There's an elephant in the room. You've seen the debates, the Twitter threads, and the think pieces. Some marketers have all but given up on link building, haven't they? They say it's all about multi-channel strategies now, with SEO just being one slice of the marketing pie and links even less.
But here's the kicker: They're overlooking the raw, transformative power that savvy link building still holds.
Imagine this: your brand-new website, yesterday's unknown, suddenly thrust into the limelight as an authority in your niche. And not just by anyone's standards, but by Google's gold standard, all in less time than it takes for most startups to plan their launch party.
Yes, you read that right. Link building can still be the modern-day wizardry of the digital world. It's creating value out of thin air. Because, let's face it, if you've won over Google, you've won the internet. And with the right link building strategy, you're not just climbing the ladder faster; you're skipping rungs.
So, here's the deal: I'm about to take you on a whirlwind tour of a journey from zero to hero. How my fledgling agency morphed from a daydream into a $52,000-per-month powerhouse in the span of a single, action-packed year. And the catalyst? Just link building.
And guess what? When I say just,' I mean we did it without spending a dime on paid ads. No waiting for referrals. No cold emails. No desperately shouting into the social media void. It was just us, our little website, some blog posts, and the sheer magnetism of genuine, high-quality links.
But wait, there's more. If you’re thinking I’m about to spend the next 1000 words talking about guest posting and link inserts - think again. What I'm going to show you will blow your mind. It's not your everyday link-building strategy; it's a blueprint that transformed my entire business.
Tactic #1 Traditional Link Building with a Twist
I'm going to pull back the curtain on our SEO strategy that skyrocketed us to the first page of Google for ultra-competitive keywords like "blogger outreach service," "outreach link building service," "link outreach agency," "blogger outreach agency," and "blogger outreach agencies" within 10 months.
Ready? Let’s get started.
Step 1: Rethink Your Approach to Link Building
When we launched, we went all-in with link building. But here's the catch: we didn’t do it like the impatient link builder, obsessing over keyword anchor text and commercial page links.
Instead, we think like brand builders and proud bloggers.
Brand builders want brand mentions, everywhere. They care about visibility. And proud bloggers? They want their content front and center, featured in all the right places, without getting hung up on anchor text.
So instead of just focusing on exact keyword links, we started creating natural links that showcased our brand. So, we had these cool branded links pointing to our main page, and for our blog? We just linked from pages that made sense, without stressing too much about the exact wording.
Step 2: Basic On-Page SEO is Your Friend
Don’t get me wrong: a solid link building strategy is key. But ignoring the basics on your own site? That’s a recipe for disaster. We made sure our on-page SEO was tight, which gave our site the strong foundation it needed.
In short, service pages in our menu that cover our top 3-4 service keywords. Strong internal linking from homepage and blog pages to this keywords. Making sure the service pages were fully SEO optimized.
Step 3: Not Giving up through the Ups and Downs
SEO isn’t a straight shot to the top. It’s more like a roller coaster. One minute you're up; the next, you're down. We faced our share of these terrifying drops, especially during the infamous “Google dance.” We got to page 1 within 4 months, dropped out of the top 50 the 6th month, came back to page 1 after the 9th month.
This is a new site - our link building is aggressive - Google will be trying to figure out what's going on but since we do things like a skyrocketing brand would - branding at the forefront - we know eventually the rankings will settle.
Tactic #2 Using link building outreach to get onto pages that already rank
Leveraging link-building outreach to secure spots on already-ranking pages is key.
Let's be real: You can't skyrocket to a $50,000/month venture with just SEO if no one can find you for the first 6 months. This is where our second strategy comes into play.
While we're busy optimizing our own sites, our goal was to feature our brand on articles that already sit within the top 10 search results. This ensures that when potential customers are browsing and comparing different sources, our brand stands out.
In just a three-month campaign, initiated right after our website launch, we achieved these impressive rankings:
- Ranked #2 and #4 for "guest posting service".
- Positioned at #2 and #3 for "guest posting services".
- Secured #4 and #5 spots for "guest posting agency".
- Landed at #3 and #5 for "guest posting agencies".
- Topped at #1 for "blogger outreach agencies".
- Achieved #2 and #4 for "blogger outreach services".
You can emulate this approach. Start by searching your primary business keywords on Google, curate a list of top-ranking listicles, and craft a compelling outreach email.
Remember, these are coveted positions. Approaching without a value proposition won't yield results.
Depending on your niche, come equipped with a tempting offer, whether it's monetary, a link swap, or a complimentary product or subscription.
To sum it up:
- Strategy 1 propelled our website to the first page for crucial keywords in under a year.
- Strategy 2 ensured our brand was prominently featured on the first page in just months.
- Strategy 3? Well, it's a classic that never fails.
Tactic #3 Parasite Link Building to Get Your Brand Everywhere
Let's dive into a quick quiz.
Spot the commonality among these three pages:
- They're all hosted on marketing platforms.
- Each delves into unique facets of link-building agencies.
- They all enjoy some Google visibility.
The twist? I'm the author behind all of them.
Yes - each month, I commission several articles that cover various aspects of link building services, list a few agencies, even link to them, but always make sure my agencies are near or at the top.
But why this approach?
It's all about EEAT (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness).
- The more your brand is showcased, the higher the trust Google places in it.
- The more your brand is visible, the higher the chances prospects will discover you.
- The more genuine and organic your content feels, the better the outcomes for the above two points.
By guest posting on authoritative platforms (acting as the "parasite"), I not only bolster my credibility and ensure long-term viability but also amplify my short-term lead generation. It's a quadruple win.
However, there are pitfalls I consciously sidestep:
- Self-Centric Linking: An article that only links to oneself lacks authenticity. The key is diversification. By the time I've penned 25 articles, I've garnered 25 links, while competitors might have a mere three.
- Nofollow Linking: Avoiding nofollow tags for others keeps the content natural, which is our ultimate goal.
- Monotonous Formats: Each piece should exude a distinct vibe—varying writing styles, anchoring techniques, and overall presentation.
- Generic Content: Put some effort into these articles and try to write them with the intention of ranking them. Robust articles, unique reviews - leverage tools like GPT to bulk analyze for you. The whole point is for these to have visibility. A 700 word article with generic blurbs about each agency won’t cut it.
Combined - you not only have an effective long term link building strategy but you have an attention engine - rinse and repeat for a few years and every listicle will basically feature you by default - they won't be able to escape you.
Hope this sheds light on the strategy. For further queries or feedback, feel free to drop a line at ajay@outreachlabs.com.
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