Link Building: An Easy Guide to Getting Backlinks
- Glen Pfaucht
- May 26
- 7 min read
If I'm being honest, link building sucks. It’s slow, tedious, and most of the stuff you read online is completely out of touch with how things actually work today. I've built over 500 links in the past year for several client websites and learned a TON in the process. In this post, I'll do a comprehensive review of link-building and explain what actually works.
Should You Even Be Link-Building Right Now?
Before you go crazy with spreadsheets and VA tasks, ask yourself:
Do I have a real SEO strategy?
Is there enough content on my site worth linking to?
If the answer to either is no, slow down. Building links to an empty or weak site is like trying to make a smoothie without fruit, you’re just blending air. If you're not ranking for anything yet, backlinks aren’t going to magically change your fate. Focus on building up quality content, nailing your internal linking, and making sure your technical SEO isn’t a dumpster fire.
And if you're desperate for sales this month? SEO (and by extension, link-building) probably shouldn't be your go-to. Try something quicker like PPC, influencer promos, or direct cold outreach.
Link-building is a long game.
Related: Internal Linking Guide For Beginners
The Link-Building Graveyard: What Does and Doesn't Work Anymore
Let’s kill off some zombies from SEO’s past.
Forum links: Nope. Almost always no-follow. And even if they weren’t, they look spammy.
Blog comments: Same story. Plus, most site owners moderate the heck out of these.
Reddit: You might get a link from Reddit. But Google knows that's a user-generated content farms. Links from there carry very little weight.
Low-effort PBNs: If you bought 100 links for $50 from some dude in a Telegram group, you’re begging for a penalty. Unless you control the PBN, avoid it.
Overused templates: You know the one, "Hi, I loved your post on X, and I thought you’d enjoy my post on Y..."
The truth is, none of these really work anymore. And even when they kinda work, they’re inefficient, risky, or a waste of time compared to real strategies.
So What Kinda Links Do Work?
It’s not rocket science. Google wants to see that other legit websites see your site as valuable.
Here are some green flags to look for in a high-quality link:
From a topically relevant site — if you’re in landscaping, a link from a gardening blog makes sense. A link from an organic dog food site? Not so much.
From a site with traffic — ideally 1,000+ organic visits/month
Editorial in nature — the link should be naturally placed inside real content
From a site with a real human behind it — check for an About page or bylined authors
Not part of a link farm — if they’re selling links to casino and CBD sites left and right, run
One quick trick: check the backlink profile of the site you’re targeting. If they’ve been penalized or lost 70% of their traffic in a recent Google update, walk away.
The Niche Factor: Why Strategy Must Fit Your Industry
Not all niches are created equal.
Easy Mode: Lifestyle & Wellness
Think food, parenting, crafting, clothing; these niches have tons of hobby bloggers who love sharing resources. If you’ve got a helpful guide or a pretty infographic, that would go such a long way.
Medium Difficulty: B2B
It’s not a game of thrones but it is a game of networking. Most sites will want something back: guest content, a backlink exchange, or promotion. These campaigns require finesse and relationship-building. LinkedIn is your friend here.
Hard Mode: Finance, Legal, CBD
Welcome to the jungle. It’s pay-to-play. If your competitors are paying $250 per link, you can’t expect to win with freebies. Budget for links, or pair your link-building efforts with content worth citing (like data studies or free tools).
The Link-Building Process
Here’s a practical framework to build solid backlinks without burning yourself out.
Step 1: Define Your Campaign Type
First, choose the kind of campaign you’re running. The most common types include:
Link Insertions (what we’ll focus on here)
Guest Posts
Broken Link Building
Unlinked Mentions
Guest posts and broken link building are still effective but more manual-heavy. If you’re looking for scale, stick to link insertions, where you pitch existing blog posts and ask for a contextual link to your valuable content.
What Should You Promote?
Obviously, you need a solid link magnet that's something actually worth linking to. Skip your product pages. Instead, promote:
Infographics: e.g. “The Ultimate Remote Work Setup Checklist for 2025”
Long-form Guides: e.g. “How to Launch a Subscription Box Business from Scratch”
Original Research: e.g. “State of E-Commerce in 2025: 15,000 Stores Analyzed”
Free Tools: e.g. “ROI Calculator for Paid Ads”
Tip: Run your competitors through Ahrefs or Semrush → sort by “Top Pages by Links” → reverse engineer what’s working.
Step 2: Link Prospecting
This is where your VA (virtual assistant) comes in. You need hundreds of targeted prospects. If you try doing this yourself then you're already scaling wrong.
Prospecting Tactics:
Use Google queries: Search niche-related terms like "health and wellness blog", "tech tips blog", "scrapbooking site" etc.
Search by keyword intent: If you're promoting a health and wellness essentials checklist, look for queries like “health and wellness essentials” or “how to live a healthier daily life”.
Mention-friendly content: e.g. gift recommendation lists where your product naturally fits.
Steal from competitors: Export backlinks from competitor domains using Ahrefs. If they linked to them, they might link to you too.
Mine existing relationships: Look at who’s already linked to you and check their backlinks. Small bloggers will often link to each other.
You can do this manually or use tools like ScrapeBox, Link Assistant, or Pitchbox for semi-automation.
Step 3: Find the Right Contact
This part is all about targeting the correct person:
Big media: Reach out to the author directly.
Brands/companies: Look for the head of content, marketing director, or editor.
Personal blogs: Contact the owner.
Your VA can use tools like Hunter.io to find emails. If that doesn’t work, identify the email format (e.g. firstname@company.com) and make a smart guess.
Note: If it’s a small blog, general inboxes like info@ often work fine. For larger orgs or publications, you need a real contact, or your pitch goes unread.
Step 4: Write Outreach Emails That Actually Work
This is where most link-building campaigns go to die. Copy-pasting generic templates from the internet doesn’t work anymore. Everyone’s doing it. You need to personalize your approach and stand out from everyone else.
Don’t Do This:
“Hey [Name],
I loved your blog! Can you add a link to my post please?
Thanks!”
This generic copy gets ignored 99% of the time. Let’s fix that.
Do This Instead:
Subject lines that sound personal:
[Name], loved your take on X!
Quick idea for [SiteName]
Need a hand, [Name]
Body tips:
Open with a realistic compliment: something generic but personalized enough to seem authentic.
“Your recipes are delicious! I’m trying your lentil stew this weekend with my partner.”
"That guide on budgeting for freelancers? Chef’s kiss. Super helpful."
Add niche-specific humor or references to make it feel human.
"As someone who’s obsessed with digital tools, your Notion hacks hit me right in the dopamine."
“As a beginner gardener, I just had to leaf you a quick message…”
"I’ve spent more time on your site than I’d like to admit. But hey, at least it’s not TikTok, right?"
Mention something from their blog and why your resource fits.
“In your post about remote onboarding, you mentioned communication gaps — we built a checklist that helps managers solve exactly that."
"You mentioned how hard it is to choose productivity software. We created a framework that could be a solid add-on."
CTA: Keep it simple.
“If you’re open to it, happy to send you the link!”
"Think your readers might find it helpful. Want me to send it over?"
Don’t overstuff with links or images. They hurt deliverability. Keep it clean.
Optional: Add a Value Exchange
Some ways to sweeten the pitch:
Offer to link back from a future guest post.
Share their content on your social media.
Offer free access to your product/tool.
Suggest a backlink exchange.
Offer a small payment (when appropriate).
Step 5: Launch Your Outreach Campaign
Now that you’ve got your list and your email ready to go it’s time to launch. Here’s the right way to do it:
Use a separate domain: DO NOT send outreach from your main site. Use something like brandpr.com. This protects your sender reputation from some inevitable spam reports you will receive.
Set up outreach inboxes: Use Google Workspace, Zoho, or Office365.
Warm up emails: Tools like Instantly or Mailreach simulate engagement and improve deliverability. Warm up with them for about 2 weeks.
Email volume: You want to be sending a max of 60 emails/day per inbox (including follow-ups). Any more than that and you run the risk of getting flagged as spam.
Follow-ups: No more than 2 per lead. Just like with your crush, if they ghost you after 2 messages, move on. "They're just not that into you".
How to Build Links On a Budget
If you’re bootstrapping, don’t worry. You can still build links.
HARO and Terkel: Answer journalist questions. If they use your quote, you get a link.
Manual guest posting: Offer to write super-targeted posts for small blogs.
Build relationships: Engage with other bloggers on Twitter, LinkedIn, or niche communities.
ABC Link Exchanges: You link to someone, they link to someone else, who links back to you.
You won’t scale to 500 links/month this way, but it’s great for getting momentum.
Tools That Make Life Easier
You could do this all manually. But why?
Start cheap. Scale up once the process works.
FAQs
How many emails should I send daily? Start with 20-30 per inbox. Scale gradually. Cap at 60/day.
How long until links help rankings? 1 to 3 months. Sometimes more, depending on how competitive your niche is.
Do I need backlinks to rank? Not always. Low competition = easier. But for competitive terms, links are still key.
Can I pay for links safely? Yes, if you’re smart about it. Use real sites with organic traffic. Avoid link farms or Fiverr gigs.
Are link exchanges bad? No, as long as they’re natural and not excessive. Everyone does it. Just don’t abuse it.
Wrapping Up: How to Get Backlinks
If you're still reading, congrats. You're already ahead of 90% of "link builders" who gave up halfway through a BuzzSumo blog post. Link-building is less about hacks and more about having something worth linking to. Start lean and focus on real value which could come from smaller blogs and niches. Don't go all in on getting a backlink from Forbes. And never send an outreach email you wouldn’t want to receive yourself.
Questions? Drop them in the comments. Or come find more useful content over at my Instagram @openworld.digital
Happy linking!
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