Backlinks for Tourism: What They Are and Why You Need Them
The tourism industry used to be all about wining and dining agents. Alternatively, you jumped at being included in the latest edition of Lonely Planet or featuring in the New York Times travel section. While getting your name in print is still a huge win, digital marketing offers massive scope for quick wins by focusing on backlinks.
You don’t need to be an SEO expert to understand the basics of why backlinks for tourism are integral to the success of finding your website. So, keep reading to better grasp the fundamentals of why you should prioritise gaining quality backlinks today.
What is a backlink for tourism?
Let’s start with the basics. Every website and the individual webpages have a unique address or URL (Uniform Resource Locator). A hyperlink is when a section of text on a page is linked to that on another webpage; it is typically highlighted in blue and, when clicked, will open a new webpage with further information.
Why do you need backlinks for tourism?
You don’t NEED backlinks. However, there isn’t much use in having an excellent website that no one knows how to find. It’s like building a mansion and forgetting to build roads, paths, interlocking doors or any access points whatsoever. You might think it looks fantastic, but no one will ever visit or find their way from one room to another.
So, now you might say – ‘but my company has an excellent name, clients can just Google it’. However, websites at the top of Google’s first SERP typically have triple the volume of backlinks than those further down the page. Google is increasingly prioritising backlinks as a vote of confidence for your brand, website and the content you put forth. The more credible your tourism business is, the more backlinks you will likely have.
Backlinks are essential for tourism businesses to increase their SEO by:
- Raising awareness for your brand
- Improving SERP ranking
- Increasing referral traffic
- Enabling your business to get discovered
How do you get backlinks for your tourism business?
It might seem tempting to ask everyone to link back to your site. However, this is the wrong approach. When getting backlinks for tourism, you want to focus on quality over quantity. A backlink from The Brandt Guide will give more credibility to your website than one from your teenage neighbour’s blog about Minecraft.
Here are some simple, quick ways to gain quality backlinks for your tourism business:
Membership in Africa’s Eden
As an Africa’s Eden member, your business can have a dedicated page on Africa’s Eden website. This page has an enquiries button that backlinks to your company’s website. However, don’t forget that while building links into your website, you also strategically want to link OUT.
Africa’s Eden Tourism Association is about collaboration. We believe that the whole is greater than the sum of our parts, and building backlinks is an excellent example. If all Africa’s Eden members showcase Africa’s Eden logo and link back to the website, then it is better for all involved. In addition, it builds credibility for your business, Africa’s Eden, and other members.
Where should you backlink to Africa’s Eden?
Keep in mind that a backlink is basically a seal of approval. You are acknowledging that a webpage (whether one of your own internal pages or an external site) can offer expert information on the subject. High authority sites such as Africa’s Eden allow others to digitally piggyback on their site authority.
Africa’s Eden webpages that we recommend linking to:
- Your individual business page
- Africa’s Eden Covid information page
- An Africa’s Eden blog page
How to get backlinks for tourism
There is no getting around the fact that obtaining quality backlinks takes concerted effort. Sure, you might luck out and be included in a positive news article or a viral video; however, these are few and far between and never guaranteed. Therefore, to get backlinks for tourism, you need to prioritise your digital marketing strategy.
Few tourism businesses have the budget for a dedicated, full-time SEO expert. As such, rather than be overwhelmed with where to start, we recommend focusing on one point. Find what piques your interest and dedicate a half day per month to this effort. Examples of what to do include:
- Sign up for HARO – Help a Reporter Out
- Offer to write a guest travel post for a niche website
- Write a listicle about your destination – I.e. 10 Must-Do Winter Activities in Southern Africa
- Find broken links on other pages and offer a suggested alternative
- Offer a service exchange with a travel influencer
- Create content on your website that is worth linking back to
- Search for mentions of your brand online and reach out for hyperlinks
- Add your company to online directories
When creating backlinks for tourism, small, incremental steps can lead to big success. Don’t get overwhelmed by the digital jargon, but rather concentrate on what you find most rewarding – remember that unique content for tourism comes in numerous forms.