• 05 Feb 2021
• 6 Min read

Where we built links in January 2021 (and how we did it)

• by Bettie Moran

The quality and quantity of inbound links can have a serious impact on your site’s search engine performance. If you want to improve your Google rankings, you’ll want to get relevant online publishers talking about (and linking to) your brand.

The outreach team here at Glass Digital use a variety of techniques to help our clients improve their backlink profiles. Here’s a sneak peek at some of the links we built in January 2021 — and insight into how we got them.

Quick tip: Domain authority (DA) is a 100-point scale developed by Moz. Generally speaking, links on higher-DA sites are more valuable for SEO than those on lower-DA sites.

Liverpool Echo (DA 88)

As discussed in a recent blog post, The Netflix effect: How to turn cultural trends into commercial successes, marketers can take advantage of hit TV shows to generate press for their brand.

We keep a close eye on competition shows in particular for a matched betting client. As soon as this year’s Dancing On Ice line-up was announced, we requested odds and an expert comment on which celebrity contestant would win. The next step was distributing this valuable input to journalists who were likely to cover the series.

As a result, we secured client links in high-quality publications including Liverpool Echo.

Tip: As well as offering value, you need to be quick when it comes to these kinds of opportunities. If there are any regular TV series that are relevant to your brand, set up Google Alerts so you’re first to hear when there’s a news story.

NerdWallet (DA 78)

Through our membership to a media enquiry service, we spotted that a NerdWallet journalist was looking for tips on car maintenance.

Knowing we’d recently created a press release about looking after your vehicle during lockdown, we quickly sent this across and explained the automotive client was available for further comment.

The journalist pulled out some of the comments and tips from the piece and included them within their article, crediting our client with a link to their homepage. A great result for very little work.

Tip: Keeping all your assets organised ensures you can act fast and beat the competition when a relevant request crops up, allowing you to make the most of content you’ve already created.

You can also find opportunities like these via the hashtag #journorequest on Twitter, so don’t worry too much if you don’t have the budget for a media enquiry service.

Visit Exeter (DA 45)

We’ve previously discussed tangential content and why it’s a great tactic to build links, and our work with Visit Exeter is a great example of this.

One of our clients is a shoe retailer with stores across the UK. We contacted Visit Exeter to see if they’d be interested in collaborating on an article about making family walks in Exeter fun and educational. They happily accepted and we put together a bespoke feature for them, which was published with the client spokesperson’s byline.

This topic isn’t directly related to our client’s expertise, but they do specialise in family footwear — including walking shoes.

Tip: Thinking outside of the box and identifying the wider conversations that your brand can get involved in, or — better yet — add something new and useful to, opens doors to more link targets and opportunities.

Coconut Lane (DA 30)

It’s not only your typical online publisher who will be interested in content collaborations. Complementary businesses — sites that sell related products or services to your own but aren’t competitors — should also be on your prospects list.

In this case, we contacted lifestyle brand Coconut Lane on half of a homeware client. However, rather than getting in touch via email, we decided to reach out via Instagram. After all, with 124,000 followers, the retailer was sure to have someone managing the channel who knew a thing or two about their content strategy.

Tip: Always try to contact key decision-makers and keep your communications friendly and personal. And choose your channel carefully — the phone tends to be a no-no for busy journalists, but email addresses can be tricky to find. Lots more contacts are becoming open to messages via social media.

BEAR (DA 45)

We conduct a thorough and ongoing commercial understanding process to ensure we’re aware of clients’ relationships with other brands.

After learning that our kitchenware client had formed a partnership with the coffee brand BEAR, we investigated their site and saw they had a blog. After receiving sign-off and contact details from the client, we contacted BEAR on their behalf to offer expert input on a blog post.

As we’re in lockdown and BEAR’s coffee shops are shut, we suggested an idea around creating a coffee station at home during lockdown, and they were delighted to work with us and publish the finished piece.

Tip: Take advantage of any brand relationships you’ve already formed (or form in the future) for link-building purposes, even if it’s just your stationery supplier. You might be able to secure coverage via testimonials, ‘About our partners’ pages, or similar.

Attitude Magazine (DA 78)

When we spotted on Google Trends that searches for men’s engagement rings had been increasing, we knew this would be a great hook for a jewellery client who sells engagement rings.

We’re passionate about finding ways to celebrate diversity through our content, so, as well as pitching inclusive ring-buying tips to lifestyle and wedding sites, we contacted LGBTQ+ publications like Attitude with an angle tailored towards gay couples. The result was a highly relevant feature on their high-DA site.

Tip: Consider how your pitch and idea can be tailored specifically for the contact’s site and their readers. Personalisation requires a little extra time, but it will almost certainly pay off.

That’s Farming (DA 48)

On the other side of the coin to tangential content, pitching industry-led topics for our clients is another approach to obtaining coverage. These types of opportunities are a great chance to secure high-quality brand links and assert clients’ authority as industry leaders.

When one of our outreach team members, who represents a manufacturer of cow satisfaction brushes, spotted the Regenuary movement gaining traction in the press, she knew she had to get her client involved in the conversation.

Regenuary is a new initiative started by The Ethical Butcher just last year. There isn’t a lot of existing information out there about it, so she used this as an opportunity to pitch a useful guide on the topic to B2B farming sites. Industry publication That’s Farming took us up on the offer.

Tip: Keeping an eye on awareness days and events is integral to a successful link-building strategy, but don’t overdo it. Consider where your brand can truly add value and engage relevant audiences.

IoT Tech News (DA 49)

As part of our outreach service, we often produce data-led digital PR campaigns. By conducting original research, we are able to generate news stories and widespread press coverage as a result.

In January, we worked with a client to investigate the link between the use of industrial robotics and manufacturing productivity across countries. Since outreaching our findings in the form of a graphic, table, interactive map, and press release, we have landed links on sites including IoT Tech News.

Because this content offers unique and interesting statistics, we believe that it will continue to generate natural citations for the long-term.

Tip: There are lots of free data sources out there. With the right approach, you can conduct original research and come up with findings that relevant sites are interested in sharing.

For more examples of where we’ve built links, take a look at our links vault. You can also follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, or Facebook to be the first to hear about future roundups.

Interested in outsourcing your outreach to our expert team? Get in touch to discuss the campaign options available to your brand today.

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