As an SEO, I’m often asked what the best type of link-building is these days. Long gone are the days of comment backlinks and spamming forums to try to trick Google – you’ll still see plenty of people offering this, but it’s a waste of time and money, and will produce zero results. Google has also been pretty strict about guest posting in the last few years, although it does still work for some sites. Above all, the best type of links I’m seeing as of late is what I refer to as quote links – links you earn by responding to journalist requests for information.
What Are Quote Links?
Quote links are earned when you proactively reach out to journalists with information and insights. When a journalist needs a source for their story, they’ll usually seek out experts in the field. If you have something valuable to offer them, they may put your words (and website link) into their article. It’s much more powerful if you can respond quickly with relevant feedback – that usually increases your chances of being included.
With that said, it takes a lot of effort to establish yourself as an expert in your field and then use that expertise to land quote links. You’ll need to produce high-quality content, network with journalists, and be prepared to respond quickly when they reach out for quotes. It may take some time before you start getting quote links, but the reward is worth it. Be sure to track your progress and celebrate your successes – every link is a step in the right direction!
Help-a-Reporter-Out (HARO)
One way to help earn quote-style links is through a service by Cision (the popular press release distribution software) called Help-a-Reporter-Out or HARO. HARO is a free service that allows reporters and bloggers to quickly find sources for their articles. Every day, three emails are sent out with different requests from reporters. If you want to get quote links, these are the types of opportunities you should be looking for. You can respond to the reporter’s request with a quote or opinion related to your area of expertise. As long as your submission meets what the journalist needs for their content, you can get a very valuable link out of it.
Hiring Outside Help
Monitoring 3 emails from HARO a day can be time-consuming, especially if you are focused on running other areas of your business. This is why a lot of small businesses, startups, SaaS companies and e-commerce sites hire outside help to monitor HARO queries and respond on their behalf. Site owners pay outside help to pitch on their behalf and most only charge when a link is actually secured. If you have the marketing budget for these types of links, they are very valuable and you will see a noticeable impact to your SEO efforts.
Keep Building
Websites need links to continue to get a popularity vote in the eyes of Google. Whatever you choose to do, be sure you are consistently developing high-quality links to your site. Focus on quality over quantity and remember that relevance is key.
