Whether you've just started optimizing your site for top search engine rankings or your site is already ranking well in the search engines, backlinks are probably the most valuable SEO asset your site can have. Search engines take the number, quality, and relevancy of your inbound links into consideration when ranking your site. In fact, backlinks, or inbound links, account for over half of the factors that determine your rankings.

As important as getting quality inbound links is, it can be difficult to get them. Here are a few proven methods that you can use to build backlinks that will help you boost your sites search engine rankings.

1: Article submissions

Write an article on a topic related to your site, then submit it to free article sites. Your article can then be reprinted all over the web, always with a link back to your website.

2: Free directory submissions

There are hundreds of directories that will give you a link for free - just follow their instructions for submitting your site, then be patient - it may take several months for your site to be listed.

3: Paid directory submissions

Why pay for directory listings if you can get them for free? Many webmasters choose to buy directory listings, for several reasons. First of all, your site will generally be listed much quicker. Also, you can often get a higher quality link from a paid submission than a free submission.

4: Three way link exchanges

Link exchanges are arguably not as helpful as they once were, but 3 way links are still excellent. (Some people believe that the search engines will eventually discount them, but if done properly, they can be nearly impossible to detect.

5: Forum posting

Join forums related to your site and become an active member of forums. Of course, you can include a link to your site in your forum signature.