Blogging Roundups: Blogging and SEO on Google

Blogging Roundups
Searched by at Blogging InformerAllex Collins

The Secrets of Making Money Blogging
In interviews I often get asked something like, “What’s your number one
secret to making money online?”
That’s a hard question to answer, because ultimately there’s no one
‘secret’ and no single way to make money online. People use lots of
di erent methods, and in this post I’ll be taking a quick look at some of
them.
Blogging isn’t a ‘get rich quick’ scheme. And you need to stick with it for a
while before you’ll see any results. But whether you’re just starting out or
you’ve been blogging for months or even years, these seven tips should
help.
#1: Choose a Topic You Really Love
If you’re starting a new blog, pick a topic or niche you genuinely love and
are passionate about.
This has several crucial bene ts:
It makes it much easier to stick with your blog for the long term
Your enthusiasm will help readers feel drawn to your content
It helps you create products that people will buy because you know
what they’ll enjoy
Of course, you can make money from an area that doesn’t interest you.
But it’s a lot easier to do it if you’re blogging about something you really
like.
#2: Be as Useful as You Possibly Can
Make your content and your products as useful as possible. Or, as my son
told me once, “Tell the world something important”.

You can make money online by doing things that aren’t useful or
important. You can even do it by ripping people o . But it’s much more
satisfying and sustainable to build a real business that’s useful to your
customers.
#3: Be Con dent About Putting Yourself and Your
Products Forward
Some bloggers nd it really hard to sell themselves or what they do. But
while it is di cult, you must learn how to do it. You need to be able to
make o ers and approach potential partners con dently.
That doesn’t mean you need to hype everything up. A quiet con dence
can work really well.
#4: Diversify What You Do
Don’t just focus on one income stream. Find ways to diversify so that if
something doesn’t work out too well you’ve got other options.
That might mean:
Diversifying the topics you write about. I’ve got two long-running blogs
: Digital Photography School and ProBlogger. Perhaps you have more
than one blog as well. And if one isn’t going well at a particular point,
the other(s) could back it up.
Diversifying your income streams. I don’t rely on just one area (e.g.
ads or selling ebooks). I try to create multiple income streams so that
if one falls over or takes a while to take o , I have others
supplementing my income. Another option is to have a day job that
brings in money while you’re getting your blog going.
#5: Take a Long-Term View

There have been times when I’ve made money fast on the internet. But it
usually came after two or three years of hard work building relationships
with readers and producing content for free.
Try seeing the time, energy and even money you put into your blog as an
investment. Hopefully, it’ll pay o one day. But don’t expect it to happen
immediately.
#6: Treat Making Money as a Business, Not an
Event
Making money online might feel like it’s an event, such as a product
launch. But for most online entrepreneurs it’s a long-term business where
they’re creating something that grows over time.
For example, if you’re doing a liate marketing you’ll be building systems
that continually promote products to your readers (perhaps by using an
auto-responder).
Think strategically about what you’ll be doing and how you’ll be
monetizing your blog. Simply building a blog that gets tra c won’t make
money for you.
#7: Create Your Own Products
Don’t rely on advertising revenue or a liate income where you promote
other people’s products. Instead, work towards having products of your
own to sell. Develop systems around those products to sell them – not just
at the launch, but on an ongoing basis.
This could be an information product (such as an ebook or online course),
a physical product, or a service you o er such as consulting or speaking.

None of these things are new. I rst talked about them in a video I created
back in 2010. But they all work, and if you follow them you’ll have a great
chance of making money from blogging.
If you’ve got a di erent tip to share, or if you want to let us know about
your experience using some of these ideas, leave a comment below.
Free Notice
Blogging has quickly become one of the most popular ways of
communicating and spreading information and news. There are
literally millions of blogs online. It’s a great way to express
yourself and also a fantastic way to share information with
others. Blogging Informer to better serve our audience while
remaining focused on our core purpose: to help bloggers create
and grow powerful, meaningful blogs about whatever topic is
most important to them.
Learn more

How to Build Hundreds of Links to Your Blog
in 5 Minutes a Day
Incoming links to your blog are vital. They not only drive tra c to your
blog from other websites and blogs but also help you rank higher in
search engines, which again leads to more tra c.
The method I’m about to explain is a simple but powerful one. I got it from
a BuzzSumo post, The Simple Tip That Gained Us Over 200 Backlinks. And
they got it from Syed Balkhi from WPBeginner.
Here’s the quick version:
Look for mentions of your blog (or keywords that are relevant to your
blog) on other people’s blogs. Reach out to them to see if there’s an
opportunity for them to link to you.
It’s not rocket science, but it really does work. And here’s the system I use
to do this in just a few minutes each day.
Monitor Your Keywords Using a Tool Like
BuzzSumo
I use the paid version of BuzzSumo to do this, but there are other tools
such as Mention and the free Google Alerts.
In the “Monitoring” tab of BuzzSumo I monitor:
My brand names (ProBlogger and Digital Photography School)
Keywords that are relevant to my niche.
Once you put those words in place, BuzzSumo monitors thousands of
blogs and creates a daily report showing any new content that uses these
words.
How to Build Hundreds of Links to Your Blog in 5 Minutes a Day

in 5 Minutes a Day
With the keywords, you need to choose ones that are fairly speci c and
put them in quotes (e.g. “food photography”) or the results will be
overwhelming.
Think about the key articles on your site that you’d like to build links to –
articles that will be particularly helpful to people. Think about keywords
that could relate to those. Start with two or three articles, and some
relevant keywords for each.
Then go through the reports every day (or once or twice a week if you
want to do it in a larger batch) and look at the list of content.
What to Look For When Monitoring Your Brand
Name and Keywords
When you’re monitoring your brand name and keywords, your outreach
will depend on what was mentioned.
Mentions of your brand name. These may not relate to your blog
speci cally (e.g. sometimes people use the term “problogger” to describe
blogging professionally rather than to reference my blog), but often they
do. The BuzzSumo report will tell you whether there’s a link in the post to
your site or not, which is really useful.
If someone mentions your brand and they don’t link to you, send them a
polite email saying something like this:
“Thanks for mentioning [the name of your blog]. I really found it
interesting to read. [You can add something personal here about their
article]. Would you mind linking back to my article that you mentioned?
You know, every link helps!”

in 5 Minutes a Day
I don’t do this every single time someone mentions ProBlogger. But in
some cases I can see there’s a good opportunity to get a link, such as
when they mention a speci c article.
Mentions of relevant keywords. If your blog is fairly new, your brand
probably won’t get mentioned a lot. In that case keyword monitoring will
be more useful to you, where you keep an eye out for opportunities to
invite someone to link to your site.
How This Works in Practice
Here’s an example. One keyword I monitor is “food photography”. I found
an article on a parenting blog where the blogger shared some recipes and
some photos of the food. They apologised for the photos not being as
good as they could be, and mentioning they wanted to learn how to
improve their food photography.
I sent them an email saying I thought their post was really good, and that
their photos were pretty good as well. I gave them a couple of links to
some articles we’ve written on the topic of food photography.
I didn’t ask for a link. I just wanted to be helpful. And I had no idea who the
blogger was. We’d had no previous contact whatsoever.
They replied a few hours later to say thanks. And I went back to the article
to see they’d updated it with a couple of the links I sent them.
Interestingly, a week later they wrote an entire article about photography.
Not only did they mention the food photography links, they also wrote
about taking photos of kids and linked to some of our posts on that.

in 5 Minutes a Day
This led to an ongoing conversation between us by email. And now they’ve
asked us to write a guest post for their site.
Opportunities open up when people mention things that are relevant to
you, particularly things you can help them with.
Directly Asking for a Link
Sometimes I’ve been a little bit more cheeky and speci cally asked for
links where we have a relevant article.
For instance, I read a post a couple of weeks ago on a blog about dogs,
called “Three Tips for Beginners Photographing Dogs”. It was a short,
simple article that was ideal for beginners. I emailed to say it was a great
article and I loved the images in it. And I shared a couple of links to articles
we’d published on the same topic that were at a more intermediate level.
I made it clear there was no pressure for them to use those links in their
post. I just thought they might be useful to the blogger and/or their
readers. I try to tread very gently with these emails, because I don’t want
to seem spammy.
But in this case the blogger thanked me and added a couple of those links
within a few hours.
How Many Opportunities Should You Follow Up?
Some of the reports I get from BuzzSumo contain 20 or 30 di erent pieces
of content that mention my keywords. And I probably act on around four
of these each day.

in 5 Minutes a Day
When choosing which bloggers to contact, I look for pieces where I can
really add value. And I try to tailor my approach to every situation. It’s
really important to pick and choose carefully, rather than emailing
everyone indiscriminately.
Even a few links a day add up. If I get three or four links a day, that’s 100 a
month or 1,200 new links every year.
It’s still a good idea to monitor keywords associated with your blog even if
you don’t send out any emails. It lets you see what other people are
writing about the same topics, which can give you both ideas for content
and avenues to build relationships with other bloggers.
Making Time for Link Building (and Taking it
Further)
This link building tip works best when you can build it into your routine.
You could set aside ve or ten minutes each day, or perhaps half an hour
in a speci c time slot each week.
It might be a good task to do when you’re not feeling particularly creative,
but have some time to tackle an administrative task.
Of course, you don’t have to contact people by email. You might nd
sending them a message on Facebook or shooting them a tweet works
just as well (or even better). This might seem like a less spammy way to
begin the conversation.
If you want to go further with your link building and SEO, you might want
to check out these episodes of the ProBlogger podcast:

in 5 Minutes a Day
Episode 94: 5 Mistakes Bloggers Make with SEO and What To Do
About Them
Episode 36: Find Readers for Your Blog Through Commenting and
Relationships
Lastly, drop a comment below and let us know if you try out this link
building tip and how it worked for you.

How to Rank #1 in Google (New Step-by-Step
Case Study)
In this post I’m going to show you exactly how to rank #1 in Google.
In fact, this is exact process I used to rank #1 for the VERY competitive
keyword: “list building”.
How to Rank #1 in Google (New Step-by-Step Case Study)

Case Study)
And today you’re going to see how I did it, step-by-step.
Let’s dive right in.
How I Outranked Big Brands (And Hit the #1 Spot
in Google for “List Building”)
I recently published a post on my blog called “List Building: How to Build
an Email List in 2018”.
And my target keyword for that page was “list building”.

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Now:
The keyword “list building” is INSANELY COMPETITIVE.
Think about it:
Every email marketing company in the world wants to rank this keyword.
And I’m a one man show going head-to-head against giant companies like
MailChimp, Aweber and Infusionsoft.
To be honest:
I wasn’t sure that I’d be able to outrank these big brands for a such a
competitive keyword.
But thanks to the process I’m about to share with you, my post quickly hit
Google’s rst page for my target keyword.
And today, I rank in the top 3 for “list building”.

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My post also ranks #1 in Google for dozens of related keywords like “list
building tips”, “list building strategies” and more.

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And thanks to all these rst page rankings, that single piece of content has
brought in 14,832 visits since I rst published it.
OK, enough bragging 🙂
It’s time for me to show you how I did it…
…step-by-step.
Step #1: Make Your Content Insanely Actionable
A few years back, Google rolled out a major update to their algorithm
called RankBrain.

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RankBrain measures how Google searchers interact with your site in the
search results.
If people like your result, Google gives you a rankings boost.

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If not, they’ll drop your rankings like a stone.

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And from my own SEO experiments, I’ve found that all Google searches
want the same thing:
Actionable Content.
Think about it:
When someone searches for something in Google, they don’t want to read
some random person’s opinion.
Instead, they want tactics that they can use to solve their problem right
away.
And if you can give that to them, Google will notice… and bump you up a
few spots.

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For example, when you search for the keyword “list building”, you DON’T
want to hear why building your email list is important.
You DON’T want my take on the future of list building.
You want simple strategies that you can use right away.
That’s why my post has zero u and zero lter.
It’s literally a short intro and 17 bite sized tips that you can implement
within a few minutes.

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And because Google searchers love my result, I rank above sites like
Hubspot and ProBlogger even though they have WAY more backlinks than
me.
Step #2: Use The OPP Formula
I recently conducted the biggest search engine ranking factors study ever.
And one our most interesting ndings was that sites with a low bounce
rate tend to rank above sites with a high bounce rate.

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As you might already know, a bounce is when someone visits your
site….and then quickly jumps back to the search results.
And if lots of people bounce from your site, it sends a strong message to
Google that people don’t like your content.
Like I mentioned earlier, if people aren’t loving your content, Google will
notice… and drop your rankings.

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Fortunately, there’s a simple way to improve your bounce rate:
The OPP Formula.
It’s a content introduction formula speci cally designed to reduce your
bounce rate.

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Here’s how it works:
First, you have the Outcome.
Start your intro o with the OUTCOME that your reader wants.
For example, what does someone searching for “list building” want?
MORE email subscribers!
So I start my intro o with that outcome front-and-center.
Now that you’ve hooked them with the Outcome, it’s time for the Proof.

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Here’s where you prove that you know what you’re talking about.
For example, my intro shows people how I have 90k+ email subscribers.
Finally, cap you intro o with the Preview.
This is easy:
All you need to do is preview what your content has in store for them
For example, my preview gives my reader a sneak peak into my post…
which makes them want to keep reading.

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Step #3: Use External Links
Last year an SEO agency in the UK ran an experiment to see if linking to
other websites helped improve Google rankings.

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And they found that pages that used external links consistently outranked
pages that didn’t link out.
That’s why I ALWAYS generously link out to other authority sites in my
content.
For example, in my list building post, I use 16 external links… including
links to authority sites like the Journal of Consumer Research.

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Now, to be clear:

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I don’t think external links are super important.
But every little bit helps…
…especially when you’re going after competitive keywords.
Step #4: Use Internal Links
Next, it’s time to create internal links that point to the page that you want
to rank.
In other words, add links from OTHER pages on your site to your new
post.
Those internal links will send link authority to your post, which can help
your Google rankings.
For example, you can see that I link FROM these two pages on my site TO
my list building post…
…which funnels juice to the post I want to rank.

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Not only that, but the pages I’m linking from are topically related to my list
building post.
So this tells Google:
“Hey, these closely-related pages are all linking to the same post. That post
must be important. So you should rank it higher.”
Step #5: Add Images, Visuals and Other
Multimedia
Imagine that you had two pieces of content.
Let’s call them Blog Post A and Blog Post B.
And let’s say both pieces of content were exactly the same… with one
major di erence:
Content A looked ugly as hell. And Content B used lots of nice images.

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Which post will do better?
According to lots of industry research, Content B.
In fact, a study conducted by She eld University found that people judge
content based on design rst… THEN they size up the actual written
content.

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So if your content is a giant, ugly wall of text, Google users are going to
instantly bounce.
But if your content contains lots of:
Images
Charts
Visualizations
Infographics
Videos
Quizzes
…They’re going to stick around and read your stu .

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For example, my post is packed with screenshots, visuals and other
multimedia that help make my content look nice.
Now I should point something out:
You don’t need to go crazy and use a million images in every post.
Our search engine ranking factors study found that content with ONE
image outranked pages that didn’t use a single image.

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So using one image is WAY better than not using any at all.

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Step #6: CTR-Optimize Your Title Tag
Like I mentioned earlier, Google pays VERY close attention to how people
interact with your site.
And they want to see that people click on your site in the search results.
So if an above-average amount of people click on your site, it tells Google:
People really want to see this content. We need to push it to the top of the
page!
This is known as organic click-through-rate (CTR)… which is an SEO ranking
factor that’s becoming more and more important every day.

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So if you’re not optimizing your site for CTR, you’re missing out on A LOT
of organic tra c.
With that, here’s exactly what I did to optimize my title for click-through-
rate:
First, I used the phrase “How to” in my title.
I just started testing this.
And it looks like adding the phrase “how to” to your title tag improves CTR.
Next, I made sure to use a number in my title.
Several industry studies show (like this one) that titles that contain a
number get clicked on more than titles without a number.

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So I made sure to include a number (“2018”) in my title tag.
That’s all there is to it.
Step #7: Optimize Your Content For Semantic
SEO
You already know that you should mention your target keyword a few
times in your content.
For example, you can see that I mention my keyword a handful of times
throughout my post.

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To be clear: I’m NOT keyword stu ng.

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I’m just using my target keyword a few times to let Google know that my
content is about: “list building”.
And to help them understand my content even better, I optimize it for
Semantic SEO.
This isn’t nearly as complicated as it sounds.
Semantic SEO simply means that Google now tries to understand the
TOPIC of your page… not just individual keywords.

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And to take advantage of Semantic SEO, all you need to do is sprinkle
related words and phrases into your content.
These related words and phrases help Google understand your content’s
topic.
For example, let’s say you just wrote a post about being more productive.
And your main keyword for that post is: “Productivity Tips”.
You’d just search for that keyword — and related keywords — in Google.
Then, check out the “Searches Related To…” terms at the bottom of the
rst page.

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Finally, add those terms to your content.
You can also use Google Suggest.
Enter your keyword into Google and see what Google suggests to you.

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Again, add a handful of these to your article and you’ll help Google better
understand what your content is all about.
In my case, I found semantically-related terms like “list building
techniques” and “how to build an email list”.

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So I added those terms to my content where it made sense. Simple.
Step #8: Get Lots of Comments On Your Blog
Posts
Do comments help your content rank better in Google?
De nitely.
In fact, a Google employee recently said that comments can help “a lot”
with rankings.
And if you go to my blog you’ll notice that I tend to get lots of comments
on every post.

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And these comments are one of the main reasons that I’m able to rank for
so many competitive keywords.
The question is:
HOW do you get people to actually comment on your blog posts?
Here are two tips that work GREAT.
First, reply to every single comment.
I’m shocked at how many people complain that no one comments on their
stu …

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…and then completely ignore the few comments that they get.
So to show people that I respect their take, I reply to almost every
comment that comes in.
For example, you can see that I took the time to reply to everyone that left
a comment on my list building post.
This shows anyone that reads my post that I read and reply to
comments…
…which makes THEM more likely to leave a comment too.

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And over time, Google sees that my content isn’t just a static page, but an
active community. So they rank it higher.
That said, the hardest part is usually getting the ball rolling with the rst
few comments.
Which leads us to our second tip:
Make your conclusion a call-to-action.
Let’s face it:
Most people’s conclusions are boring summaries of their post.
They say things like: “There you have it, 6 ways to blah blah blah.”
A conclusion like this isn’t to light a re under anyone’s butt to actually
write comment.
Instead, I recommend making your entire conclusion a call-to-action that
encourages people to comment.
For example, today, my post’s conclusion asks people to subscribe to my
newsletter.

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But I also have a CTA to comment:
Step #9 Use Click To Tweet Buttons
This is one of my favorite ways to get more social shares and tra c.

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I’ll explain how Click to Tweet buttons work in-detail in a minute.
But the basic gist is that you add a bunch of buttons to your content that
people can use to tweet individual strategies from your post.
In fact, my list building post includes 17 Click to Tweet buttons.
Now, I should point something out:
Google probably doesn’t use social shares like Tweets, Facebook likes or
Pinterest pins as a direct ranking signal.
In other words, people sharing your stu on social media WON’T help with
SEO…directly.

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That said, social shares can bring your content more tra c.
And the more tra c you get, the better your chances that some of these
visitors will link to your site.
And those links WILL directly improve your rankings.
With that, here’s how to create click-to-tweet buttons, step-by-step.
First, nd a tip, strategy or quote in your content that’s worth sharing.
For example, because my content was a list post, I decided that every
technique on my list would make for a great tweet.

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Next, use ClickToTweet.com to make a click to tweet button. Simply write
the tweet you want, and it’ll create a link that you can use.
Finally, add those links to your content. You can use buttons like I use in
my post.
Or you can just make the links plain-text, like this:

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Either way works.
And when someone clicks on one of your click to tweet buttons, they’ll get
a pre-made tweet that they can use to share that speci c strategy with
their followers.

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And let me tell you, these work GREAT.
In fact, most of the tweets that I got on my post are from people that
shared using my click to tweet buttons.

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Step #10 Promote Your Content With the Content
Roadshow
Here’s the deal:

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If you want to rank in Google today, you need to strategically promote
every piece of content that you publish.
In fact, this is a mistake I made when I was rst starting out.
When I launched my rst website a few years ago, I would just publish a
bunch of content and hope for the best.
I call this “The Publish and Pray Approach”
Back then I underestimated how hard it can be to get people to actually
see the content that you publish.
So I just published… and prayed.
And one day I read that WordPress-powered sites alone put out 2 million
posts every single day.
That’s when I realized that the chances of my content standing out without
any promotion was like winning the lottery.
So I decided to promote everything that I published.
And over the years I developed a handful of content promotion strategies
that work GREAT..

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One of my favorites is called The Content Roadshow.
Thanks to The Content Roadshow, I was able to get my post in front of
in uential bloggers… bloggers that shared my post with their audience.
Here’s the step-by-step process:
First, nd people that are legitimately interested in your post’s topic.
For example, for my content, I found people that wrote about building an
email list. Or people that had shared content on that topic.
You can nd these people by searching in Google…
…or using a tool like Buzzsumo.

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Next, you want to email these people to see if they’re interested in reading
your content.
This is KEY.
You see, when most people promote their content, they’re WAY TOO
PUSHY.
In fact, I get emails that ask or beg me to share someone’s stu .

Case Study)
And I instantly delete them.
Instead, I recommend using a two-step approach.
Your rst email gauges someone’s interest in your content. That way
you’re not shoving a link in someone’s face.
Hi [Name],
I noticed that you recently shared one of my favorite articles about [topic].
I actually have a [topic] post coming out this week that I think you might
enjoy.

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Want me to let you know when it goes live?
Here’s a real life example.
And when someone gets back to you saying they’d like to check out your
content….

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…THEN send them a link.

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Note that I DON’T ask for a share.
Again, the point of the Content Roadshow isn’t to be a pushy jerkface.
Nobody likes a pushy jerkface 🙂
Instead, your goal is to get your content in front of people.
Speci cally, people that have the power to share it.

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And these people aren’t dumb. If they like your content, they’ll share it.
There’s no need to even ask.
In fact, you can see that many of the people that I reached out to happily
shared my content with their followers.

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Which led to hundreds of visitors that would have never seen my content
otherwise.
Bonus Step: Regularly Update Your Content
Back in the day I’d publish a post, promote it, and never look at it again.
And I realized that, over time, a lot of the content on my blog was out of
date.
For example, for my list building post, I had old screenshots, outdated
numbers and tools that didn’t even exist anymore.

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Now only did this outdated content hurt my readers, but it was bad for
SEO too.
Whenever someone came to my site from Google, and saw my stu was
outdated, they’d bounce back to the search results to nd something that
WAS up-to-date.
That’s why I set aside about one day per quarter to review my content…
and update it.
Sometimes my content just needs a new paint job.
So I’ll replace broken links, add new screenshots and rewrite certain
sections to make them more current.

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I’ve done this a few times over the past year or so.
And I’ve noticed that these small tweaks and updates help maintain my
long-term rankings.
But sometimes a new paint job won’t cut it. My content needs a complete
overhaul.
For example, this post on my blog was pretty out of date.
It also was lacking a lot of detail compared to the other content that was
ranking for my target keyword: “YouTube SEO”.
So I went in and completely overhauled and upgraded my post.
For example, I improved my page’s readability and structure so that
Google searchers could nd what they needed even faster.

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I also added a more examples to make the steps easier to understand and
implement.

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Finally, I answered questions that people asked me in blog comments and
on Twitter.
For example, lots of people ask me how long their videos should be.
So I included a little section on that exact topic:

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And those improvements helped increase that page’s organic tra c by
23.49%.

Link Building Strategies: The Complete List
This is the most complete list of link building strategies on the Web.
Period.
In fact, you’ll nd 175 strategies, tips and tactics on this page.
Alumni Lists and Directories
BeginnerNo
Most college sites (or standalone alumni websites) have a section of their
site dedicated to their alumni. And some of them link out.
For example, here’s a business listing (with a link) on the SMU Alumni site.

Ask People You Know for Links
BeginnerNo
This can be friends, relatives, employees, colleagues, business partners,
clients… just about anyone.
More and more people are creating their own sites and blogs (or know
people that do).
That said: you really only want to get links from relevant websites. If it’s
not relevant, it’s not going to have much of an impact. Plus, these people
might be (rightly) hesitant to link to your jewelry store from their football
blog.
Be Speci c With Your Outreach
BeginnerYes

Don’t be afraid to (gently) let your outreach targets know exactly where
you want your link to go.
This isn’t being pushy: it’s considerate. Otherwise you force them to gure
out where your link should go.
Here’s a real life example of a very speci c outreach email:
Better Business Bureau
BeginnerNo

Links from the BBB are now all nofollowed. And Google has said that
getting listed on the BBB doesn’t directly help your SEO. That said, if you
believe that getting listed on the BBB website itself has some SEO value, it
might be worthwhile.
The price of a BBB listing is determined by region and by number of
employees. For example, St. Louis BBB ranges from $370 for 1-3
employees all the way to $865+ for 100-200 employees. Anything over
that, as well as additional websites, constitutes as additional charges.
Either way, you are SUPPOSED to get a link of some kind out of all of this.
You need to check on your listing once it is published as each region has
their own rules regarding their directory. There have been some instances
where a business’ website URL in the directory listing was NOT a live link,
only text. All you have to do is contact your BBB representative and ask for
that to be changed.
Blog Commenting
BeginnerNo
Do blog comments directly lead to dofollow links? No.
But they’re an awesome way to get on a blogger’s radar screen… which
CAN lead to links.
For example, in the early days of Backlinko, I’d comment on marketing and
SEO blogs all the time:

And this helped me build relationships with bloggers in my niche. And
weeks or months later, I noticed some bloggers spontaneously linking to
me. And others ask me to guest post on their site.
Blog Directories
BeginnerNo
If you have a blog, you can submit it to various blog directories.
For example, here’s a link to my blog from AllTop:

Chamber of Commerce
BeginnerNo
Getting a link from your Chamber of Commerce is a guaranteed link just
waiting for you to get. In some cases, though, it takes a little bit of time to
nd the right person to get in touch with.
Company Directory Submissions
BeginnerNo
Just like general web directories, you can submit your site to general
company directories.
Just like with most submission-based tactics, focus on getting links from
highly-relevant sites. For example, are you a startup in NYC? Then this
business directory would be a solid link.

Contribute to Crowdsourced Posts
BeginnerYes
Unless you’re insanely busy, always say “YES!” to crowdsourced post
invites. They usually ask you stu you already know. So it should only take
you 5-10 minutes to write a response.
For example, here’s a link that I got from a crowdsourced post a while
back:

Create an RSS feed
BeginnerNo
If your blog runs on any popular Content Management System (like
WordPress) you probably already have an RSS feed. If you don’t, create
one.
How does an RSS feed help with link building? It’s simple. There are sites
out there that will scrape your content (stealing it without permission).
And they nd your content via your RSS feed. Just make sure to include
internal links to other pages on your site in your content. That way, even if
the scrapers don’t link to your original post, they’ll at least copy your
internal links.
Here’s an example of a scraper site that scraped my content… including
my internal links:

Create Shoulder Niche Content
IntermediateYes
In a boring niche? Well, it’s still possible to get links. You just need to be
creative.
For example, one industry study found that “tangential content” (content
not directly related to what a site sells) resulted in 30% more links and
77% more social shares:

Crowdfunding
BeginnerNo
Use sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo to nd projects that need funding
and are willing to give links to those who contribute. Here’s an example:
Fair warning: This is de nitely a grey area in terms of “paid links”. Use this
strategy at your own risk.
Discounts
BeginnerNo

Discounts are a great way to get mentions in lists like this one.
Just reach out to writers that curate discounts. And let them know about
your discount or coupon.
Donate to Charities & Non-Pro ts
BeginnerNo
Charities and non-pro t organizations usually have a donors page, like
this:

Unfortunately, this is one of the most overused link building strategies on
the planet. In fact, Google has come out and classi ed donation links as
“paid links”.
Email People That You Mention
BeginnerNo
This is simple. But it works.

Whenever you mention or link to someone in your content, let them
know:

Email Signatures

BeginnerNo
If you send out 100 emails a day, having an email signature with a link
back can drive an extra 50+ people a month to your website. It’s not much,
but it requires zero e ort.
Event Resources
BeginnerNo
Create a resource that helps attendees get the most out of their
experience at a popular event or conference.
For example, this SXSW survival guide last year has picked up 29 backlinks:
Fix Grammar and Spelling

BeginnerNo
This is just like Broken Link Building. But instead of broken links, you’re
looking for spelling and grammar mistakes.
Obviously, most people aren’t going to add your link just because you
pointed out that they used “your” instead of “you’re”. But it’s an easy way
to get your foot in the door.
Getting Links From Scraped Content
BeginnerNo
If your content gets scraped, and the scraped piece of content doesn’t
have a link back to you, contact the webmaster and ask for one.
Just like images and infographics, scraping content without attribution is
copyright infringement. So you’ll nd that sites that want to avoid DMCA
complaints are willing to add your link (or delete the scraped content).
That said, most scraper sites aren’t that great anyway. Which means a link
from that site isn’t going to do much for you.
Guest Blogging
BeginnerNo
Guest blogging doesn’t work as well as it used to for two main reasons:
First, bloggers are sick of guest blog pitches.
Second, Google has largely devalued links from guest posts.
That said, guest posting still has its place as a link building tactic. Assuming
you follow these caveats:

Only guest post on sites that are VERY picky about what they publish.
If they accept anything, you probably don’t want a link from that site.
Don’t use exact match anchor text in your external links
Focus on publishing on relevant sites (even if that means
compromising on Domain Authority)
Don’t rely on guest posting as your sole (or main) link building
strategy. That’s a footprint you don’t want
Hire A Recent Graduate
BeginnerNo
I’m not saying you should hire a recent grad for the sole purpose of
getting a link. But if you’ve hired any recently, check to see if there’s a
career sections of their school’s website that talk about recent grads
landing jobs. If so, ask your new hire to outreach for the link. It usually just
takes a quick call or email.
For example, the University of Oregon’s career center has a category of
their blog dedicated solely to this.
Intern/Job Postings
BeginnerNo
If you have any job or internship opportunities, you can get a few easy
.edu links. For example, if you work in anthropology and you’re looking for
an intern, here’s an easy link.
If you run an agency, compile as many of these opportunities as you can
in a spreadsheet. And categorize them by category (i.e. travel, hospitality,
etc.). These will come in handy whenever you land a new client in that
niche.
Link Out

BeginnerNo
Yup, linking out is an on-page SEO best practice. But it can help you build
relationships too.
(For example, you can send outreach emails to everyone that you linked
out to).
Links from Shopping Mall Websites
BeginnerNo
If you’re located in a shopping plaza or mall, chances are that mall has a
website. And if they do, they probably have a list of the businesses located
in them (along with a link to each business’s main website).
Here’s an example:

Lists
BeginnerYes
1. People.
2. Love.
3. Lists!
They can be massive lists of 100+ strategies or tips. But small lists can
work well too.
For example, this list of 17 SEO tips has been linked to 2,400 times:

Local Listings
BeginnerNo
Submit your site to local listings. You already know about the big ones (like
Yelp). But there are literally thousands of these. Keep an eye out for sites
that focus on your city or state. These are super relevant and have fewer
submissions to comb through.
Mention Speci c People
BeginnerNo
Whenever possible mention speci c people in your content. Why? People
LOVE getting mentioned. And when they see that you linked to them, you’ll
at least get on their radar screen. And they’ll sometimes even share and
link to your content.
Niche Speci c Directories

BeginnerNo
Unlike general web directories (like BOTW), niche directories only accept
sites that cover a speci c topic.
For example, here’s a directory of California-based websites.
O ine Marketing
BeginnerNo
Our Retailers Pages
BeginnerYes

If you’re a retail or eCommerce site, make a list of manufacturer and
supplier websites of the products you carry.
Then, reach out and ask them to add you to their list. Simple.
Note: This is a great way for local businesses looking to get more NAP
citations.
Paid Directories
BeginnerNo
Some directories cost money in order to be accepted into their listings
(technically a fee to review your site). While some of these can pass
legitimate value, most are a waste of money.
I’m not a fan of paid directories in general. But if you want to go for it, I’d
recommend submitting to the BBB directory, BOTW and JoeAnt.

Personalize Email to Contact Forms
BeginnerYes
Contact forms and “info@” email addresses are like outreach black holes.
You have no clue who manages these generic inboxes… or if they care
enough to forward your message.
That’s why I always write to contact forms as if I was writing directly to the
person that I want to get in touch with:
In my experience, this makes it 2-5x more likely that your email gets
forwarded to the right person.
Printable Resources
BeginnerNo

People like hard copies (PDFs) of useful guides. Why? It makes your
content more valuable (and worthy of links).
That’s why I o er people PDF versions of our de nitive guides:
Pro le Links
BeginnerNo
Pro le links don’t do much. But they’re technically a “link building
strategy”. So I had to include it on this list.
Basically, if you sign up to become a member for a site, you’ll get a link in
your pro le. Well, not every site. Some sites will allow quality links in your
pro le. Others won’t.
If you do build links from pro les, make sure to focus on niche-relevant
pro les. That way, your links don’t look spammy.
Q&A Sites

BeginnerNo
Sites like Quora can build a few nofollow links that can also send you
tra c. You obviously want to mention your website as a source in your
answer.
For example, here’s a link that I built from Quora to one of my YouTube
videos:

Reciprocal Linking

BeginnerNo
Yup, I included reciprocal linking even though I don’t recommend it. This
list wouldn’t be complete without it.
That said, if you are going to exchange links with a website, be picky about
who you exchange links with. Make sure it’s the most relevant, trustworthy
website you’ve ever seen in your life.
Reclaim Links Pointing To 404s
BeginnerYes
You probably have a few broken links pointing to your site. Maybe you
moved the page. Or maybe the person that linked to you messed up the
URL.
You can easily nd broken backlinks in Ahrefs (“Backlinks –> “Broken”)

Then, redirect those broken links to a similar page. And you just “built” a
bunch of backlinks without any outreach. Sweet!
Reclaim Pro le Page Links
BeginnerNo
People will sometimes link to your pro le pages on external sites. For
example, this links to my Twitter page:

As long as the page itself doesn’t have any real link value (for example,
Twitter links are nofollow. So getting a link to that page doesn’t make that
link more powerful), you’re better o with a link to your actual site. That
said: don’t be pushy with your outreach. Just gently let them know that
you’re more active on your own website. So a link to your website will
send their readers to the right place.
Scoop.it
BeginnerNo
Scoop.it is a great way to drive tra c and build a few nofollow links at the
same time. Scoop.it is a site where users curate content they want to
share.
All you need to do is nd Scoop.it pages that get lots of views. For
example, this page has over 20 million views.

Then, suggest your content to the person that runs that page.
Slideshare Presentations
BeginnerNo
If you have an awesome slide deck, submit it to Slideshare (nofollow).

Social Coupons
BeginnerNo
Sites like Living Social and Groupon allow you to include (nofollow) links
on your coupon page.

Sponsor Events
BeginnerNo
Whether it’s a local meetup, industry conference, or anything in between,
events are always looking for sponsors. And they’ll usually link to you from
the event website (or at least mention you at the conference).
Sponsor Venues
BeginnerNo
You can also secure links from sponsoring venues where events take
place. I’ve seen this most successful for outdoor sporting venues, like this
one from my home state of Rhode Island:

But I’ve also seen this work successful for indoor conference venues too.
Text Interviews
BeginnerNo
Podcasts aren’t the only way to get interviewed on another site.
In fact, I actually like text interviews MORE than podcasts.
(Why? Because I can answer the questions when it’s convenient for me)
For example, here’s a text interview that netted me a link from an
authority site in the entrepreneurship niche:

Video Submissions
BeginnerNo
If you have video content, make sure you’re getting links from all that hard
work. Heads up: most of these sites (like Vimeo) only provide nofollow
links.
Work With Niche-Speci c Link Builders
BeginnerNo
Experienced link builders usually have a little black book of contacts (at
least the good ones do). Which means they’ve dealt with people in either
your vertical (or a similar one) already. And when you hire a link builder
that has experience in your space, you get access to their contacts on Day
1.

Write Testimonials
BeginnerNo
How does this work? First, list any services or products you’ve bought
recently. Then, reach out to the company and let them know how much
you love their product, service, tool etc.
As long as it’s not a massive company (like Walmart), there’s a good
chance they’ll feature your testimonial… and link to your site.
For example, here’s a testimonial that resulted in a backlink for me:
Alumni Spotlight
IntermediateNo
This is similar to Alumni Directories… but more valuable.
Unlike a directory listing, you get featured in an article. And because the
link has contextual relevance, it’s more powerful than a simple directory
link.

The key is having an interesting story to tell. If you do, your college will
probably LOVE to write about it.
If you run an agency, ask clients for a list of their employee’s alma maters.
And pitch their stories to these universities.
Pro tip: Check if there are any Awards (such as Drexel’s 40 under 40) that
might provide another opportunity for a link.
Ask Customers
IntermediateNo
If a happy customer emails you out of the blue, ask them to share their
experience with your product and service online. Even if they don’t have a
massive following, you get a link… and a blog post that puts your company
in a super positive light.
Obviously, let them know that you’ll put your muscle behind the post and
promote it around.
Associations and Organizations
IntermediateNo
Are you a member of an association or organization? If so, nd out if they
link out to their list of members. And ask them to add you to their list. In
fact, it’s sometimes worth joining an organization just to get a link.
Here’s an example from the World Federation of Orthodontists:

If you have a client that’s an orthodontist, that’s a nice relevant link that
couldn’t be easier to get.
Member directories and lists are one thing. But if you want to take this to
another level, most organizations run posts on their members that
highlight what they’re up to (just like with Alumni associations). So if you
have an interesting story to tell, ask them for a feature.
Badges
IntermediateNo
Badges work great if you’re giving out awards. Just make sure to include a
link back to the awards page in the embed code.
Your badges/awards can be just about anything. There’s the obvious “top
X blogs” in a niche. But you can also do a list of top local venues,
restaurants, service providers, etc. Or the best products in a category that
doesn’t get a lot of social attention (like water pumps or CRM software).

These untapped awards usually work better because these organizations
haven’t been featured anywhere before. Which means they’ll be pumped
to spread the word.
Best Tools Lists
IntermediateNo
“Best Tools lists” are just like they sound: they’re lists of the best tools and
software in your industry.
(In fact, I’ve published several of these myself)
So if you have a tool that’s a good t for someone’s list, let them know
about it.
Blogger Reviews
IntermediateNo
This is pretty simple: you give bloggers your product and ask them to
review it. There are hundreds of potential blog targets in most industries.
Which makes this one of the few link building strategies that’s actually
scalable.
The one catch is that Google doesn’t want you to exchange your product
for a backlink. Instead, just send your product out and let each blogger
decide whether or not to link.
Brand Mentions
IntermediateNo
If your brand gets mentioned without a link, you’ve got an easy link
opportunity staring you in the face.

For example, someone mentioned “Backlinko” on their blog without
linking to me here:
All I need to do is email that person and gently ask them to link to me.
That way, people can easily nd my site.
I recommend using BuzzSumo to nd these mentions as they happen.
Broken Link Building
IntermediateYes
Out of the 150+ link building strategies on this list, Broken Link Building
might be my favorite. The steps are: 1) nd a page that might link to you,
2) look for broken links on that page, 3) let the webmaster know… and ask
if the broken link could be replaced with a link to you.
Here’s a great guide that includes the detailed process.
Build Relationships
IntermediateYes
Ever hear the expression: “it’s not about what you know, it’s about who
you know”? Well, the same thing applies to link building.

The links you get from relationships are mostly indirect. But they DO
happen.
Here are a few examples:
Share people’s stu : When you see a great piece of content, share it.
Unless the person is a huge baller, they’ll notice. And they might return
the favor with a link down the road.
Go to meetups: I’ve given talks at dozens of meetups around the world.
While these only landed me a single (nofollow) link from Meetup.com,
these talks have resulted in a handful of dofollow links from SEO and
marketing bloggers that went to my talk.
Answer questions: Answer questions on Twitter, Quora, forums…
anywhere where people in your industry hang out. This can get you on
lots of radar screens FAST.
Calendar Guides
IntermediateNo
This can be a 7-day, 30-day or even 365-day schedule of events, tasks,
steps…just about anything.
It’s basically an ultimate guide laid out in the form of a calendar.
For example, this HIIT Calendar has over 400 backlinks:

Case Studies
IntermediateYes
As it turns out, case studies are GREAT for building links.
That’s because your case study is something that’s super easy to
reference.
For example, this case study on my blog talks about how well The Content
Upgrade worked for me:

And whenever someone talks about The Content Upgrade, they reference
my case study as proof that it works.
In fact, my case study has been linked to 3,470 times. Sweet!
Charts and Graphs
IntermediateYes
Here at Backlinko, we’ve done 3 major research studies (one on search
engine ranking factors, another on YouTube SEO ranking factors, and one
on voice search).
And I can tell you from experience that attractive charts and graphs have
led to 2-3x more links.
That’s because lots of bloggers embed our charts in their content… with a
link back to the study:

Complete Lists
IntermediateYes
This is like an ultimate guide… in list form.
For example, this list of SEO tools from my blog has accumulated over
6,300 backlinks:

Content Acquisition
IntermediateNo
This is a low-cost version of buying an entire website. So the next time you
nd highly-linked to content on a site that seems abandoned, ask the site
owner if you could pay them to move that content (with a 301) to your
site.
Contest Giveaways
IntermediateNo
If you o er a product or service, reach out to bloggers in your niche that
run contests. And o er up your product or service to the winner. They’re
usually more than happy to accept. And 99% of the time, they’ll link to you
from the contest announcement page.
Contribute to Wikipedia Pages
IntermediateNo
By citing your own content on relevant Wikipedia pages, you can get a link
under the “References” section. It’s nofollow, but it’s super trustworthy
and can send you highly relevant tra c.

Pro Tip: Make sure you don’t sign up as an editor with a company email
address. Otherwise, people will disregard any edits you make with a link to
you as spam. Also, if the link doesn’t make sense (you’re just adding it for
the sake of getting a link), then it will get deleted within hours.
Create a Blog
IntermediateYes
Can you succeed with SEO and link building without a blog? Probably.
But it’s A LOT harder.
That’s because a blog makes it easy to publish awesome content, internal
link, external link and more.
Plus, if you consistently publish awesome content on your blog, people
will start linking to your blog’s homepage:

Create Conversational Content
IntermediateNo
If your content strikes up a conversation in the comments section and on
social media, you’ll sometimes notice that people also start writing blog
posts with their take.
(And they almost always link back to the original post)
This works best with controversial content. But it doesn’t necessarily have
to be controversial. Anything interesting that starts a conversation can
work.
For example, I published this voice search ranking factors study a while
back. And HubSpot wrote an entire post with their take on the ndings:

Crowdsourced Content
IntermediateNo
Also known as a “expert roundup”.
These are getting a little overused. But they still work. That’s because an
expert roundup does something super valuable: it curates tips, strategies
and thoughts from experts all in one place. That’s something that will
never go out of style.
For example, this foodie roundup has generated 200+ links:

CSS Galleries and Awards
IntermediateNo
Does your site look amazing? Well, there are loads of CSS galleries and
awards you can submit to.
And you usually get a link if you make the cut.

Curate Awesome Content
IntermediateYes
Content curation is one of my all-time favorite link building strategies.
That’s because, unlike a traditional blog post, you have dozens of sites that
you can reach out to on day 1.
Plus, when you curate a list of awesome resources, you have a piece of
content that’s super valuable… and worthy of links.
For example, earlier this year I published this list of resources to help
people learn SEO:

Even though the post is largely a list of links to other content, it’s already
racked up links from 84 domains.
Pro Tip: Don’t just copy and paste a list of links. Organize your links into
sections. Outline why you included each piece of content. And make it
easy for people to nd the content that will help them most. This
increases the value of your curated post.
Curated Rankings
IntermediateNo
Ranking scores of people, companies, teams, or just about anything can
garner some serious links.
The list can be objective (like the Fortune 500 list).

Or subjective (like ESPN’s NFL Power Rankings).
Either way works.
Curriculum Links
IntermediateNo
Reach out to universities and let them know about your expertise in a
given area. This works best for high-tech topics because most Universities
are 10+ years behind the curve.
You can either help create or improve the curriculum for a course. Or
o er your site as a course resource. Here’s an example:
Dead Content Recreation
IntermediateNo
This takes Broken Link Building one step further.
How?

Well, with this approach, you recreate the content that was hosted on the
broken link (you can usually nd the old content on archive.org).
Obviously, don’t straight up copy the content. But stick to the original
format (for example, if the dead content was a list post, don’t write a case
study on the same topic).
That way, when you reach out, you have 1:1 replacement for the dead link.
Debunk Myths
IntermediateNo
If there’s a myth that most people in your industry believe, debunk it. If
the myth is big enough, you can get some serious attention.
For example, this list of 9/11 myths has over 15k backlinks:
Do Something Shocking
IntermediateNo
Keep in mind that “shocking” doesn’t mean “controversial”.

For example, the “Will it Blend” series got a ton of links and eyeballs to
Blendtec’s site:
Drawings and Illustrations
IntermediateNo
Illustration and drawings aren’t just for comic strips and memes.
In fact, they work GREAT in B2B.
For example, this drawing that outlines how RankBrain works has been
shared (and linked to) dozens of times:

Ecommerce Partnerships
IntermediateNo
In a nutshell, you’ll be nding other ecommerce sites that sell
complimentary (but non-competing) products. Then, partnering with them
to promote each other’s stu .
Although they aren’t Ecommerce, VividSeat and ESPN have a similar
partnership. Schedule pages on ESPN links to VividSeat’s page that sell
tickets for that page:

Egobait
IntermediateNo
It’s a fact of life: people like to look good. And if you feature a person or
community on your blog, you’ll at least get on their radar screen.
(And in many cases, if you put them in a really positive light, they’ll happily
link to you)
Emotional Content
IntermediateNo
Moz recently analyzed 759 content marketing campaigns that were
designed to build backlinks.
The result?
Highly-emotional content got 70% more links than content that didn’t elicit
any emotions:
Event Recaps

IntermediateNo
Recaps of important industry events can turn your scribbled notes into
solid backlinks. Especially if you make your recap post super interesting
and actionable (like a blog post or ultimate guide).
For example, this “6 Key Takeaways from SXSW” got 19 backlinks:
Why does this work? Well, there’s a surge of content that comes out after
a conference. And if you write an awesome lists of tactics and takeaways
from the conference, you have a link magnet that people will happily
share.
Pro Tip: Promote your recap with the conference hashtag so it gets in
front of the conference audience.
Evergreen Content
IntermediateYes

Your content doesn’t always need to be on a hot topic.
In fact, evergreen content usually works BETTER over the long-term.
Why? Well, you can promote evergreen content for years. And if it ever
gets out of date, you can easily give it the ol’ update.
Plus, evergreen content tends to rank well in Google. Which means more
people will see your stu … and link to it.
For example, I published this post 5+ years ago:
According to Ahrefs, this evergreen post still generates about 150-200
links every single month.
Expiring Domains
IntermediateNo

Buying expired domains is de nitely black hat if you’re just going to 301
redirect the domain to your site.
Fortunately, 301ing isn’t the only way to use expired domains for link
building. In fact, there are plenty of white hat approaches.
For example, you can nd expired domains that still have links pointing to
them. Then, use archive.org to create similar content on your site. Finally,
reach out to people that still link to the expired domain and ask them to
replace the link with a link to your site (aka Broken Link Building).
Find In uencers in BuzzSumo
IntermediateNo
One of the hardest parts of link building is nding people that will want to
share your content.
Lately I’ve been using BuzzSumo’s cool “In uencer” search.
And if you’re only interested in nding people to link to you, the tool gives
you the in uencer’s SEO stats (Moz’s Domain Authority and Page
Authority).

Find Link Opportunities With Reverse Image
Search
IntermediateNo
This works for guest post target, columns, interviews, podcast
appearances, speaking engagements… just about anything.
All you need to do is grab a headshot of an in uencer in your niche. Then,
pop it into reverse image search.
And you’ll nd sites that the person appeared on as a guest or contributor:

Find People Using Your Images

IntermediateYes
You can easily nd other websites using your images or infographics with
a reverse image tool (like Google Images).
For example, here’s a site using one of my images without attribution:
If this happens to you, politely ask them if they could link back to the
original source (your site). Most people will be happy to hook you up.

Finding Malware
IntermediateNo
Use ScrapeBox to nd sites with malware, then reach out to webmasters
and let them know. They’ll usually thank you with a link.
Remember: don’t go to their site! You might get a virus. Use a whois
lookup to nd contact info.
Forum Posting
IntermediateNo
Forums aren’t as big as they used to be (thanks largely to Reddit). That
said, you can usually nd a handful of active forums on just about any
topic.
For example, when I rst started Backlinko, I was an active member of
online marketing forums.

Sure, I got a few links. But more importantly, my content got in front of
people… people that eventually linked to my stu .
Get Covered in Local Newspaper Sites
IntermediateNo
Everybody and their mom wants to get featured in the New York Times.
But you might not realize how EASY it is to get featured in your local
newspaper site. Most local sites are starving for stories. And they’re happy
to feature anything remotely newsworthy that your business is up to.
Pro Tip: Local papers and news sites LOVE covering events (like a
fundraiser). It’s an easy story to write.
Get Interviewed on Podcasts
IntermediateYes
Podcasts >>>> guest posting.
Why?
They’re faster.
They’re easier.
And your link isn’t a devalued “guest post link”.
For example, I’ve appeared on over 50 podcasts over the last few years.
And I got a link from almost every single one of those podcast
appearances.

Get People to See and Read Your Content
IntermediateYes
People won’t link to your content unless they see it.
(Thanks Captain Obvious!)
But seriously. It’s not only important to get your content in front of people.
You need to get it in front of the right people.
This is where social media, content marketing, connections and brand
awareness come into play. These can all help your content spread like
wild re.
I also want to point out that you don’t have to limit yourself to sites in your
niche. You can also promote your content to related industries that might
be interested in your content.

For example, as part of this SEO campaign, Mike Bonadio created an
infographic for a client in the pest control industry. But Mike didn’t
promote his content to other pest control sites. Instead, Mike got his
content in front of gardening bloggers.
And it worked:
Glossary of Industry Terms
IntermediateNo
A glossary of industry terms and acronyms is a GREAT way to attract links.
Most industries are full of jargon that newbies can’t understand. So when
you curate these terms into a glossary, you have something that people
will HAPPILY link to.
For example, this glossary of internet terms has landed 9,200 links from
over 1,200 root domains (imagine if you made an updated version!).

Green Content
IntermediateNo
Certain industries (insurance, gambling) are REALLY hard to build links in.
And other industries (like the green niche) are on the other end of the
spectrum.
Why? First o , there are LOTS of untapped topics in the space. Second,
green bloggers and environmental organizations are usually happy to link
to great content.
For example, this list of 100+ ways to save water has been linked to 25
thousand times.

Insane.
Help a Local Non-Pro t
IntermediateNo
This can be in the form of a donation, volunteer work or a company outing
to lend a hand. Sometimes the non-pro t will write about people and local
businesses that have helped them… and link out.
Help A Reporter Out (HARO)
IntermediateYes
HARO, or Help A Reporter Out, connects journalists with bloggers and
industry experts.
It’s not easy to get mentioned (there’s A LOT of competition for every
request). But if you grind it out, you can get some legit links from major
newspaper sites and blogs.

For example, here’s a backlink that I got from HARO a few years back:
Help College Clubs
IntermediateNo
Most colleges have a wide range of clubs, and if you help the club with
technical help (like lending a hand with the club’s website) or to organize
an event, they’ll sometimes mention you on the site.
And because the club’s site is hosted on an .edu domain, that link will
carry some legit authority.
Pro Tip: When you search for clubs, think “general”… not speci c. For
example, for this blog, I’d look for marketing clubs rather than SEO clubs.
Hire Industry Veterans
IntermediateNo
Relationship building is HARD. Especially if you’re brand new to a given
industry.

What happens when you work with a well-known person in your industry?
Well, you just cut out months of outreach and legwork.
You can hire an industry veteran in any capacity that makes sense for your
business. It can be as a consultant, guest writer, interviewer, interviewee
or as an advisor.
Host Other People's Events
IntermediateNo
You don’t necessarily need to host your own event to reap the rewards. If
you have space suitable for events, o er it to other organizations to use
for free (or really cheap). This is an easy way to earn links to a directions or
“event info” page of your own website.
This is especially powerful for businesses like hotels, retirement
communities, restaurants, bars, and other similar local business sites that
can be tricky to build links to.

How-to Guides and Tutorials
IntermediateYes
It might surprise you to nd out that how-to guides are awesome for link
building.
Here’s why:
When someone mentions a topic in a post, they usually don’t have room
to dive into all the details. So they usually link to a tutorial that outlines all
of the steps.
Humor
IntermediateNo

A parody, spoof, or list of industry jokes can result in some serious links.
(Especially if it hits on a hot topic)
For example, this “story” from The Onion has attracted over 100 backlinks:
Sure, you may not work on a mega site like The Onion. But it goes to show
that humor can work as linkbait.
Icon Sets
IntermediateNo
Icon sets are pretty easy to make. And if they catch on, you’ll nd yourself
with links from a ton of design blogs.
For example, this mobile icon set has over 500 backlinks:

Pro Tip: Make sure your icon set is relevant to your niche. For example, if
you run a sporting goods ecommerce site, create an icon set of baseballs,
soccer balls and footballs).
Infographics
IntermediateNo
Do infographics work as well as they used to?
Heck no.
But they CAN still work. The key is to create an infographic that’s truly
remarkable. It’s kind of like a blog post. In 2006, a 500 word post would
work. Today? You need to pump out amazing stu to get noticed. And it’s
the same with infographics right now.
Here’s an example of the type of infographic that I’m talking about:

And to make it easy for people to embed your infographic, check out this
handy embed code generator.
Instructographics
IntermediateNo
Instructographics are infographics that teach you how to do something.

Like any infographic, their power comes from people embedding them in
their content (and linking back to you).
But as a nice bonus, Instructographics work really well on Pinterest too.
Internal Links
IntermediateYes
Internal links are HUGE. That’s because, unlike external links, you control
everything about them… from the location on the page to the anchor text.
That said, one piece of advice about internal linking: don’t automate it.
Instead, go through all of your older content. Then, when it makes sense,
add links between pages on your site. And don’t forget to mix up your
anchor text.
For example, I usually use about 5-10 internal links per page:

That’s all there is to it.
Interview an Expert
IntermediateNo
Interviewing an industry expert can net you a handful of decent links. For
example, this Tim Ferris interview by Je Goins netted him 50 backlinks:

Pro Tip: Feature easily-shareable quotes on your interview page. This gives
bloggers something easy to reference from your interview.
Linkable Images
IntermediateYes
Most bloggers struggle to nd relevant images to use in blog posts.
Especially when it comes to visualizations or anything that requires a
graphic designer.
In fact, that’s one of the main reasons that I invest in professional images,
like this:

Yes, these images make my content easier to follow. But they also create
passive link building opportunities. That’s because bloggers and
journalists use my images in their content (and link to me when they do).
In fact, I’ve racked up 500+ links from images on this blog alone.
List of Stats
IntermediateYes
Here’s where you curate a list of statistics on a given topic:

The funny part is this: even though you’re collecting stats from other sites,
most people that use a statistic from your list will link to your page… not
the original source.
Pro Tip: This works 100x better if you get your page to rank for “X
statistics” keywords.
After all, who do you think searches for these terms? Bloggers and
journalists that are looking for stats to include in their content!
Live Blogging
IntermediateNo
If you’re at an industry event, blog about everything that you see. If you’re
the only one doing it, you can get a ton of tra c (and links).
I know it’s Wired, so it’s a little unfair, but hopefully you can learn how it’s
done from this example (451 links from 140 root domains in 3 months).
Also, check out this fantastic guide on live blogging.

Make It Easy to Link
IntermediateYes
If you want people to link to you, make it easy for them.
For example, if you found a resource page that would be PERFECT for your
content, let the site owner know exactly where your link makes sense.
Or if you’re promoting an infographic. Send people an embed code they
can use to add your infographic to a WordPress post.
Maps
IntermediateNo
Maps are a VERY underrated form of visual content.
Maps combine two powerful pieces of linkbait: statistics and visuals.
For example, this very simple map of the top exports brought in over 450
backlinks:

Newsletters
IntermediateYes
Getting a link in a newsletter is a GREAT source of highly-targeted tra c
(in other words: visitors that are super-likely to link to your site). It can be
your own newsletter… or someone else’s newsletter.
For example, I (obviously) link to my stu in the Backlinko newsletter. But
I’ve also been featured in big newsletters in the SEO niche (like the Moz
Top 10), which led to a huge spike in tra c…

…and a few days later, links to that post.
Niche Communities
IntermediateNo
Niche communities are an untapped way to get tra c and links.
Obviously, most community links are nofollow. But some aren’t. Either
way, they’re a great source of tra c and exposure.
For example, back in the day I was an active member of (the now dead)
Inbound.org.

And this helped get my content in front of people that ran blogs in my
niche. Powerful stu .
O er Discounts
IntermediateNo
O ering discounts to faculty, teachers, and students can get you (easy)
links from pages like this.

If you run an ecommerce site, and your products are something that
students might be interested in, then these links are a no-brainer.
Or let’s say you’re a local business. Well, there’s usually a college or two
within 100 miles that have a discount program. Plus, these links would be
super authoritative and highly-relevant.
Paid Reviews
IntermediateNo
If you’ve got a product or service you want reviewed on a blog, you can
pay for one. In fact, there are even entire websites (like PayperPost.com)
that connect you with bloggers that review products. Obviously, if you
want to comply with Google’s guidelines, these links should be nofollowed.

Podcasts Lists
IntermediateNo
If you have a podcast, you can snag some links by sending your podcast to
websites that have “Best of” podcast lists in your industry.
Press Releases

IntermediateNo
Google has said that they “ignore” links from press releases.
That said:
A newsworthy and timely press release CAN lead to legit, dofollow links.
That’s because syndication can get your release in front of journalists…
journalists that can pick it up and write about your story.
Previous Linkers
IntermediateNo
If someone has linked to you in the past, chances are they’ll be more likely
to link to you in the future. But don’t just pitch them links every other
week. Instead, thank them for the rst link. Get to know ’em. And keep
them in the loop with your content.
For example, I have a small list of folks that get early access to upcoming
content. And I even let them know what I’m working on weeks in advance.
Product Comparisons
IntermediateNo
Here’s where you publish an in-depth analysis that compares two
competing products, services or tools.
As a nice bonus, lots of people search for “X vs Y” in Google. So you’ll get
eyeballs on your content even after the initial buzz dies down.
For example, this comparison of Aweber vs Mailchimp has been linked to
50 times:

Quizzes and Tests
IntermediateNo
As BuzzFeed proved years ago, people love taking (and sharing) quizzes.
But what you may not know is the right quiz or test can attract backlinks
from bloggers in your niche.
For example, the “Could You Pass a US Citizenship Test” has attracted 50+
links:

Quoteable Text
IntermediateNo
This is similar to coining a new word, phrase or strategy. But instead of a
punchy name, it’s usually a 1-2 sentence phrase.
For example, a few years back, Gary Vaynerchuk famously said:
“marketers ruin everything”.

Today, a search for that phrase (in quotes) brings up 18,700 results.
The only catch is that your phrase really has to resonate with people. For
example, the Gary Vaynerchuk quote is hilarious because it has an
element of biting truth to it.
And if your phrase catches on, it can generate links on their own (for
example, lots of people link to garyvaynerchuk.com when they say:
“marketers ruin everything”).
If you want to take this even further, Google your phrase every week.
Then, see who used your quote without linking. And gently remind them
that you coined the phrase.

Research Competitors
IntermediateYes
I spend a lot of my time poring over other sites’ link pro les. Basically,
with this approach, you piggy back o their link building success.
To be fair: a good chunk of a site’s links are unique opportunities that you
won’t be able to copy (for example, a random mention in a news post or a
link from a close friend’s blog). But sometimes you can nd legit diamonds
in the rough (like a local directory or resource page).
Pro Tip: Don’t stop at your direct competitors. You can also look at how
indirect competitors in your vertical (for example, if you o er piano
lessons, look at sites that o er guitar lessons). If you’re local, look at other
sites in your area. If you’re ecommerce, look at how other ecommerce
sites are getting links to the same types of pages you’re having trouble
with.
Resources/Links Pages
IntermediateYes
Resource pages are a link builder’s dream. After all, the point of the
resource page is to link out to useful content.
So if you have a piece of useful content, you’re in a good spot.
Unfortunately, getting links from resource pages isn’t as easy as it sounds.
Your content (and outreach) really needs to bring it. Otherwise, it’s not
worth the person’s time to add your link.
(It also helps if you know the person that runs the resource page)

With all that said, resource pages remain one of my favorite ways to get
links.
Reverse Guest Blogging
IntermediateNo
Get an in uencer in your space to write a guest post for your blog (or sit
down for an interview). Not only will they share the content with their
audience, but people are more likely to link to it because it’s from an
in uencer they know and respect. This is especially helpful if you’re just
starting out.
Review Something New
IntermediateNo
If you’re the rst person to review something, you’ll get a ton of tra c (and
links).
For example, the rst reviews that come out for the new iPhone almost
always go viral in the Apple community.
Second Tier Link Building
IntermediateYes
Building links to pages that link to you is a VERY underrated link building
technique.
The big plus of this approach is that people are usually MUCH more likely
to link out to authority sites than rinky dink blogs. So if you scored a link
from an authority site, you can feature THAT page in your outreach.

Also, promoting a third party site in your outreach is a Jedi mind trick that
makes people more likely to say yes.
Second tier link building isn’t only for outreach. For example, you can
“build links to your links” from guest posts. And because you’re not linking
to your own site, the link will y under the editor’s radar.
Social Platforms for Outreach
IntermediateYes
Sometimes email isn’t always the best way to get in touch with someone.
In fact, I’ve used Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and even Google+ (RIP) for
outreach. Depending on the niche, these platforms can sometimes
convert better than email.
Speak at Universities
IntermediateNo
Most universities announce speakers on their website, and when they do,
they sometimes link back to you from the event page.
Pro Tip: You don’t need to actually physically speak at the school. Instead,
o er to do a webinar for students… and get a link in return:
Start a Petition

IntermediateNo
If you and your community are passionate about an issue, start a petition.
If the petition catches on, news outlets will start covering your petition as
a story.
For example, this petition about open access in the EU resulted in nearly
4k backlinks:
Stories
IntermediateNo
People love a good personal story. Whether it’s crazy, funny, or
embarrassing, stories strike an emotional chord… which makes people
more likely to share and link.

For example, this fascinating true story has picked up links from over 300
root domains.
Student Blogs
IntermediateNo
Students are sometimes allowed to create blogs on their respective
college websites. They’re a lot easier to get links from then a regular
college webmaster. In fact, back in the day I created a “College Blog
Awards” for the sole purpose of getting links from student blogs. And it
worked GREAT.
Target Link Roundups
IntermediateYes
I love getting links from roundups. Why?

Because it’s one of the EASIEST link building strategies out there. For
example, here’s a backlink that I got from a link roundup:
Pro Tip: Don’t be pushy with the person that run the roundup. First of all,
there’s no need. Second, these are awesome people to build relationships
with. You can literally have a Rolodex full of people that you can send new
content to and get an almost-guaranteed link.
The Moving Man Method
IntermediateYes
This strategy is really similar to Broken Link Building.
The main di erence is this:
With broken link building, you focus 100% on links that aren’t working
(usually pages that 404).

But with the Moving Man Method, you’re looking for links to pages that
aren’t relevant anymore. For example, maybe the content they linked to
changed to something completely di erent. Or maybe the content now
redirects to the site’s homepage. In both cases, the link still “works”. But
the link isn’t relevant anymore. Which means it’s ripe for a replacement
link (yours).
The Skyscraper Technique
IntermediateYes
I rst wrote about The Skyscraper Technique in 2013.
And it still works GREAT.
(In fact, I have a stack of emails in my inbox from people that had success
using this strategy)
The one downside of The Skyscraper Technique is that it takes A TON of
work. Especially now that people started publishing higher-quality stu .
But if you’re willing to put in the work, this is still one of the best link
building strategies out there.
Timely/Seasonal Content
IntermediateNo
The right content at the right time can get you a TON of attention. For
example, this GDPR checklist came out weeks before the new law went
into e ect:

And it generated 3.1k backlinks within a few months.
The same goes for seasonal content. Whether it’s Valentine’s Day,
Christmas, or Halloween, you can create holiday themed content that gets
a bump in interest (and links) every single year.
Transcribe Content
IntermediateNo
Find bloggers who publish podcasts and videos on their blog… but don’t
transcribe the audio.
Then, get the content professionally transcribed. And send it over to them.
99% of the time, if they use your transcription, they’ll link to you. No need
to even ask.
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