email marketing services page results in a better match? The visitor’s expectation and hopefully needs are met faster.
2. Keyword rich text link - Oftentimes referral links are simply from logo images. While there is value in the link itself, there is additional value from keywords in the link as search engines factor them into their ranking algorithm. In our email example, it is preferable to have the link text be “isl web marketing & development provides email marketing consulting services.” vs. “isl web marketing & development”
3. Popularity – Remember high school? Remember the social cred you got from hanging out with the quarterback compared to hanging out with the president of the community service club? (I was president of the community service club) Link popularity works the same way. A link from a popular website – with lots of its own links – builds your online credibility, and PageRank.
4. Quality content – To attract good links you need to have good content. Why would another website what to be associated with you if you don’t offer value to their visitors? Writing a blog is a great way to build links, if you can consistently deliver value and attract a following.

Building links is an ongoing activity as your organization evolves. Spending 1 or 2 hours per month to research and request new links, and ensuring you have great content to link to, will deliver a steady stream of traffic from referring sites.

Need to outsource your link building? See ISL’s new Internet marketing program.

Or try a web writing workshop to tune-up your website content