Being about three weeks deep into my role as Chief Link Maestro at Elixir Systems, I have quickly learned why content is considered king. I’d dabbled in link building previously but had never really taken the reins and planned a link building campaign from scratch. Previously it had always been as a compliment to the SEO that was already in place. I’d see which terms needed a boost and figure out how to get some links. It’s not that I didn’t already know that content was king, I just wasn’t 100% on board with the slogan.
Lack of Quality Content is Expensive
Lacking linkable content is expensive and will make it increasingly difficult to compete. The site that is churning out great content and is continually getting links from all different parts of the web will be top of mind and top of search results. In order to stay competitive those that fail to do so will be forced to buy and/or rent links until they can figure out how to naturally attract links. Making an initial investment in quality unique content that people naturally want to link at will save you money on rented links and time in the future. Good content attracts links over time. A small investment (of time and/or capital) can yield many links today and will always be able to attract links in the future.
Secondary Cost of Buying/Renting Links
Bought or rented links rarely yield additional links as they are purchased mostly for ranking purposes, not traffic generation. Once the contract is up, the links are gone and possibly the rankings go with it. The most costly factor is the advantage that your competitors are growing by producing and syndicating quality content that attracts visitors and links. They’re building brand awareness and gaining traffic, two things that are very difficult to accomplish by purchasing and/or renting links.