SEO Glossary: Trustlink

Why do trust links contribute to natural link building?

Natural link building can be described with one term: Diversification. The search engine algorithms rate those websites as natural that not only use internal links, but also external links. In addition, dofollow links should dominate, but at least some nofollow links should be found.

 

Away from the technical terms and now to the actual core topic: How do trustlinks fit into the overall link building process?

 

• A trust link is an external link, i.e. it leads from your own website to a specific subpage of a third-party website.
• The name of the "trust link" already states that it is intended to generate trust. This is achieved by only selecting websites for links that Google and other search engines consider trustworthy.
• It can be assumed that all websites that achieve a high ranking in the search engines are classified as trustworthy by Google and Co.

 

The integration of trust links helps to optimize the rankings of many websites. The reason for the positive effect of trust links on search engine optimization(SEO) is derived from two aspects that many website operators continue to get wrong: On the one hand, this is the exclusive use of internal links to increase the time users spend on their own website. Secondly, many website operators sell or buy backlinks which, without the integration of trust links, are quickly exposed as purchased links, which leads to the pages with the purchased links being penalized.

 

 

Trustlinks help to cover a topic more broadly and offer users added value

The aforementioned problem of increasing the length of time users spend on your website and therefore not using external links is almost as old as online marketing itself. In principle, it is understandable that the operator wants to keep users on his website for as long as possible because, firstly, a long user dwell time is a positive ranking factor for Google and other search engines and, secondly, a long dwell time increases the likelihood of conversions.

 

In terms of user experience (UX), it is nevertheless desirable to set external links in addition to internal links. Ideally, these should lead to a trustworthy website that provides high-quality information on a topic that is not covered on your own website.

 

An example illustrates this in more detail:

 

• The operator of a web store for cycling equipment regularly publishes articles about equipment in the blog and gives tips on which equipment is appropriate for which type of bike tour.
• In an article about choosing the right bike saddle, other equipment that is available in the store is mentioned in passing. So the website operator links to the pages where this equipment can be found; these are internal links.
• At the same time, however, the store operator finds an interesting article in the online magazine SPIEGEL, which describes popular cycling destinations in Germany. He sets a trust link to this article.

 

A trust link like the one in this example offers added value, as on the one hand it fits the topic and on the other hand it offers users further information on an aspect that is not discussed in detail in the bicycle web store. This is entirely in line with the user experience.

 

In addition to the advantages for the user experience, the algorithm of every known search engine - from Google to Yahoo to Bing - recognizes the additional added value: On the one hand, the thematically broader coverage is determined because the content of the linked page is read. On the other hand, the trustworthiness of the linked page is known to Google and Co. so that the trust link is recognized as such. In this case, setting trust links promotes natural link building, which is particularly important when website operators sell or buy links.

 

The camouflage link to avoid penalties

Trustlinks owe their alternative name to their great effect for the purpose of "camouflage". Such camouflage is required wherever unnatural link building is practiced. This is the case when buying, exchanging and renting backlinks.

 

Generating backlinks is one of the most important measures in off-page SEO. Because it takes a long time to generate backlinks naturally, especially for new websites, the decision is usually made to buy backlinks. As an alternative to buying links, links are occasionally exchanged between websites; less frequently, backlinks are rented.

 

The catch with all these practices is that they are very well recognized and exposed by Google's algorithm. The websites that have traded links with each other are penalized - with luck, only the pages involved in the trade are penalized and receive a lower ranking, with bad luck, the entire website is penalized.

 

In order to camouflage this trade, it is important to ensure that you do not always work with the same link partners. It is also important to diversify link building. Trust links contribute to the latter: One or two of these links on a page with a purchased backlink can disguise link trading and thus prevent penalties from Google and the like.

 

However, the integration of trust links to disguise the purchase of links requires some sensitivity and experience. It is therefore always advisable to seek advice from an SEO expert when it comes to broadly diversified link building.