YouTube Backlinks: How, Where and Why to Build Them

YouTube is the world’s second most used search engine, owned by the world’s first most used search engine: Google. 

In this article, we’re going to explore the benefits of YouTube backlinks and how, when and why you should build them. With more than 2 billion monthly users and hundreds of hours of new content uploaded each minute, businesses and content creators alike are incorporating YouTube into their traffic and lead-generation strategies in a major way. 

What are YouTube backlinks?

In a nutshell, YouTube links are those that point to your website from a YouTube channel. While YouTube backlinks are nofollowed by default, and they do not provide any link equity (in the way that high authority dofollow backlinks will), they do the following: 

• Send quality and social signals to search engines. 
• Are part of a diversified backlink portfolio. 
• Can be a good source of referral traffic. 

Of particular importance is the idea of referral traffic. Your, and other people’s YouTube channels can be a great source of traffic and, provided your website is well-optimized for a good user experience, that can be long dwell times (which Google likes), as well as conversions. 

The different categories of YouTube Backlinks

YouTube backlinks refer to two types of backlinks which you may already be familiar with. They are: 

• Dofollow YouTube backlinks
• Nofollow YouTube backlinks

A dofollow backlink–the kind that dofollow specializes in building–are those that instruct search engines to pass on SEO value (aka link juice or link equity) to the target website. These are the kinds of links that are going to do the most for your search engine optimization and, ultimately, search engine ranking. 

Over the years, we’ve built some pretty stellar links that have skyrocketed our clients’ organic traffic. 

Nofollow backlinks, on the other hand, are those that have been given and rel=nofollow HTML tag. Any links in YouTube comment sections, for example, are going to be nofollowed by the search engine by default. 

YouTube backlinks in practice and how they factor into SEO

In practice, backlinks you get from YouTube tend to come in one of several ways which we will discuss below. These include: 

• Guest vlogs
• Using microblogging sites
• Using social media 
• Embedding YouTube videos in other content
• PInterest
• Comment sections
• Collaborations
• Broken link building
• Editorial links

Guest Vlogs: Unlocking Backlink Opportunities through Collaborative Content

Guest vlogs represent a powerful strategy for building backlinks through YouTube.

This is a collaborative approach that uses influencers or experts in your industry to create guest vlogs that will not only expand your content repertoire but also open doors for valuable backlinks. 

For instance, when you feature as a guest on another channel, the host typically includes links to your website or social media in the video description, creating a direct pathway for their audience to explore your content. You’re setting the stage for a mutually beneficial arrangement that will not only enhance your backlink profile but also introduce your brand to a new and potentially interested audience. 

Furthermore, it establishes your authority within your niche as you share insights and expertise with a broader community.

Using Microblogging Sites: Maximizing Backlink Potential with Bite-sized Content

Microblogging sites, such as Twitter and Instagram, as well as places like Tumblr, play a crucial role in amplifying your YouTube content and building backlinks. When you share snippets or highlights from your videos on these platforms, you create engaging teasers that captivate your audience's attention. 

To leverage these platforms effectively, you have to create compelling captions that encourage viewers to explore the full content on your YouTube channel. 

You also need to make sure that your posts include links back to the original video or your website. 

By strategically using these microblogging sites to tease and redirect, you drive traffic to your YouTube channel, which you can then, in turn, use as part of a multi-channel strategy to send traffic back to your website. 

The synergy between microblogging and YouTube provides a dynamic avenue for expanding your online reach and enhancing your backlink portfolio.

Using Social Media: Amplifying Backlink Impact through Comprehensive Sharing

Social media platforms, including Facebook, LinkedIn, and others, offer a multifaceted approach to backlink building when integrated with your YouTube strategy. More and more people are incorporating all of these platforms into their holistic digital marketing strategy, especially as organic traffic from Google continues to be eaten away at by algorithm updates. 

Beyond microblogging, these platforms provide an opportunity to share full-length videos, engage your audience through comments, and drive traffic to your website. 

Through consistent and strategic use of social media, you not only enhance your video's visibility but also create a network of backlinks that contribute to your overall online presence and SEO efforts. While many of these might not be dofollow YouTube backlinks, they all send signals to search engines about the completeness of your backlink profile and your general presence on the web. 

Embedding YouTube Videos in Other Content: Strengthening Backlinks through Integration

When you embed YouTube videos in other content, such as blog posts or articles on your website, is a potent strategy for building backlinks because it allows you to really enrich the user experience and encourage visitors to spend more time on your site. This engagement signals value to search engines, positively impacting your SEO efforts. 

Additionally, embedded videos often come with video descriptions that include links to your YouTube channel or other related content. 

By utilizing an interconnected approach, you strengthen the association between your video content and website while also contributing to a cohesive online presence that enhances your backlink strategy.

Leveraging the synergy between video and written content can significantly bolster the impact of your backlink-building efforts and is something that more site owners need to be seriously considering in the current era of SEO. 

Pinterest: Crafting Visual Narratives for Backlink Success

Pinterest, renowned for visual storytelling, serves as a unique avenue to strengthen your backlink profile. Utilizing Pinterest strategically involves creating visually appealing pins that showcase snippets or highlights from your YouTube videos. 

Each pin can be linked directly to the corresponding video, fostering a seamless transition for users interested in exploring the full content. As Pinterest emphasizes the visual aspect, it provides an engaging platform to showcase your video content in a compelling and shareable format. 

When users discover and engage with your pins, it not only drives traffic back to your YouTube channel but also establishes a network of backlinks that contribute to your overall online visibility.

Comment Sections: Building Relationships and Backlinks through Engagement

This is one of those comment section link building methods that really any link builder should be able to get behind because it is one of the few times when putting links into comments sections a) is entirely legitimate and b) is entirely within your control. 

Engaging with your audience in the comment sections of your YouTube videos is not only a great practice for community building but also a subtle yet effective way to encourage backlinks. When responding to comments, you can include relevant links to your website or other videos that provide additional value to viewers. 

By fostering a sense of community and actively participating in discussions, you increase the likelihood that viewers will explore the links you share. Genuine interactions in the comment section not only contribute to a positive online community but also serve as an organic avenue for building backlinks as part of a collaborative and interactive online environment.

Collaborations: Mutual Backlink Opportunities for Collective Growth

At dofollow, we see ourselves as relationship-based link builders. That is to say, we believe a lot of link building success is predicated on solid relationships with websites and site owners in your niche. 

Collaborating with other content creators within your industry is a dynamic strategy for mutual growth and backlink acquisition. 

When you engage in collaborative projects or feature others in your videos, it often results in reciprocal backlinks. Your collaborator may link to your YouTube channel or website in their video descriptions and vice versa. T

his symbiotic relationship not only expands your audience by tapping into each other's follower bases but also creates a network of interconnected backlinks. Collaborations bring diversity to your content, enhance credibility through associations, and contribute to the overall robustness of your backlink strategy.

Broken Link Building: Seizing Opportunities for Backlink Reclamation

Believe it or not, you can also incorporate broken link building tactics into your YouTube backlink building. 

This strategy involves finding websites in your niche that have broken links, often to content similar to your own. 

This is a more indirect way of broken link building because the aim is to get site owners to link to your YouTube video, which in turn will hopefully end up directing traffic to your website and links to your content.

Editorial Links: Earning Backlinks through Quality Content and Outreach

Earning editorial links involves creating high-quality, valuable content that naturally attracts backlinks from authoritative websites, and it is entirely possible to do this with YouTube content. 

By consistently producing informative and shareable content on your YouTube channel, you increase the likelihood of other content creators and websites linking to your videos. However, proactive outreach is often essential to bring your content to the attention of relevant publications, bloggers, or influencers who may find it valuable for their audience. 

Editorial links are seen as genuine endorsements, and they carry significant weight in search engine algorithms. A comprehensive content strategy, combined with targeted outreach efforts, positions your videos for editorial links that contribute to the overall strength and credibility of your online presence.

Why you should build YouTube Backlinks

YouTube is both a generator of links to your site and a source of traffic. What we mean by this is that you acquire links from YouTube organically when you do things like create fresh video content and add links to your website or other online resources in the video descriptions, comments, or video annotations.

Additionally, YouTube itself can be a source of traffic and visibility for your website, as users discover and engage with your videos, potentially leading them to visit your linked website for more information. This dual role of YouTube as both a generator of links and a source of traffic makes it a valuable platform for online marketing and brand promotion.

Organic Link Building

There are various ways that organic link building can occur with YouTube. 

Video Descriptions

When you create and upload videos on YouTube, you have the opportunity to include detailed video descriptions.

In these descriptions, you can provide additional information, context, and most importantly, links to relevant resources, including your website. This way, you give viewers who find your content interesting or informative may click on these links to explore further.

In addition to more traffic to your site, you might also end up putting your content in front of people who like it enough to want to link to it. You can, therefore, do some good indirect link building with YouTube backlinks. 

Comments Section

Engaging with your audience through the comments section allows you to interact directly with viewers. You can use this space to share additional information, answer questions, and include links to related content on your website.  

Genuine engagement can lead to increased trust and interest in exploring your website, which, in turn, can end up generating some great backlinks. 

Annotations and Cards

YouTube provides features like annotations and cards that allow you to overlay links or additional information directly on the video. 

These interactive elements can serve as direct pathways for viewers to access your website, products, or other relevant content. Don’t go overboard with the links and disturbances to the viewing experience in your videos. But, strategically placed, you can get a lot of people clicking and visiting your website if you do it right. 

YouTube as a Source of Traffic

It is also worthwhile to try and incorporate some YouTube backlinks into your link profile because of their traffic generating potential. 

• Video Views and Click-Throughs: The more views your videos receive, the more potential traffic your linked website may receive. A compelling video that captures viewers' attention can lead to increased click-throughs to your site, driving valuable traffic.

• YouTube Search and Recommendations: YouTube's search algorithm and recommendation system can expose your videos to a broader audience. If your content aligns with user interests, your videos may appear in search results or be recommended on users' homepages, introducing your brand to new audiences.

• Video Embeds: Users may embed your YouTube videos on their own websites or share them on social media. These embedded videos retain the links in their descriptions, potentially driving additional traffic to your website as viewers explore the content.

YouTube's role as both a generator of links and a source of traffic underscores its significance in digital marketing strategies.

By leveraging the platform effectively, you can enhance your online presence, drive traffic to your website, and build a robust online community, which are two things that are going to end up having a powerful indirect effect on your rank and traffic. 

Wrapping up

While search engines like Google don’t view nofollow links from something like a YouTube video in the same they would dofollow links acquired organically. 

But the different types of YouTube backlinks can be great additions to your overall backlink profile, which also end up resulting in referral traffic and even generate backlinks indirectly. 

While your search engine rankings are impacted by more than just the number of dofollow backlinks you have, a dofollow link is still the most powerful ranking signal you can send to Google. 

Having other websites linking back to your content is what will determine a large part of your success in the search engine results pages.

Get in touch with dofollow today and see if your site and business are good candidates for our performance-based, user-centric link building.