Does Short URLs Affect SEO?
It may surprise you that shorter URLs don’t really rank your pages higher than longer ones.
However, there are cases when it may come into play that aren’t related to ranking.
There is a common belief that a shorter URL makes your site’s address clearer, which makes Google’s crawler easier to analyze. People also believe that it makes a page rank higher.
A recent video on the Ask Googlebot YouTube series has debunked this myth.
John Mueller, Google’s Webmaster Trends Analyst, discussed this topic in it.
In this article, we will talk about the length of URLs and their possible effects on SEO. We also included some of the best link shorteners.
Table of Contents
What Does John Mueller Have to Say About URL’s Lengths?
In the recent video of Ask Googlebot, the following question was asked-
“Do shorter URLs actually make an impact compared to long URLs, or is this just another SEO myth?”
John Mueller answered this question and clarified that a URL’s length does not affect SEO. However, he also said that a shorter URL may help in certain aspects, albeit not ranking.
His response was this-
“The direct answer is no. The URL length doesn’t matter. We use URLs as identifiers; it doesn’t matter how long they are. Personally, I try to keep them shorter than 1,000 characters, but that’s just to make monitoring easier. The number of slashes in there also doesn’t matter.”
As you can see, he mentioned his personal preference for the URL to be less than 1,000 characters. He goes on to explain that it helps him monitor and track the information easily.
Note that he also said something similar back in 2019, recommending a URL character count to be within 1,000 characters.
Does that mean that short URLs have no advantages? No, your efforts to shorten your links weren’t wasted exactly, as there are indeed some benefits.
Let’s talk about this in the next section.
Short URL and Its Relation with Google’s Canonicalization
Suppose your website has multiple pages with the same content and similar URLs. So, when Google needs to choose one of them to show in the search result, how do they choose?
That’s right! They go for the page with the shorter URL. It is called canonicalization. Note that the URL’s length isn’t the only factor that goes into canonicalization.
It is best to use the canonical tag when you want a specific content to be picked by Google among various duplicate ones. Just use the rel=“canonical” attribute on the canonical pages.
John Mueller also talked about this in his answer in good detail. Let’s see what he had to say-
“I’m currently only aware of one part of our systems where the URL length plays a role- that part is canonicalization.
Canonicalization is what happens when we find multiple copies of a page on your website, and we have to pick one URL to use for indexing.
If we find a shorter and clearer URL, our systems tend to select that one.”
According to him, it is not just a short URL but also a clearer one.
So, any link address where the URL doesn’t contain many slashes may help any particular page to get chosen among similar ones within the same domain (canonicalization).
However, similar to the length, the clarity or structure of the URL also does not affect SEO, which is related to another myth. Many believe that the number of slashes affects SEO negatively.
According to them, a flat URL does better in SEO than one with hyphens or slashes. However, it doesn’t, which gets clearer by the rest of Mueller’s answer-
“This does not affect ranking. It’s purely a matter of which URL is shown in search. So, to sum up, when it comes to search rankings, neither the URL length nor the number of slashes matter. Use a URL structure that works for you and which you can keep for the long run.”
Mueller advises people to work with a link structure that is beneficial to the site owner. Yes, you don’t have to change a URL like-
WebsiteName.com/articles/blog-titles
To-
WebsiteName.com/blog-title
Only do it if the latter helps you track your pages better.

In the next section, we will explain the other areas outside SEO where a short link may help you.
Possible Benefits of Short and Clear URLs
Most pros of shorter and clearer URLs are about easier handling and managing. It is also visually more appealing in many cases. Without further ado, let us explain some such benefits-
User Preference
A shorter or flat URL usually attracts more users, according to Google’s Matt Cutts 2010 video. He compared two URLs; one had its keyword in the pathname and another in the filename.
He said they don’t make any difference in the SEO ranking per se, but one of their structures may appear more appealing to users.
According to him, a URL with hyphens instead of slashes seems spammy to the audience. By the way, the two URLs he used were –
- /tools/wood/drills.html (keyword in the pathname)
- /tools-wood-drills.html (hyphenated keyword in the filename)
His exact words were –
“As far as search engine ranking, I’m not sure that there’s really that much difference between the two.
But you might want to be a little careful because of the user experience of having a really long filename that’s just stuffed with hyphens. People might not like it if they see dash, dash, dash, dash, dash, dash, and so they might not click on it.”
Cutts reminded everyone of a very important factor: your content attracting more visitors is more important than ranking at the top.
After all, sites usually want to rank higher to gain more visitors in the first place. With a more appealing URL structure, a page may get more visits even after ranking lower than some rivals.
In cases like this, shorter or clearer URLs may help your traffic lead directly, even without pushing your site’s ranking higher.
Easier to Send a Backlink to
When linking to a website, there may be instances where one has to type in the URL manually. While copying it directly from the targeted page is easier, it may not always be viable.
In those cases, a shorter or clearer URL comes in handy. It will prevent typos and other errors while making the process faster.
Easier to Understand the Context
Check these two links in the image below-

In the first one, you can easily guess that the link is about the challenges one may face during the link-building process. The audience can learn the context of the page even before entering it.
Meanwhile, the second URL doesn’t explain any of that despite containing a blog. As such, visitors may not understand what it is about until after entering.
Additionally, having a clear URL that includes the keyword in a short and surmised way is better than having a long string of words by adding the whole title to the URL.
Let us remind you that it is all about user impact and not SEO ranking.
What Is a Link Shortener?
A link shortener is a handy tool people use to shorten and customize their links. Natural URLs often don’t include brand keywords or context in the content.
However, you can add any branding you prefer to the URL using a link shortener. Many of them can reduce the length of a URL to as low as 10 characters.
You can find various link shorteners online, some free and others paid. Some of them are better than others because of their speed, features, and accuracy.
Top Link Shorteners
Various factors influence the selection of the best link shortener. These are our top picks-
Bit.ly

Bit.ly is one of the best link shorteners with advanced features like access to 20+ data points. It allows one to make informed strategies.
Its HTTP encryption makes the generated or shortened URLs very secure, which you can share using referral links.
The tool works with over 700 apps that enhance the automation process, saving the user lots of effort and time. The links can be mobile-friendly by your command using various apps.
The original URL includes bit.ly, which you can alter to your branded keywords. It can create QR codes for the URLs you create.
You can use Bitly for free or pay for its various features. If you go for the annual subscription, it gives a 33% discount. Its monthly rates are-
- No fee for the free version.
- $29 for the basic version.
- $199 for the premium version.
- You can also get a customized version, where the pricing is based on your quote.
Website: https://bitly.com/
Rebrandly

If you want a tool that lets you do group-based activity, Rebrandy is your best bet. It allows you to shorten URLs alongside branding, tracking, and sharing.
Rebrandy can also integrate the URLs with other tools or apps that you use. Moreover, you can make URL slugs using the tool.
It is a great link shortener if you want your group members to keep track of the progress in real-time data without leaving any room for confusion or the necessity for updating everyone occasionally.
However, that is not where its features end. Regarding group sharing, the tool also lets you create traffic reports, schedule them, and share them with others.
Some other features of Rebrandy include-
- Domain management
- Retargeting traffic through branded links
- Leading the traffic to any page or app you want based on various filters
When using any paid version of the tool, you will get a 30-day money-back guarantee. The subscription costs of Rebrandy are-
- No fee for the free version.
- $29 for the starter version.
- $69 for the pro version.
- $499 for the premium version. And,
- Custom price for the enterprise version.
Website: https://www.rebrandly.com/
TinyURL

TinyURL is a good option if you are looking for a free top-tier link shortener. However, it does have some paid features.
TinyURL allows you to enter a lengthy URL into a toolbar and press the button beside it to shorten it. Moreover, you can also get a custom alias, helping with easier link sharing.
It doesn’t directly make the shortened link. Instead, it shows its preview first, where you can customize it with branded keywords or get a different result.
The tool also allows redirecting to any targeted page you want using a short URL. Since it is very easy to use with free unlimited link generation, many prefer it as their go-to link shortener.
Another handy feature of the tool is that it deactivates any illegal or spammy link.
While the tool is mostly free, it has a pro version with a $9.99 and a bulk version with a $99 monthly rate. They are amazing if you are managing a small business or social media presence.
Website: https://tinyurl.com/
Zapier

When it comes to integration with other platforms, Zapier excels most of its competitors.
The URL shortener by Zapier can join with Google Sheets and save your shortened links automatically in it. It also allows for automation in other ways.
For instance, if you share a link with someone using text messages or emails, the tool can automatically decrease the URL length.
Zapier is compatible with more than 2,000 platforms, so almost all social media apps and many other tools are included. Moreover, it allows 100 integrated operations monthly.
It also provides data feeds to monitor how well a link works. Finally, Zapier offers additional services where you can hire an expert from them.
The URL shortener charges nothing for its services unless you hire a professional.
Website: https://zapier.com/apps/url-shortener/integrations
What Is a 301 Affiliate Link?
A 301 affiliate link is one where a 301 redirect is implemented. This redirect leads the visitors to a new permanent location.
If the site owner moves a page or a domain to a new location, they use the 301 redirect to lead the visitors to the new place, even when someone clicks on the old URL.
The process transfers the link juice to the redirected page. However, if the movement is temporary, one can use the 302 redirect, which doesn’t pass any link equity.
How to Implement 301 Redirect
Implementing 301 redirect can be pretty simple if your site runs on the Apache web server. You will simply need to edit your .htaccess file.
Check your site’s root folder and locate the .htaccess file. If there are none, create one using Notepad for Windows or TextEdit for Mac (remove the .txt at the end when creating it).
There are many other ways to do it, of course.
Redirecting an Old Page to a New One
Simply insert the following code in your .htaccess file-
1 Redirect 301 /old-page.html /new-page.html
If you are using WordPress, use the redirection plugin instead.
Redirecting an Old Domain to a New One
Use the following code in your .htaccess file instead-
1 RewriteEngine on
2 RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^oldsite.com
3 RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^www.oldsite.com
4 RewriteRule ^(.*)$ https://newsite.com/\
Changing domain from non-www to www-
1 RewriteEngine on
2 RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^example.com
3 RewriteRule ^(.*)$ http://www.example.com/\
Changing domain from www to non-www-
1 RewriteEngine on
2 RewriteCond %{HTTP_HOST} ^www.example.com
3 RewriteRule ^(.*)$ http://example.com/\
Don’t copy-paste the ‘RewriteEngine on’ if it is already in the .htaccess file, and use the rest of the code.
How to Avoid Link Rot: Causes and Prevention
Suppose you found an interesting hyperlink when reading the content on a page. You click on it, only to be disappointed with a ‘file not found’ text. This phenomenon is called link rot.
Link rot is one of the major ways a page can ruin the audience’s user experience. Nobody wants to see a dead end upon clicking on a link text.
Moreover, link rot also deals critical damage to the site’s and page’s SEO. Google doesn’t like broken, orphaned, or irrelevant links. So, as a website owner, you should also avoid them.
This article describes the various points surrounding link rots, their causes, and prevention methods.
Table of Contents
What Is Link Rot
Link rot is when a hyperlink stops leading to the page or file or opening the pop-up window it was originally supposed to. You will usually see a ‘can’t reach this page’ text.

Other times, you may also see a ‘404 error’ page, indicating that the page that the link is trying to lead no longer exists at that address.
However, in the worst-case scenario, the link may lead to the website’s homepage instead of the specific page it was initially linked to.
As such, users can get confused when they click on the hyperlink. Suppose you find a hyperlink saying ‘Generative AI vs SEO’.
However, when you click on it, it leads to the site’s homepage instead of the page that describes the topic in question. It can cause several issues that we described later in this blog.
What Is a Broken Link?
When a hyperlink has a link rot and fails to redirect the users to the supposed page, that link is known as a broken, dead, or orphaned link. You can’t easily identify a broken link until you click on it.
If your page has such broken links, you should immediately remove or edit them.
Why Is Link Rot a Problem for Your Page’s SEO?
Link rot is very dangerous for the SEO of a page and domain. Here are some common reasons-
Bad User Experience
You probably already know that the one major factor of on-page SEO is the quality of user experience.
Even if you have built your web pages with utmost care and easy navigation, a simple link rot can cause disappointed traffic.
It is even more dangerous when the anchor text of the link rot is something engaging or interesting. Readers will be curious to read the source, only to be disappointed.
- It may increase the page’s bounce rate.
- The readers may start to doubt the trustworthiness of your content.
- In the worst-case scenario, you may lose some members who logged in or subscribed to your site.
Google Crawlers Dislike Broken Links
Google crawlers check every link on your content and page to determine its quality. Links to relevant and authoritative sites usually boost a page’s ranking.
Meanwhile, a broken link can negatively affect SEO. Broken links are widely found in outdated websites, and some neglected sites also often contain an abundance of them.
So, when Google finds multiple broken links on a page, it may deem it untrustworthy or outdated, which can lead to a lower rank on the SERP.
On the one hand, you lose a potential SEO boost for a link, and on the other hand, you risk your page ranking lower due to the broken link.
Competitors Taking Advantages of Broken Backlinks
Suppose a backlink to one of your pages isn’t working. That means that the link on the linking site is broken.
If that website has a high domain authority (DA), your competitors will want to take advantage of it.
Also known as Link Fix, your competitors will likely create high-quality content to replace the broken link with a backlink to theirs. It is also easy to persuade the site owner to send them the backlink here.
Causes of Link Rot
Link rot can happen for various reasons. Some of them are-
- The targeted page by the link has been removed or moved, but the hyperlink wasn’t updated
- The website owner has updated the URL of the targeted page
- The domain of the targeted page has expired without renewal
- The link URL was typed incorrectly during the creation of the hyperlink
Sadly, these events are happening way too often online, causing broken links to happen so much. As such, big chunks of information are disappearing permanently from the web.
The Three Types of Link Rot Cases
There are three types of broken links that may cause link rot and harm your page’s SEO or user experience. Let’s go over them one by one-
1. External Broken Link
Perhaps the most common broken links are external links, as you are unable to notice them immediately.
You often need to link to other websites to enrich your content with value. An external broken link occurs when an external hyperlink on your page does not lead to its targeted page.
These link rots can cause a bad user experience because the audience can’t access the sources or further resources you are referencing.
2. Internal Broken Link
An internal broken link is similar to an external one, except that the link here is supposed to redirect to a page on the same site.
It is basically when an internal link in a page doesn’t work. Luckily, it is easy to deal with these links. Before removing or moving a page, you can simply edit all the links that used to lead to it.
3. Backlink Rot
A backlink is a link from another website to a page on your site. When one of these backlinks doesn’t work, it is called a broken backlink. These link rots cause you to lose potential link juice.
As such, before you remove or move a page or update its URL, carefully check whether and which sites are linking to it. If many authoritative sites are sending backlinks, it is ideal not to remove that page.
How to Prevent Link Rot on Your Site
Website owners and experts use various methods to prevent link rots from harming their sites’ quality and SEO. We have discussed some of them below so you can utilize them.
Ensure the URLs Are Correct
When creating hyperlinks to interlink your pages, ensure the link URL is typed correctly. You can check by clicking on the hyperlink and seeing if it works.
Another way to prevent inaccurate URLs is to copy the link address of the targeted page and paste it directly into the right place instead of typing it manually.
Keep a Consistent URL
If your link URLs are consistent, you will likely make fewer typos when typing them on the hyperlink. Aside from that, consistent URLs are also better for your SEO.
It makes it easier for Google crawlers to assess the links.
Using the 301 Redirect
When moving the content from an address, you can use the 301 redirect to lead people to the new address.
So, now, when someone clicks on the hyperlink that would have led to the earlier address, it will instead bring the audience to the place where you moved the page’s content.
Every time you move some content in your website to a new URL, use the 301 redirect.
How to Protect Against Link Rot
While prevention is better than cure, it is always best to double-check everything to keep your site safe from link rots.
Using Broken Link Detector Tools
You may use tools online to detect broken links on a domain. Here are some-
Google Search Console
Google’s free search console tool has a crawling feature that excels at finding broken links. Moreover, it is also easy to use. Here’s how-
- After opening the tool, you will be able to select the website or page you want to inspect.
- Click on ‘Coverage’ from the left side of the screen. If issues with the website or page are present, it will show them to you.

- Go to the ‘Error’ section. You can find various crawler errors here, including the ‘404 errors’. These are the broken links.

It is better to fix all the errors and issues shown in this section rather than only the broken links.
Screaming Frog SEO Spider Tool
One of the most common ones people use for this is the ‘Screaming Frog SEO Spider Tool’.
Luckily, you can use the free version of the tool to find broken links on your website. You just need to download it.
- You can search for certain URLs within your website or index for the whole site. The tool will work like Google crawlers and run a scan.
- Afterward, go to the response codes tab.
- Select the ‘client error 404’ on the right side of the screen. It will show you a list of broken links alongside the pages that contain them.
Now that you can identify the link rots, you can replace or edit them.
Manual Checking
As you can guess, manual checking implies checking every hyperlink and other links on each page of your website one by one by clicking on them.
It is better to do so on smaller websites, but it can be time-consuming on larger ones. If you have the latter, you can focus on your most important pages first, including your homepage.
Requesting Users for Feedback and Criticisms
Getting feedback from visitors is a fine way to be aware of any issue with the page, the user experience, or broken links. It will help your site in ways that you probably didn’t think about-
- It can help detect issues and errors on the page that are undetected by many tools.
- It makes the audience feel engaged and heard.
- It allows you to find issues quickly that would take way longer to discover otherwise.
People love to be the first to report any issues. This may encourage them to participate more in the site’s activities and help with organic traffic.
How to Check My Google Ranking- Top Five Tools
Monitoring the Google ranking of your pages occasionally is nearly mandatory to track your SEO progress. So, how exactly to do it? What tools to use? You will find that out here.
When we start our SEO project, one of the first tasks is setting a realistic goal. If your site is not in the top ten of the SERP, reaching that can be your initial aim, followed by the top three.
Afterward, you must check your site’s ranking as you improve your site’s content, structure, and backlink profile. Luckily, it is not as complex as many think.
This blog assembled some of the top tools to find out the ranking of any keyword. We also explained how to use them alongside their pricing, so kindly stick to the end.
Table of Contents
The Unreliability of Simple Google Searches to Check Your Google Ranking
When we think about checking our pages’ Google ranking, one of the very first cost-effective methods that comes to our mind is searching with its keywords on Google.
Each of your pages may contain several keywords that can help it rank in SERP. So, does this method work? Yes and no.
Suppose you searched with the appropriate keywords on Google. Low and Behold! There’s your page within the first ten rankings!
Before you start celebrating, we should break it down that this result is not always as reliable as you think. We can think of two major reasons behind that.
Personalization
Google and many other small and big online platforms utilize a personalization system to show results relevant to your recent activities. Here, the results can be biased and influenced by you.
For example, if your activity makes it seem like you own a cat, you will get results related to felines rather than canines when you search for pets.
Similarly, your constant visit to your own site may make Google recommend it more. Another example will be to find your pages rank higher in your current location but not your targeted one.
You can solve this by using a different account for your searches. This way, your personal activities won’t affect your search results. Sadly, a little influence is still inevitable.
So, turning off Google personalization on your work account is an effective method.
Search Volume
As we mentioned, there can be more than one keyword that is helping your page rank. So, you search with one of them, and your page ranks pretty high.
Now, there can be an issue here. This keyword may not have much search volume. Search volume refers to the number of visitors that enter a keyword query into their search bar.
That means that while ranked high, your site may still not get much search traffic through that keyword.
Here, you will need to check with other keywords to ensure they also aid the page rank.
Searching with Each Keyword Is Also Time-Consuming
It will take several Google searches with different keywords to check the ranking of one of your pages. Imagine doing that for many of your pages, especially if your site is big.
It will take so much time and effort, which is a total waste, given how you can use even some free tools to get better results.
5 Tools to Use to Check Your Google Ranking
Here are five of the best tools to check your Google ranking. Some of them are free, and others are subscription-based. Some also have both options, with the latter giving better features.
1. Google Search Console
The Google Search Console is one of the most standard tools for various SEO-related tasks. As a tool by Google itself, its results are highly reliable. It is also fairly easy to use.
Some features of Google Search Console include-
- Knowing how well a keyword may perform to generate some potential keywords for your next content.
- Checking the ranking of your site with various useful details.
- Comparing earlier results to find out the fruit of your SEO efforts.
- Getting tips from the tool to improve your SEO and ranking.
Here is how you can use it-
- Enter Google Search Console
- Verify your website or page that you want to check
- Select the ‘Performance Report Dashboard’. It will show you data related to your site or page in question.

- You can see all the necessary information from here, including Average Position, Click-Through Rate (CTR), Total Clicks, etc.
Price: Free
Link: https://search.google.com/search-console/about
2. Ahrefs
While most use Ahrefs primarily for link-building projects, this powerful tool offers much for your SEO journey. You can track the average position of your site using it as well.
The tool is arguably the most used in the SEO industry by professionals and beginners.
Aside from your ranking, you can also check the keyword metrics to know the keywords that help your site rank. Here is how you can do it-
- Go to Ahrefs, sign in, and enter its ‘Organic Keywords’ section.
- Search with your website URL.
- The tool will show you a list of all your pages with a detailed description of the number of keywords that are helping your pages rank in the top 100 of SERP. It will also show the top keywords.

- Use the filters above to show results within specific timeframes, locations, etc.
Next, let’s show you how you can check your site’s Google ranking-
- Click on the ‘Rank Tracker Tool’ in the Ahrefs dashboard
- Search with URL or add keywords to track.

- You can now check the different graphs representing the average positions, traffic, and SERP features on the resulting dashboard. It will also show the top keywords for your site.

There is a ‘competitor’ function besides the ‘overview’ where you can find your competitors that are ranking with the same keyword as yours.
Price: Standard Plan = $179/month
Link: https://ahrefs.com/rank-tracker
3. SEMRush
If you are managing a small business or something on a small scale, SEMRush will be one of your most handy tools. It has so many premium features and services at a fairly low cost.
When checking your site’s ranking, the tool shows you the top keywords and divides them by their performance.
So, you can see how many keywords are helping your site reach the top 100th position and how many are doing so for the 20th, followed by the 10th and 3rd. It also shows the visibility for each keyword.
Let’s see how to use SEMRush-
- Visit SEMRush and select their ‘Position Tracking’ tool.
- Search with your site’s URL to track it. Add the specific keywords. You can add up to 10 keywords with the free version.
- If necessary, filter the results.
- Explore the ranking overview containing the visibility and top keywords.

- If you hover your cursor on the SERP feature, it displays the keywords that are working the best.
Price: $120 per month.
Link: https://www.semrush.com/position-tracking/
4. AccuRanker
Accuranker is a free SEO tool with a subscription plan that can clear some restrictions you would face on the free version. This tool is one of the simplest yet most useful tools with a user-friendly interface.
Normally, the tool will limit you to five searches per day on the free plan. You also will have a limit to the number of keywords you can search.
However, the premium version will cost $109 per 1000 keywords monthly.
AccuRanker offers a detailed view of your SERP ranking based on the keyword you chose. We recommend using the filters.
You can also switch between desktop or mobile to see the ranking for each device. Here’s how to use AccuRanker-
- Visit the site and go to its SERP Checker section.
- Fill the bars with your desired keyword, select the country and location, and search.
- You will be required to register to see the result. Note that the site doesn’t accept Gmail accounts, so you need to use a different type of email address.
- Afterward, you can check the result. It will include the search result for that keyword, similar to how you can see it on your regular Google searches.

How is it different from a regular Google search? Well, it removes one of the inevitable issues you have with searching a keyword on Google: to have personalized results.
The result you will see on AccuRanker is not personalized and completely accurate.
Price: Free or $109 monthly per 1000 keywords.
Link: https://www.accuranker.com/rank-tracker/
5. SERanker
While SERanker is a paid tool, its low-cost services attract countless SEO experts worldwide. This tool offers the following services-
- Rank Tracking
- On-page SEO Checking
- Backlink Checking
- Keyword Distribution and Tips
- SERP Competitor Analysis
- Website Audit
- Project Overview
- Content Marketing
If you want to check your site’s ranking using SERanking, follow the instructions-
- Visit the tool’s site and select the Rank Tracker tool.
- Select a plat, whether the free one or the subscription.
- Afterwards, you will need to sign in.
- Once you do, the tool will let you enter your site’s URL, let you enter keywords manually, and select locations. They may also add some keywords by themselves.
- Afterward, you can check your site’s average position and the number of keywords helping it rank from the ones you manually entered.
- You can also recheck your ranking later and compare the results.

This picture only holds the SEO ranking for one day. Hence, it couldn’t show many details.
Price: $18.70 monthly. You will get a 14-day free trial with no card needed.
Link: https://seranking.com/
Tips to Check Keyword Position Correctly
Here are some tips that can help you check your keyword position accurately-
- If you are searching on Google for a keyword to know the top pages with it, turn off your personalization first.
- Use a separate work account to prevent your personal activities from affecting your search results.
- When using an SEO tool to know keyword ranking, use the filters to pinpoint your results.
- You will get an average position from all the SEO tools but not the exact location. You will need to select a timeframe to see where your site ranked over a specific period.
- When adding keywords manually, add as many as possible since it can give you a better result. It can also give you ideas on which keywords to focus more on.
Top 5 Link Building Browser Extensions
The process of growing a website’s organic search traffic is known as Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Link building is hard and you will need any help you can get.
To explore the top five link building extensions for browsers, we need to discuss the influence of the extensions on SEO.
Table of Contents
Top 5 Extensions For Browsers
Here are the best available extensions that can help you climb SEO rankings.
1. Ahrefs SEO Toolbar
Ahrefs SEO Toolbar is a free-to-download extension for Chrome and Firefox, used by 200k+ SEO professionals across the world.
Free Features
- Concise on-page SEO report:

Ahrefs SEO Toolbar lets you analyze the on-page elements for any page with one simple click.
The “Content” section of the report contains: title and description of the page, published and update dates, and word count.
The “Indexability” section is composed of: canonical URL check, sitemaps, directives for crawlers and Hreflang tags.
The “Social” section shows Open Graph tags and Twitter cards.
The “Images” section covers alternate texts and titles.
- Checks redirects and HTTP headers: The Ahrefs SEO Toolbar enables the ability to check HTTP status codes and full redirect chains in a single click, as well as HTTP headers for indexability and crawlability.
- Highlights various types of links: The toolbar presents you with the option to highlight external links (including broken links) on a page, making it easier to evaluate link opportunities.
- SERP country changer: The toolbar lets you change the location of search engine result pages without a VPN or proxy to see how search results look in different countries.

Paid Features
- Checks SEO metrics: With a paid subscription to Ahrefs, the toolbar lets you check crucial SEO metrics of each page or website you visit. The metrics include:
- Domain Rating (DR)
- URL Rating (UR)
- Ahrefs rank (AR)
- Numbers of backlinks
- Numbers of referring domains
- Estimated organic search traffic
- Number of keyword rankings

- Analyze top-ranking search results: Analyze the competition by instantly checking the aforementioned metrics for top search results.
2. MozBar
Mozbar is one of the leading browser extensions in the SEO industry, which helps improve SEO rankings with multiple free and premium useful features.
Free Features
- Custom Searches: The MozBar toolbar lets you create custom searches by country, engine, region, or city to give you the competitive edge with the knowledge of what your region-based audience wants.
- Page Analysis: Similar to Ahrefs SEO Toolbar, MozBar also lets you check the metrics like Page Authority(PA) and DA of any website you visit. It can also display on-page elements like titles, meta descriptions, or alt texts.
- Authority Scores: MozBar lets you quickly assess ranking probability with PA and DA. This feature lets you know when your content needs more attention.
- Data Export: MozBar lets you export your Dashboard, Insights, Rankings, Page Optimizations, Site Crawl, Performance Metrics, Links, Site Traffic, and Custom Reports as PDF and occasionally as CSV.
Paid Features
With a Moz Pro subscription, you can gain access to Mozbar Premium:
- Keyword Difficulty score: MozBar Premium lets you view keyword difficulty scores for any search term on any SERP in real time.
- Page Optimisation: MozBar Premium scores pages on a scale of 100 for keyword optimization; provides detailed suggestions on how to optimize the target keyword; breaks down the score by fixes needed and positive factors already in place.
3. Semrush SEO Toolkit
The Semrush SEO Toolkit provides multiple instruments in their Dashboard to help you with link building:

Backlink Analytics
Backlink Analytics presents you the ability to examine your own and your competitors’ backlink profiles and compare multiple domains side by side with the help of the Quick Comparison feature.
Backlink Audit
Backlink Audit lets you audit your domain’s profile to take an analytical look at which links positively or negatively affect your rankings with the help of integration with Google Search Console, Google Analytics, and Majestic.
Price
While Semrush allows you to use certain tools for free, the ones mentioned above are locked behind a paywall. Click here to find out how much their subscription-based service costs.
4. Hunter.io
Hunter.io is a powerful SEO tool for streamlining the process of finding and contacting potential link partners. Here are the key link building features that Hunter.io hoists:
Email Finder
The Hunter extension allows you to find the email addresses of people associated with the visited website or domain with one simple click, letting you effortlessly contact fellow site owners and plan mutual features. Building such relationships is a crucial part of link building.

Domain Search
Hunter extension offers a search tool that allows you to find email addresses associated with the domain. This feature is useful for finding contact information for websites relevant to your exact niche.
Bulk Email Management

Hunter.io has a bulk email management feature that allows you to find and verify multiple emails and send personalized emails to multiple contacts at once without wasting your precious time.
Price
The extension is available to download for free on Chrome, Firefox, and Edge; however, some of the features, such as link tracking and prioritized customer service, are locked behind a paywall.
5. Grammarly
While Grammarly is primarily a writing enhancement tool, it is just as important for link-building as the other options here. The quality of your content is directly proportional to the authority of your site. Here are the key features their browser extension offers:
Grammar Check
The Grammarly extension can identify and correct over 150 types of grammar and punctuation errors before your content reaches the reader. A pleasant consumer experience is one of the building blocks for gaining brand recognition.

Plagiarism Detection
Plagiarism can not only invite unwanted lawsuits but also leave you unwanted for potential backlinks. The Premium version of the extension comes with the “Plagiarism Checker” feature.

Price
The extension is free to download on Chrome, but features like “Use Inclusive Language,” “Plagiarism Detection,” and “Adjust Writing Tone” are only available to Premium and Business users.
Conclusion
Browser extensions have become an indispensable tool for SEO professionals looking to streamline their link building efforts. By providing real-time insights and metrics, extensions like Ahrefs SEO Toolbar, MozBar, and SEMrush SEO Toolkit make it easier than ever to analyze competitor backlink profiles and improve the overall quality of your website’s link profile.
Extensions like Hunter.io simplify the outreach process by helping you find and verify email addresses associated with target websites, while Grammarly ensures your outreach emails and content are free of grammar and spelling errors.
Conclusively, leveraging the power of these browser extensions can give you a significant advantage in the competitive world of link building. By providing insights at your fingertips, they enable you to make informed decisions, optimize your link-building strategy, and ultimately drive more organic traffic for your website. So, go ahead; try one out and make your own life easier.
How to Hire Freelance Link Builders (And Avoid Poor Links)
Let’s be real: Having an in-house team for link building is always better than freelanced options. You can control the quality of the links and can have better results in less time.
However, it can be way too expensive, especially for a startup, to have several people working in an in-house environment for SEO.
Our link building pricing article estimated that it would take at least $14,987 per month to run a team of people for link building, $8,424 if you’re hiring from overseas.
Table of Contents

That’s why sometimes hiring freelancers can be the only option.
There are tons, and I mean tons, of freelancers looking for the next link building client. If you put out a LinkedIn post right now, you’ll get a lot of CVs in your mail.
However, what’s the best way to get a perfect link building candidate?
Here at RankPa, we work with some of the best marketing experts in the city. As a result, we do have a bit of knowledge when it comes to hiring the right people.
With that being said, here’s your ultimate guide to hiring freelance link builders.
The Issues with Hiring Freelancers for Links
To better explain the most common issue with hiring freelancers for link building, have a look at the screenshot below –

This screenshot, fetched from Fiverr, shows a freelancer offering a staggering number of “high authority” backlinks at the lowest possible price.
On top of a cheap rate, they are also offering “super fast delivery.”
With one look, we can easily say that this is the big red flag you will come across when trying to hire link builders.
Anyone offering hundreds of links in a short time is just going to give you a bunch of spam links. Those links will do more harm than good!
With that example out of the way, here are some more pointers about the issues with freelancers working on getting you links:
1. Quality Control
When you hire freelancers for link building, ensuring the quality of the links they acquire can be a big challenge.
Unlike in-house teams or reputable agencies that follow strict guidelines and quality checks, freelancers may not always adhere to the same standards.
This becomes an even bigger issue when you don’t have sufficient knowledge of the SEO world or just a beginner.
This can lead to:
- Low-Quality Links: Freelancers might acquire links by using low-quality websites or private blog networks (PBNs), which can harm your site’s credibility and rankings.
- Irrelevant Links: The links may come from sites irrelevant to your niche, reducing their effectiveness and potentially raising red flags with search engines.
2. Lack of Accountability
Freelancers are independent contractors. Unlike a member of an in-house team, they may not always be available to provide updates or address issues promptly.
Misunderstandings and delays in communication can slow down your link-building efforts and lead to missed opportunities.
Without a dedicated team to monitor progress, the results can be inconsistent, making it difficult to gauge the effectiveness of your link-building strategy.
3. Risk of Penalties
Google and other search engines are continually updating their algorithms to crack down on manipulative link-building practices.
Freelancers, particularly those offering low-cost services, may engage in tactics that can result in penalties, such as:
- Link Schemes: Participating in link schemes or buying links can lead to severe penalties, including deindexing.
- Over-Optimization: Using exact-match anchor text excessively can trigger algorithmic penalties, harming your site’s rankings.
Now, this doesn’t mean you can’t hire freelance link builders.
Just like there are many people selling cheap, low-quality links for money, there are also respected freelancers who put a lot of effort and work with you to ensure you reach your SEO goals.
And you can differentiate between them during the hiring process. Let’s get down to the tactics of it!
Find Link Building ExpertsWhere to Find Link Building Experts
Freelance link builders are easily available on various online platforms. There, you can get outsourced talents from many countries who work on projects at a much cheaper rate.
If you’re trying to look offline, then there are some limited options as well.
Here are the places you will find link building experts:
Upwork

Arguably the best platform for outsourcing, Upwork can be your first choice to hire link building experts.
You can either post your job offer with the project budget/hourly rate you have in mind or hire from one of their experts.
The best part of using Upwork is that you will, most of the time, find excellent candidates.
However, most of these experts are looking for good pay. Therefore, you will need a good budget to hire people from Upwork.
Fiverr

Fiverr is another well-known freelance platform. However, its services are structured slightly differently than Upwork’s.
Instead of posting a job ad, you will have to select from people advertising themselves.
You will often encounter many “experts” who offer a large number of links with a short turnaround time – as we showed in the example before.
That’s why Upwork is usually better. But it does not mean you can’t find good prospects on Fiverr.
Freelancer

Similar to Upwork, Freelancer allows you to post job ads or offer to hire people directly based on their profile.
However, there are slight differences.
Freelancer’s barrier to entry is not as restricted as Upwork. As a result, you will find a lot more low-quality candidates on Freelancer.
However, compared to Upwork, you will find link builders who will charge a lot less for their work on Freelancer, which isn’t always a good thing, as we described before.

Of course, the biggest network of employed people will have experts who can help with your link projects!
With LinkedIn, you have a detailed view of the profiles of potential candidates.

You can also see how connected they are in the industry, as those connections can be really helpful for securing high quality backlinks.
Forums & Communities
People who are invested in the world of SEO will often engage in online forums and communities.
The advantage of looking here is that you will usually find people who are proven experts and also help newcomers to the industry.
Here are some of the options:
1. Slack Communities

Slack is a communication platform for professionals and could be your next stop for finding link building experts.
Check out our link building Slack communities article for some great selections.
2. Forums
A lot of top link building websites have forums where experts answer questions and provide insights.
While it is easy to find such forums with a simple Google search, the hard part is contacting them and waiting for their response.
3. Reddit
Reddit, while not the best platform on this list for finding freelancers, can still be your choice for connecting with potential hires.
Here are the subreddits you should look into:
- r/seoandbacklinks
- r/linkbuilding
- r/linkaggregators
- r/seo
- r/bigseo
- r/seolinkbuilding
Conferences

If you want a more offline or IRL approach, then the best place to look is at conferences.
SEO conferences take place all over the world, uniting marketing experts and creating opportunities to network and grow.
These conferences can connect you with the brightest minds of the SEO community.
Here are 8 SEO conferences that you should not avoid this year!
Process of Hiring Freelance Link Builders
Now, let’s get into the details.
If you have read through the earlier parts of this article, you already have a good idea of what to look for and where.
In this section, we will explain as thoroughly as possible the process of hiring freelancer link builders in five steps.
1. Write Ad
The first step is deciding on what you are looking for in a candidate and putting them into words.
Here is a job post example that you can use by customizing it a little bit:
Job Title: Link Building Specialist Job Description: We are seeking a highly skilled and motivated Link Building Specialist. As a Link Building Specialist, you will be responsible for developing and implementing effective link building strategies to improve our website’s authority and search engine rankings. Responsibilities: Develop and execute link building strategies to acquire high-quality backlinks.Conduct thorough research to identify potential link building opportunities.Outreach to relevant websites, bloggers, and influencers to establish partnerships and secure backlinks.Create engaging and persuasive outreach content tailored to different audiencesMonitor and analyze the effectiveness of link building campaigns, making necessary adjustments to improve results.Stay up-to-date with industry trends and algorithm updates to ensure best practices in link building.Collaborate with the content team to create link-worthy content and optimize existing content for link building purposes.Maintain accurate records of link building activities and report progress to the team. Requirements: Proven experience as a Link Building Specialist or similar roleStrong understanding of SEO principles and search engine algorithmsExcellent research, analytical, and organizational skillsExceptional communication and outreach skillsAbility to create compelling and tailored outreach contentFamiliarity with link building tools and software (e.g., Ahrefs, Moz, SEMrush)Knowledge of different link building techniques and best practicesAbility to work independently and manage multiple projects simultaneouslyAttention to detail and a results-oriented mindset Preferred Qualifications: Experience in digital marketing or content marketingUnderstanding of Google Analytics and other SEO toolsFamiliarity website managementStrong network of industry contacts for potential link building opportunities How to Apply: If you are passionate about link building and have a proven track record of successful link building campaigns, we would love to hear from you. Please submit your resume, along with a cover letter detailing your relevant experience and examples of successful link building projects you have worked on. |
Make sure your job post clearly states what your company/website needs.
For example, if you only want someone to perform outreach and guest posts, then you should have a more unique job post.
Usually, a link building specialist will handle more responsibilities on top of guest posting.
2. Post Ad
After making your job ad, it’s time to post it.
You can post the ad on platforms like the ones we mentioned above, including freelance platforms like Upwork or Fiverr.
You can even post the job offer on LinkedIn and get interested candidates within days.
It’s not unusual to get hundreds of candidates if you post your offer on several platforms. You will have to narrow it down through the vetting process.
3. Vetting
You can’t possibly interview hundreds of candidates without sufficient manpower.
That’s why it’s important to vet potential candidates by reviewing their CVs and profile.
Here are the things to look for:
Experience
Anyone can say they have 5+ years of experience. That’s why you should look for proven track records with past projects they have worked on.
Reviews

Via Upwork
Sites like Freelancer and Upwork have a review system. Check out how well clients have received their work in the past. Too many recent bad reviews can be a red flag.
Case Studies

Many excellent freelancers invest in making portfolios. The quality of the portfolio can tell a lot about the person’s commitment to work.
Case studies are excellent as they can show you how well a candidate’s effort has brought success in the past.
What to Avoid
- Past examples showing poorly written articles
- Candidates proposing a list of websites they can get links from
- Asking for overtly low payment
- Way too fast of a turnaround time
- Any absolute guarantees of securing ## of links in ## weeks
4. Interview
Hopefully, you will be able to narrow down the list of candidates through the vetting process we described.
After that, it’s time to interview the lucky few caught by the net of your thorough search.
Here are some of the questions you should ask your potential link builder:
- Can you secure 50 links for me in 30 days?
This is a trick question. If they answer yes, then you know that they are likely going to get your website tangled with link farms.
Good candidates will explain how it’s not probable to generate that many links while also caring about the quality of the backlinks.
- What tools and software do you use for link building?
Experienced link builders usually use tools like Ahrefs, Semrush, and Moz.
- What is your most successful strategy for link building?
If they claim that private blog networks (PBNs) are their best strategy, it’s safe to avoid working with the candidate.
While PBNs can sometimes improve your site’s ranking by generating links, they are usually not a good practice.
If outreach and guest posts are their speciality, then it’s a green flag.
- Which industry have you worked in in the past?
Link building can differ in industries.
Securing backlinks for SaaS or similar industries is very hard, and you will need someone experienced in that field if your website is in the same criteria.
- What is your approach to outreach for link building?
This is also an important question.
You don’t want the candidate to send out spam emails. It’s mostly wasted hours.
A more focused approach is always better in this regard.
- How do you measure the success of your link building efforts?
It’s better if the candidate does not measure the success of their efforts via the number of links they secured.
Instead, it should be how their backlinks have brought meaningful improvement to the website’s growth.
5. Trial
Once you get good answers, it’s time to test the candidates.
You can go forward with just one freelancer or put several to work in this step.
The trial period can be a single project or two weeks of work.
In this case, you may ask the freelancer to secure two backlinks for you.
After they have done it, you can check the quality of the links by:
- Checking the domain rating of the websites they got the link from
- Looking at the anchor texts and their placement
- Testing if you are getting any link equity from the backlinks
If you get positive results, it’s safe to say that you’ve found your perfect candidate!
When to Start Building Links: Steps Before Getting Backlinks
Despite being one of the crucial aspects of a website’s SEO strategy, you shouldn’t rush into link building. There are a few obligatory steps to complete before delving into it.
When it comes to SEO, early birds get the worms. Starting in a niche where the competition has yet to build up is a nice way to build up your backlink profile quickly.
However, just because you have a website with little to no content doesn’t necessarily mean it’s time to start link-building.
In fact, as the process is continuous, your site should be totally ready before initiating that project. Overall, the readying-up process may take three to five months.
In this guide, we will show you the necessary activities to improve your website before you start getting backlinks from other domains.
Table of Contents
Plans to Make Before Link Building
Before you even start with anything on your website, it is ideal to make some plans regarding the site. They can be on a wide range of topics. Some notable examples are:
Focusing on a Niche
After building a website and adding content, we usually have a particular niche in mind. However, this niche is often not as focused as it needs to be.
A focused topic usually attracts more traffic. Let’s say a website is on all things automotive, and another is about vehicle headlights. Now, you have an issue with your headlamps.
When searching online, you will likely prioritize the content specific to headlights as your guide to solving your issue. As such, focusing on your niche is often very important.
Alternatively, you can divide different topics in your preferred industry into multiple sections.
If your website has some content that isn’t focused yet, it is time to choose any particular topic unless the whole niche has low competition.
Making Your Aims
Aside from your niche, there are other goals you need to set regarding your SEO strategy. Some examples are-
- How much traffic are you looking for within a specific amount of time?
- What type of audience or community are you trying to attract?
- Your budget and the amount you can spend on various parts and processes of the site.
- How much money are you willing to make from your website?
- How will you monetize your website’s traffic? It can be through commercials, purchases, getting your service, or other means.
If you have these goals set, it will be easier to stay on track once you start getting a steady number of backlinks and traffic.
Learning Link Building
Whether you build your links yourself or have someone do it for you, it is always best to know the nooks and crannies of link building beforehand.
Information about backlinks can help you determine your goal and learn more about your competitors. It also tells you what to avoid when building links.
Knowing Your Audience
Researching your target community is a task that you must complete even before you start creating content for your site. It will give you insight into the people’s needs and wants.
Many website owners are experts in their niche but detached from their audience. Hence, what they deliver doesn’t often align with what the public wants.
It is better to go into community forums, groups, and channels specific to your niche to investigate your target audience thoroughly. Additionally, you can do the following-
- Research the market and find trendy stuff or products.
- Check your competitors for ideas or inspirations.
- Take expert suggestions.
- Reading the comments or threads under online blogs related to your niche.
This step is especially necessary when your industry deals with trendy products or services (like fashion or electronic gadgets).
Here, the public’s queries change constantly. So, getting in touch with the crowd is mandatory.
Processes to Complete Before Building Links
Knowing when you are ready to build links will prevent your site from facing unexpected challenges later on. After all, you need strong ground before building anything on it.
Let’s discuss the mandatory steps to finish to make your site ready for backlinks-
Having a Well-Rounded Website
A poorly built website is not suitable for link building for several reasons, such as:
- It won’t appear alluring to the people who would send backlinks your way.
- It may look uninteresting to the audience that comes to your site using the links.
- A poor user experience is very bad for your site’s SEO.
Before link-building, it is crucial to develop your website in a quality manner that works smoothly without any bugs. It should also have a nice interface and user-friendliness.
So, what makes a website’s display more appealing to visitors? Let’s find out below.
A Good User Experience
Certain aspects of websites are preferred by the general public. For example, some sites need a sticky notification bar, while others require it on the side.
Once someone enters your website, they may frequent it if they love the experience. A part of this falls on the appearance. Other notable factors are-
- Proper intractability
- Suitable color combination for the site, depending on your niche or industry (some color combinations look very bad)
- A visually appealing front page that showcases what your site has to offer
- A detailed ‘About’ and ‘Author’ page with information about yourself, your goal, and other important information
- Different sections for different parts to make it easier for the audience to navigate
- Quick operation and loading after the user interacts with anything
- Right placement of advertisements and links on the pages
Website Responsiveness
The responsiveness of a site means how well it appears and works on different devices and screen sizes. For a site to be well-developed and ready for link-building, it must be responsive.
A poorly built website may look astounding on a desktop screen but not nearly as good on a mobile device. Meanwhile, a good site will look striking, regardless of device or screen size.
You can see how a website works in different screen sizes by reducing the size of your tab or opening it on your mobile or tablet.
Having Indexed Pages
Your pages are unlikely to appear on SERPs if Google or other search engines have not indexed them. So, how do you get them indexed?

Most of it is possible simply by following our previous point, i.e., making a well-structured website with good navigation, structure, responsiveness, and content placement.
Additionally, there need to be some keywords related to your niche. While keywords are not very useful in SEO now, they still have pros, especially in getting your pages to appear in search results.
Making Quality Content

Quality content doesn’t necessarily mean only factually correct content. Your audience doesn’t necessarily come to read an essay but an engaging article.
So, while the content needs to contain accurate information, it must also be attractive, engaging, and, if possible, interactive. Of course, it should be helpful and solve the readers’ queries.
Remember our earlier section when we advised you about knowing your target audience? That task will come in handy here. Since you understand what your community wants, you can give them that.
Other attributes that you should consider when making your content are-
Better Than Your Competitors
During your link-building process, you will want to take some high-quality backlinking websites from your competitors to your site. It is called the Skyscraper Technique.
That will be possible if your content is better than that of your competitors. You can thoroughly observe their blogs, videos, etc. Then make yours more informative, add more pointers, etc.
You will have to get their attention in order to shift those linking sites to your domain. This can be done through guest blog posts, comments, or forum posts.
Emailing the website owners is another less effective method.
Aside from high-quality websites finding your content more linkable, Google may also notice your better content, which can raise your rank in SERPs.
Crawlable Content
Google uses crawler bots to analyze pages throughout the web and rank them properly. Since these bots follow the robots.txt policies, your content must also be according to them.
A non-crawlable content may not appear on the SERPs. Crawlers are what index your pages on the search engine. If you are wondering how to make your site crawlable, follow these points-
- Keep internal links between your pages, but make them look natural rather than artificial or forced.
- Make an XML sitemap and give it to Google.
- Last but not least, arrange your robots.txt files in the correct order.
Videos and Pictures

If words can’t describe something, visuals and infographics can. When creating content for your site, don’t stay fixated on blogs. Add other types of content and maybe nestle them together.
For example, if you explain something complex, like a DIY tutorial, a video of the whole process will attract more audience than blogs without it.
Natural Anchor Texts
A well-made piece of content or blog should have internal and external links. The former shares link equity throughout the domain, while the latter is also important for Google’s SERP.
The anchor texts must also seem natural for these links to appear natural. So, generic ones like ‘click here’ or ‘read more’ will only make the content look poor.
You can check some of the anchor texts we used in this article as examples.
Improving Your Content
You may already have content that is years old and not up to date. Some of this content may also not be suitable for your site’s current structure.
In that case, updating and improving these blogs and making them suitable for your site is necessary. You can-
- Update them according to recent times.
- Add more information, if possible.
- If you are offering new services or products that you didn’t offer before, you can include those in your content, too.
- Add more engaging and cohesive writing with better outlines.
Sometimes, you may even have to remove some content if it doesn’t align with your current goal or if you already have better versions.
Gathering Necessary Resources and Manpower
Link building is hard for various reasons. One of them is the cost of link building. There are multiple steps during the process that will require you to spend a good sum. The following are some-
- Buying Backlinks: The cost will depend on the linking site’s Domain Rating (DR) or Domain Authority (DA). There may also be subscription-based offers.
- Hiring Content Writers and Creators: Hiring writers for your site will cost a significant amount. However, the expense is well worth it.
- Hiring Link-Building Experts: Professionals such as link-building managers and assistants usually cost a lot to hire.
- SEO Tools: Before you start building links, competitor analysis is necessary. Tools like Ahrefs or Semrush will help here. If you get premium versions, each of these may cost over $590.
Of course, once you see the fruit of your link-building efforts, you will need to manage those backlinks and extra traffic, which may require additional manpower.
We should remind you that after all these expenses, you may still need resources to focus on your industry or business. So, assess your budget correctly before starting link building.
Checking Your Current Audience
Chances are that you are already getting some audience even before your backlinking campaign. These audiences may come from a wide range of places.
It will be good if you manage to find out where they are coming from. Many sites and apps do this in the form of surveys.
Once you have this information, you can check the places that are sending the most crowds your way.
It will greatly help you later during your marketing and link-building process.
Setting Some Goals
We have already mentioned the aims of your link-building projects and website. However, while these aims are about results and budgets, there are other goals to set here. For example-
- You need to analyze and target some high-profile websites for backlinks as your goals. Using the skyscraper technique, you can get them from your competitors.
- You can use Ahrefs or Semrush to analyze your competitors’ backlinks. Of course, you will need to find your competitors first. Not all of them are worth researching.
- In that regard, keyword research related to your niche is imperative. Look at the keywords helping your websites rank, then check the top websites on SERP for those keywords.
Those are the competitors you should pay attention to and analyze.
Another goal to set is a predicted timeline for the entire process. You may plan to drastically improve your backlink profile within a few months. However, there is a catch.
The time it may take for your website to develop a good backlink profile and rank high may depend on your current position on SERPs.
If a site is already on the first few pages of SERP, it won’t take long since convincing reputable websites to send links won’t be difficult.
However, if the site’s ranking is much lower, it will take more time and effort. You may ask your SEO experts for an idea of the time it may take.
Steps to Take at the Beginning of Link Building
Okay, you have developed a well-structured website, made it easy to navigate, and filled it with high-quality content. So, what’s next?
We have already talked about keyword and competitor analysis. So, we won’t repeat those. Let’s say you have done these and found your target sites from which to get links.
It is the appropriate time to get their attention through various means. These methods are also part of your link-building scheme. Let us explain some factors here.
Creating Guest Posts
Guest posts are blogs you can post on other websites as a guest after getting their permission. Of course, you have to pitch in your idea of the article first and wait for their reply.
If they accept it, you can start writing a quality guest post to post it on their site. Making it engaging and high quality is crucial as audiences from that high-authority website will read it.
Make sure that the blog’s content is attractive to readers and suitable for generating leads. Nestle a backlink to your website inside the blog, but don’t add it repetitively.
The anchor text for this backlink also needs to be convincing for the readers to click on it, yet it should come off as natural.
Remember that not all websites will want to have guest posts. Some of them may even be very picky about them. These websites often set strict rules about guest posts.
Getting your ideas rejected can be common, and you may have to try several ideas on various websites before one accepts them.
Manually Reaching the Website Owners
Another way to get their attention is to reach out to website owners using personalized emails, letters, and other means. However, note that not all website owners may check their emails.
If you don’t receive any response, you can follow up. Don’t overdo it, though, and try other methods instead.
Of course, if you manage to build a collaboration, maintain it and stick to any set terms and conditions by the website owner.
Remember that you should start linking buildings as soon as possible. However, that doesn’t mean that you should ignore the necessary steps before that.
Readying everything before starting the link-building will be a clever move that increases the chance of success.
How to Link to a Website: Guide for Different Platforms
Outbound links are arguably as important as inbound links or backlinks since the former directly affects the quality of a page’s content. Blogs without authoritative sources often lack value.
Luckily, linking to a website is easier than getting one from a site. Here, the most complex task is to find the site to send a link to.
The linking process may vary slightly depending on which platform you use to create and post content on your site. However, the overall setting is the same.
In this article, we have explained the procedure of linking to a website and creating a clickable link when necessary.
Table of Contents
What Is an Outbound Link?
An outbound link is a link that you put on your content that leads the audience to a different website. When you link content to a different site, it is an external link.
Meanwhile, when the link takes one to another page of the same website, it is an internal link.
External links are necessary to improve the quality of the content, while internal links can improve your site’s SEO by leading the audience to other pages of the domain.
What Is a Hyperlink?
A hyperlink or clickable link is text on a page that you can click on, allowing it to lead you to a different page or generate a pop-up.
Here, the text has a link connected to it. For example, this is a hyperlink that leads to our home page.
You can usually spot a hyperlink simply by looking at the different shades of the text. However, sometimes, it may not be easy to notice until you tap it or hover your mouse over it.
A hyperlink can lead to an image, video, PDF file, HTML file, or other file format in addition to another page.
What Is an Anchor Text?
The piece of text that holds the hyperlink is called an anchor text. Clicking on it will take the user somewhere.
The site owner or content maker must utilize appropriate and engaging anchor text that entices the audience to click on it.
Okay, now that we have explained the related terms, let’s proceed to the linking process step by step in the next section.
Finding the Right Website to Link to
First, you need to find a suitable website to send your backlink to. There are various points behind choosing a site. For example-
- It can hold more resources on the topic you are covering in your article
- You may have taken some inspiration or ideas from it and now want to credit them
- It can be a highly authoritative website (like a government site, official site, or famous news portal) that can back up your claim. Consider it like citing your source when writing an essay.
- The website owner may have requested you to send a backlink to them, especially if your own site is one with a high domain authority (DA).
- You may simply want to create some internal links on your pages.
Considering the above factors, we can surmise that you need to link to a website that contributes to the overall value of your content.
So, it must be relevant to your niche. It is better if it is also on the same topic as the content.
After finding the website, you must also determine which page you want to link to. Again, choose the most relevant one for your blog.
Creating a Proper Anchor Text
Once you have found a suitable website and page, your next task is to add an anchor text to your blog. This text is where the link will be inserted.
Avoid very generic ones like ‘read more’ or ‘click here for more info’. Instead, go for natural and interesting anchor texts.
Note that John Mueller from Google tweeted about the importance of anchor texts. According to him, they help Google understand a link’s context.
Copying the Targeted Site’s Address
Next, you need to copy the address of the page you are about to link to. Doing so is very straightforward and can be done in multiple ways.
Copying the URL from the Search Bar
Firstly, you can copy the page’s URL from the search bar. Check the top of your screen, and you will find the search bar.

- If you are using a desktop or laptop, you can click on the search bar above the link and right-click. This will show a menu from which you can click on ‘copy.’
- If you are using mobile devices, press and hold the link text in the search bar. You will then have the option to copy the text.
Using the Share Option
Sharing the page is also another option to get its linking address.
- Go to the page first.
- If you are using Chrome browser, select the three dots on the top right of the screen.
- Click on ‘Save and Share.’
- Select ‘Copy Link.’

- If you are using Microsoft Edge, then select the share button near the top right corner of the screen.
- From the pop-up window, select ‘copy link’ as shown in the image below.

Inserting the Link to Your Anchor Text
Creating a hyperlink in your content may vary based on the platform you are using to create it. Here, we have given some examples-
Creating Hyperlinks in Google Docs
Inserting links to an anchor text in Google Docs is as simple as it can go. You don’t need browser extensions or anything for that.
- Select the anchor text.
- Right-click on the mouse.
- Click on ‘Insert Link’.
You can shorten this process by highlighting the anchor text and using the keyboard command ctrl+k. This command should also work in many other places besides Google Docs.
- Paste your copied link in the empty bar in the pop-up window.
- Select ‘Apply.’
And voila! You have successfully linked your content to the targeted page.

Creating Hyperlinks in WordPress
You may be surprised to know that adding a link to a text or content is even easier on WordPress than on Docs. Let’s give you the rundown of the process-
- Go to the visual editor and highlight your anchor text.
- Right-click on the mouse.
- Select the linking symbol (🔗) from the menu.

Once you click on it, you will get a new menu with a text bar on the top.
- First, type or paste the copied URL (the target page’s link) on the text bar.
- Then, select one of the options from below.

- We recommend the first option, ‘Open in New Tab,’ for most links. This option causes the targeted page to open in a new window once someone clicks on the hyperlink.
- The second option allows you to use the ‘nofollow’ command. This command makes Google crawlers ignore the link, which is necessary for links that are irrelevant to your content.
- The third option is for sponsored links. It comes in handy when you are making a list of the best products from some affiliated platform.
Creating Hyperlinks to WordPress HTML
Adding a hyperlink using WordPress HTML is not really necessary since you can do it far more easily with the normal editor. However, if you still want to do it, here is how-
Type in the following: <a href=”URL”>link text</a>
Here, you replace the URL with the link (with the quotation marks still there) and replace the ‘link text’ with your anchor text.
However, if you want the targeted page to open in a new window, you may need to use the target=”_blank” attribute. So, the code will look like this-
<a href=”URL” target=”_blank”>link text</a>

Creating Hyperlinks in Microsoft 365
If you are using Microsoft 365 Word and want to add a hyperlink, follow the steps-
- Select your anchor text.
- Go to ‘Insert’ from the navigation b bar at the top.
- Click on ‘Link’.
- Select ‘Insert Link’.

Once you select it, you will get a new pop-up where you can type in or paste the link.

- Afterward, click on ‘Insert’, and you have successfully made the hyperlink.
How to Avoid Pushing Link Juice with Links
‘Link juice’ or link equity is the value or authority that a link transfers from one page to another. When a site adds a hyperlink to one of its content that leads to another site, the link can pass link equity.
It is one of the reasons why website owners want backlinks. However, you may not always want the audience to stop reading your blog and start focusing on the linked page.
If you want to avoid that, add the hyperlink in a way that will open the linked page in a new window.
Otherwise, if it opens on the same window, most of the audience will end up on the linked page rather than returning to your content.
If you want the hyperlinks to open in a new window, you need to set it up while uploading the content on your website. We already explained how you do it.
You just have to add the ‘target=”_blank” attribute in the code when adding the link address in the HTML.
Are Other Sites Linking to My Website Important?
Linking to other sites improves your content and contributes to your on-page SEO. Meanwhile, other sites linking to your domain help with your off-page SEO.
When another page links to your site, it is an inbound link or a backlink. Backlinks are crucial in ranking higher in SEO.
So, ample research and efforts on link-building are necessary for your site’s development. You need a proper link-building checklist for that.
Step-by-Step Link Building Checklist for Beginners
Links are one of the top two ranking factors.
Without quality backlinks, it’s impossible to survive in the present competitive landscape.
Here’s the deal: link building is one of the hardest aspects of SEO and nearly impossible without a clear roadmap.
That’s why the first part of your campaign should include creating a link-building checklist.
Here’s what has worked for us and millions of webmasters:
Table of Contents
Before You Start Link Building
Let’s say you’ve managed to get several high-quality links from authoritative sites. But your website takes ages to load.
In this case, generating backlinks won’t be very fruitful when you have a bigger problem to solve.
Load time is essential. A site that can load in under 1 second can get 3X more conversion than a site that takes 5 seconds to load.
Therefore, before starting your link-building campaign, you must ensure your site is fully ready.
This means your website should be:
- Fast-loading
- User-friendly
Set Clear Goals
You will feel lost in the ocean of link building if you don’t have clear goals.
Your targets should be highly specific, but the gist of them could be:
- Increasing domain authority
- Driving targeted traffic
- Improving rankings for specific keywords
- Enhancing brand visibility and reputation
For example, if you aim to improve rankings for specific keywords, set a target number of high-quality backlinks you want to acquire within a certain timeframe.
Step 1: Competitor Analysis
Competitor analysis is the first step in any successful link-building strategy.
Tools like Ahrefs and SEMrush are invaluable for this task.
They allow you to analyze your competitors’ backlink profiles, identify their top-performing content, and discover which websites are linking to them.
Why Competitor Analysis is Crucial
Competitor analysis helps you:
- Identify Link Opportunities: Discover websites that are likely to link to your content.
- Understand Content Trends: Recognize which types of content are performing well in your industry.
- Benchmark Your Performance: Compare your backlink profile with your competitors to identify gaps and opportunities.
Using Ahrefs and SEMrush for Competitor Analysis
Here is how you can use two of the biggest SEO tools for competitor backlink analysis:
1. Identify Your Competitors: Use Ahrefs’ “Organic competitors” or SEMrush’s “Competitors” report to identify your main competitors. These tools list websites that are competing for the same keywords as you.

2. Analyze Competitor Backlink Profiles: Use Ahrefs’ “Site Explorer” or SEMrush’s “Backlink Analytics” to analyze your competitors’ backlink profiles. Look at:
- Total Backlinks: The total number of backlinks pointing to their site.
- Referring Domains: The number of unique domains linking to their site. A higher number of referring domains generally indicates a stronger backlink profile.
- Domain Authority (DA) or Domain Rating (DR): A metric that indicates the overall strength of a website’s backlink profile.

3. Identify Top-Performing Content:

- Use Ahrefs’ or SEMrush’s “Top Pages” report to identify which pages on your competitors’ sites are attracting the most backlinks. This will help you understand which types of content are most valuable.
- Pay attention to content formats that perform well, such as blog posts, infographics, research studies, or guides.
4. Discover Linking Websites:

- Examine the list of websites linking to your competitors. These are potential targets for your own link building efforts. Use the “Referring Domains” report in Ahrefs or SEMrush to find these sites.
- Identify patterns in the types of websites linking to your competitors. Are they industry blogs, news sites, resource pages, or directories?
Identifying Patterns and Opportunities
Now, the purpose of doing competitor analysis is to find patterns that work.
This will help you discover link building opportunities as well.
- Content Types That Attract Links: Determine which content formats attract the most backlinks. For example, if you notice that your competitors are getting a lot of links to in-depth guides or research studies, consider creating similar high-quality content.
- Popular Topics: Identify popular topics within your niche. If certain topics are consistently attracting backlinks, creating content around these subjects can improve your chances of earning links.
- Outreach Targets: Compile a list of websites that frequently link to your competitors. We will get more into finding outreach targets in the next section.
Step 2: Finding Outreach Targets
Don’t just start randomly sending emails to anyone for links.
First, you have to find high-quality websites.
Why Do Quality Outreach Targets Matter?
High-quality backlinks from reputable websites significantly boost your site’s authority and improve search engine rankings.
Targeting the right websites ensures that the links you acquire are valuable and beneficial for your SEO efforts.
Tools for Identifying Outreach Targets
- Moz’s Link Explorer

Moz’s Link Explorer is a powerful tool for discovering potential link opportunities. Use it to find websites linking to your competitors and analyze their backlink profiles.
- Ahrefs:
Ahrefs’ “Site Explorer” and “Content Explorer” are invaluable for finding relevant sites.
“Site Explorer” helps you analyze competitors’ backlinks, while “Content Explorer” allows you to find popular content in your niche, revealing who’s linking to it.
- SEMrush

SEMrush’s “Backlink Analytics” and “Organic Research” tools help you discover top referring domains and analyze competitor strategies.
The “Backlink Gap” tool allows you to compare backlink profiles with competitors and find websites that link to them but not to you.
Finding High-Quality Outreach Targets
The first step to finding high-quality outreach targets is to determine relevance.
If you are running a website about shoes, there is no point in getting backlinks from a site that’s about computers.
The website you are getting backlinks from should be relevant to your industry.
Then, you need to assess domain authority.
Domain authority (DA) is a metric that indicates the overall strength of a website’s backlink profile. Higher DA sites typically offer more SEO value.
Use Moz’s Link Explorer, Ahrefs, or SEMrush to check the DA of potential outreach targets.
Aim for websites with a DA higher than your own, as links from these sites will likely have a greater impact on your rankings.
Lastly, analyze the backlink profiles of potential outreach targets.
Look for sites with healthy backlink profiles and links from reputable, high-authority domains.
Avoid sites with many spammy or low-quality backlinks, as these can negatively impact your SEO efforts.
Step 3: Create Linkable Assets
You can either spend thousands to buy links or create linkable assets that naturally attract backlinks.
To be realistic, you might have to do both.
However, Google’s guidelines are against buying links.
Also, others will be more likely to link to you when you can offer value to their readers.
What are Linkable Assets?
Linkable assets are content types designed to attract links from other websites.
They provide significant value to the target audience and are often shared widely across the web.
Let’s look at some examples:
- Blog Posts: In-depth articles, how-to guides, listicles, and opinion pieces.
- Infographics: Visual representations of data or processes that are easy to understand and share.
- Research Studies: Original research, surveys, and reports that provide new insights or data.
- eBooks and Whitepapers: Comprehensive documents that cover a topic in great detail.
- Tools and Resources: Free tools, templates, calculators, or checklists.
- Videos and Webinars: Informative or entertaining video content that engages the audience.
The Importance of Creating Linkable Assets
High-quality linkable assets help you:
- Attract Organic Backlinks: Compelling content naturally attracts links from other websites.
- Drive Traffic: Valuable content can generate significant traffic to your website.
- Build Authority: High-quality content positions you as an expert in your industry.
- Increase Shareability: Shareable content enhances your reach through social media and other platforms.
How to Create Effective Linkable Assets
Start by researching your audience; understand their needs, preferences, and pain points.
Identify trending topics and commonly asked questions in your industry.
Use tools like BuzzSumo, Google Trends, and AnswerThePublic to find popular topics and content ideas.
Then, find out what kind of content is the most successful in your niches using the competitor analysis tools mentioned earlier.
Step 4: Outreach
Effective outreach is the linchpin of a successful link building campaign.
It involves:
- Strategically reaching out to potential link sources
- Convincing them of the value your content brings to their audience and
- Persuading them to link back to your site
Why Personalized Outreach Matters
Personalized emails stand out in the crowded inboxes of webmasters, bloggers, and influencers.
Generic, mass-sent emails are often ignored or deleted, while personalized messages demonstrate genuine interest and effort.
Personalization shows that you’ve done your research and believe that your content provides real value to the recipient.
Steps for Effective Outreach
Here is how you can do outreach the right way:
- Research and Identify Targets
Use tools like Ahrefs, Moz, and SEMrush to identify high-quality websites relevant to your niche.
Look for sites that have linked to similar content or those that you identified during your competitor analysis.
Create a list of potential outreach targets with their contact information. Tools like Hunter.io or Snov.io can help find email addresses.
- Craft Personalized Emails
Personalize each email with the recipient’s name, website, and specific references to their content. This shows you’ve done your homework and are genuinely interested in their work.
Mention a specific article or post on their site that relates to your content. Explain how your content complements or adds value to their existing work.
- Be Concise and to the Point:
Keep your emails short and focused. Busy webmasters appreciate clear, concise messages that get straight to the point.
Use a compelling subject line that grabs attention. Make it relevant to the recipient and hint at the value your content offers.
- Highlight the Benefits:
Clearly explain the benefits of linking to your content.
How does it add value to their readers? Will it provide additional insights, complement their existing articles, or offer a unique perspective?
Include a brief summary of your content and why it’s relevant to their audience. Highlight any unique data, research, or valuable insights.
- Provide Easy Access:
Make it easy for recipients to link to your content. Provide the exact URL and suggest specific anchor text.
If appropriate, offer to reciprocate by sharing their content or providing a guest post in return.
- Follow Up
If you don’t receive a response initially, follow up after a week or two. A polite reminder can often prompt a reply.
Keep your follow-up emails short and polite. Express understanding if they’re busy, but reiterate the value of your content.
Step 5: Broken Link Building
Broken links are links that point to a page that does not exist.
Broken link building is when you find broken links on other websites and offer a page of your own site as a replacement.
Why Broken Link Building Works
Broken link building is advantageous because:
- Mutual Benefit: Website owners are motivated to fix broken links to maintain user experience and SEO health, making them more likely to accept your replacement suggestion.
- Value Addition: By offering a solution to the problem (the broken link), you provide immediate value to the website owner.
- Improves SEO: Acquiring high-quality backlinks through this method enhances your website’s authority and search engine rankings.
Effective Broken Link Building Technique
Use tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Moz to find potential target websites.
Focus on sites that regularly update their content and have a good backlink profile.
Tools like Ahrefs’ Site Explorer or Screaming Frog SEO Spider can identify broken links on your target websites.
Review the broken links to ensure they are relevant to your content.
The replacement content you offer should match the context and value of the original linked content.
Prioritize broken links on high-authority pages and those that have multiple backlinks pointing to them, as these are more valuable.
If you already have relevant content that can replace the broken link, you’re ready to proceed.
When everything is ready, create a personalized outreach email and hit the send button!
Step 6: Skyscraper Technique
The Skyscraper Technique, popularized by Brian Dean of Backlinko, is a powerful method for building high-quality backlinks by creating superior content and promoting it effectively.
This technique involves three main steps:
- Identifying popular content with many backlinks
- Creating a more comprehensive or visually appealing version and
- Reaching out to websites that linked to the original content to suggest your improved version
Here’s a detailed guide on how to execute the Skyscraper Technique successfully.
Why the Skyscraper Technique Works
The Skyscraper Technique leverages existing high-performing content to create an even better version that naturally attracts backlinks.
The key reasons it works are:
- Proven Demand: The original content’s popularity indicates a clear demand for information on that topic.
- Enhanced Value: By improving upon the original, you provide even more value to readers, making your content more link-worthy.
- Receptive Audience: Websites that have linked to the original content are likely to be interested in linking to a superior version.
Steps for the Skyscraper Technique
- Identify Popular Content with Many Backlinks
Use tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or BuzzSumo to find content in your niche that has garnered a significant number of backlinks. Focus on topics relevant to your industry and audience.
Look for content types that naturally attract links, such as comprehensive guides, detailed lists, in-depth case studies, and data-driven research.
- Analyze and Plan Your Content
Evaluate the original content’s strengths and weaknesses.
Identify areas where you can provide additional value, such as updated information, more in-depth analysis, better visuals, or more engaging writing.
Plan your content to ensure it covers all the key points of the original but adds significant improvements.
Consider including expert opinions, infographics, videos, or interactive elements.
- Create Superior Content
Ensure your content is more detailed and covers the topic more comprehensively than the original. Aim to answer every possible question a reader might have.
Provide the latest data, trends, and insights that the original content may have missed or that have changed since it was published.
Use high-quality images, infographics, charts, and videos to make your content more engaging and visually appealing.
Well-designed visuals can make complex information easier to understand and more shareable.
Focus on readability and user experience.
Break up text with subheadings, bullet points, and short paragraphs. Ensure your content is mobile-friendly and loads quickly.
- Reach Out to Websites Linking to the Original Content:
Use backlink analysis tools like Ahrefs or Moz to identify websites that have linked to the original content. Export the list of these websites for your outreach campaign.
Craft personalized outreach emails to the webmasters or editors of these sites.
Explain how your content improves upon the original and why it would be valuable for their audience.
Step 7: Tracking Progress
After you have followed all of the steps above, you still have more work.
Tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Moz offer comprehensive features to help you keep track of your backlinks, keyword rankings, and overall website performance.
Importance of Tracking Progress
- Measure Effectiveness: Assess the success of your link building campaigns and determine which strategies yield the best results.
- Identify Areas for Improvement: Recognize underperforming tactics and areas that need refinement.
- Optimize Strategies: Use data insights to refine and enhance your link building methods.
- Demonstrate ROI: Provide tangible evidence of your efforts and results to stakeholders or clients.
Key Metrics to Track
These are the metrics you should mostly care about:
- Number of Backlinks Acquired
The quantity of backlinks indicates the reach and acceptance of your content. More backlinks generally correlate with higher search engine rankings.
Track both the total number of backlinks and the number of referring domains (unique websites linking to your content).
- Domain Authority of Linking Websites:
The authority of the linking websites impacts the quality and value of the backlinks. High-authority links are more beneficial for SEO.
- Changes in Keyword Rankings:
Improved keyword rankings indicate that your link building efforts are positively influencing your search engine visibility.
Observe changes in rankings before and after implementing your link building strategies to assess their impact.
- Increase in Organic Traffic:
Organic traffic growth signifies improved search engine visibility and the overall success of your SEO efforts.
Google Analytics is an excellent tool for tracking organic traffic. Monitor the changes in organic traffic to your site over time, especially following link building campaigns.
Conclusion
Link building is a multifaceted process that requires careful planning, execution, and monitoring.
By following this comprehensive checklist, you can build a robust backlink profile that enhances your website’s authority, drives targeted traffic, and improves your search engine rankings.
Remember, the key to successful link building lies in creating valuable content, targeting the right websites, and maintaining consistent outreach efforts.
Top 5 Link Building Browser Extensions
The process of growing a website’s organic search traffic is known as Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Link building is hard and you will need any help you can get.
To explore the top five link building extensions for browsers, we need to discuss the influence of the extensions on SEO.
Table of Contents
Top 5 Extensions For Browsers
Here are the best available extensions that can help you climb SEO rankings.
1. Ahrefs SEO Toolbar
Ahrefs SEO Toolbar is a free-to-download extension for Chrome and Firefox, used by 200k+ SEO professionals across the world.
Free Features
- Concise on-page SEO report:

Ahrefs SEO Toolbar lets you analyze the on-page elements for any page with one simple click.
The “Content” section of the report contains: title and description of the page, published and update dates, and word count.
The “Indexability” section is composed of: canonical URL check, sitemaps, directives for crawlers and Hreflang tags.
The “Social” section shows Open Graph tags and Twitter cards.
The “Images” section covers alternate texts and titles.
- Checks redirects and HTTP headers: The Ahrefs SEO Toolbar enables the ability to check HTTP status codes and full redirect chains in a single click, as well as HTTP headers for indexability and crawlability.
- Highlights various types of links: The toolbar presents you with the option to highlight external links (including broken links) on a page, making it easier to evaluate link opportunities.
- SERP country changer: The toolbar lets you change the location of search engine result pages without a VPN or proxy to see how search results look in different countries.

Paid Features
- Checks SEO metrics: With a paid subscription to Ahrefs, the toolbar lets you check crucial SEO metrics of each page or website you visit. The metrics include:
- Domain Rating (DR)
- URL Rating (UR)
- Ahrefs rank (AR)
- Numbers of backlinks
- Numbers of referring domains
- Estimated organic search traffic
- Number of keyword rankings

- Analyze top-ranking search results: Analyze the competition by instantly checking the aforementioned metrics for top search results.
2. MozBar
Mozbar is one of the leading browser extensions in the SEO industry, which helps improve SEO rankings with multiple free and premium useful features.
Free Features
- Custom Searches: The MozBar toolbar lets you create custom searches by country, engine, region, or city to give you the competitive edge with the knowledge of what your region-based audience wants.
- Page Analysis: Similar to Ahrefs SEO Toolbar, MozBar also lets you check the metrics like Page Authority(PA) and DA of any website you visit. It can also display on-page elements like titles, meta descriptions, or alt texts.
- Authority Scores: MozBar lets you quickly assess ranking probability with PA and DA. This feature lets you know when your content needs more attention.
- Data Export: MozBar lets you export your Dashboard, Insights, Rankings, Page Optimizations, Site Crawl, Performance Metrics, Links, Site Traffic, and Custom Reports as PDF and occasionally as CSV.
Paid Features
With a Moz Pro subscription, you can gain access to Mozbar Premium:
- Keyword Difficulty score: MozBar Premium lets you view keyword difficulty scores for any search term on any SERP in real time.
- Page Optimisation: MozBar Premium scores pages on a scale of 100 for keyword optimization; provides detailed suggestions on how to optimize the target keyword; breaks down the score by fixes needed and positive factors already in place.
3. Semrush SEO Toolkit
The Semrush SEO Toolkit provides multiple instruments in their Dashboard to help you with link building:

Backlink Analytics
Backlink Analytics presents you the ability to examine your own and your competitors’ backlink profiles and compare multiple domains side by side with the help of the Quick Comparison feature.
Backlink Audit
Backlink Audit lets you audit your domain’s profile to take an analytical look at which links positively or negatively affect your rankings with the help of integration with Google Search Console, Google Analytics, and Majestic.
Price
While Semrush allows you to use certain tools for free, the ones mentioned above are locked behind a paywall. Click here to find out how much their subscription-based service costs.
4. Hunter.io
Hunter.io is a powerful SEO tool for streamlining the process of finding and contacting potential link partners. Here are the key link building features that Hunter.io hoists:
Email Finder
The Hunter extension allows you to find the email addresses of people associated with the visited website or domain with one simple click, letting you effortlessly contact fellow site owners and plan mutual features. Building such relationships is a crucial part of link building.

Domain Search
Hunter extension offers a search tool that allows you to find email addresses associated with the domain. This feature is useful for finding contact information for websites relevant to your exact niche.
Bulk Email Management

Hunter.io has a bulk email management feature that allows you to find and verify multiple emails and send personalized emails to multiple contacts at once without wasting your precious time.
Price
The extension is available to download for free on Chrome, Firefox, and Edge; however, some of the features, such as link tracking and prioritized customer service, are locked behind a paywall.
5. Grammarly
While Grammarly is primarily a writing enhancement tool, it is just as important for link-building as the other options here. The quality of your content is directly proportional to the authority of your site. Here are the key features their browser extension offers:
Grammar Check
The Grammarly extension can identify and correct over 150 types of grammar and punctuation errors before your content reaches the reader. A pleasant consumer experience is one of the building blocks for gaining brand recognition.

Plagiarism Detection
Plagiarism can not only invite unwanted lawsuits but also leave you unwanted for potential backlinks. The Premium version of the extension comes with the “Plagiarism Checker” feature.

Price
The extension is free to download on Chrome, but features like “Use Inclusive Language,” “Plagiarism Detection,” and “Adjust Writing Tone” are only available to Premium and Business users.
Conclusion
Browser extensions have become an indispensable tool for SEO professionals looking to streamline their link building efforts. By providing real-time insights and metrics, extensions like Ahrefs SEO Toolbar, MozBar, and SEMrush SEO Toolkit make it easier than ever to analyze competitor backlink profiles and improve the overall quality of your website’s link profile.
Extensions like Hunter.io simplify the outreach process by helping you find and verify email addresses associated with target websites, while Grammarly ensures your outreach emails and content are free of grammar and spelling errors.
Conclusively, leveraging the power of these browser extensions can give you a significant advantage in the competitive world of link building. By providing insights at your fingertips, they enable you to make informed decisions, optimize your link-building strategy, and ultimately drive more organic traffic for your website. So, go ahead; try one out and make your own life easier.
Link Prospecting Strategies: A Step-by-Step Comprehensive Guide
An excellent link-building outreach campaign starts with link prospecting. Knowing the dos and don’ts of link prospecting will set you higher in the SEO game.
As you may already know, link prospecting refers to searching for websites with authority and relevance for link-building.
The quality of websites sending backlinks your way determines the strength of your backlink profile. Hence, going for the top sites for your niche is not something to trifle with.
If you want your link prospecting to yield results, you need a clear strategy. It can prevent everything from getting messy.
This blog should help you develop practical, straightforward, and quick plans for your link prospecting project.
What Is Link Prospecting?

Image Credit: Ahrefs
Link prospecting means finding websites for link-building. Yes, it involves only the searching part, so there is no reaching out or collaboration.
Listing top sites for link-building is an inevitable and inseparable part of link-building. Whether you are getting fresh new backlinks or want to replace broken links, it is vital to identify the suitable sites first.
Note that the websites you seek here must be within your industry. There are indeed some benefits from getting backlinks from irrelevant sites, but it’s nearly not enough.
While your page and domain’s link equity will still rise after getting an inbound link from an irrelevant site, you can’t expect many leads.
It loses one of the primary purposes of link-building per se. So, always try to aim for relevant sites. How do you find them, you ask? We will discuss that in-depth later in the blog.
For now, let’s show you some advantages of link prospecting strategies-
- Time Efficient: With a proper strategy, you can directly go for the right sites to reach out to without wasting time.
- Backlink Opportunities: Not all websites with high domain authority (DA) will want to send backlinks. However, finding the ones that do with a laid-out plan will save you some hassles.
- High-Quality Links: The links you are getting are sure to do some magic since the site is carefully selected from an array of options.
- Cost-Effective: Since you are less likely to make any mistake with a strategy, your link prospecting should cost less.
What Are the Usual Steps in Link Prospecting Strategies?
You can divide link prospecting into three stages. They are-
- Creating or choosing a link-building strategy
- Determining your target domains (which niche and DA should you go for)
- Sorting out a list of websites to reach out to for links and collaboration
Let’s start with the first step on this list in the next section without further ado.
Choosing a Link-Prospecting Strategy
A full-fledged link-prospecting strategy goes a long way, as it will help you throughout your link-building endeavor. So, where to start?
First things first, you need to decide what you are prospecting for. You are probably looking for a suitable site to –
- Let you guest blog on their site
- Link insertion
- Use the skyscraper technique (linkable asset strategy)
- Get backlinks
- Replace any broken link
Each of these may take an entirely different link-prospecting campaign. Let’s go over them one by one.
Link Insertion
Link insertion is the act of placing a backlink on existing content on a website to a specific page on your site, usually for a fee.
As its name suggests, the site won’t add links to your site when creating new content but inserts them into already existing ones. Since this requires extra cost, it is better to only target quality sites.
How to Prospect for Link Insertion
A website that charges sky-high for a link may not be worth the expense. On the other hand, you may not easily get links from a website with DA over 70.
So, it is better to stick within DA 30 to DA 70 when looking for websites for link insertion and backlinks.
Why Link Insertion Is Essential for Link-Building
Link insertion can help you with-
- Improve your SEO ranking
- Driving traffic
- Less waiting to get the links
- Certainty of getting a link
- Easy and straightforward, with no requests needed
Cost of Link Insertion
Depending on your niche, the DA of the other website, and other factors, the cost of link insertion can be anywhere from $50 to $500 per link.
So, if you want 3-10 high-quality links with link insertion, you may need to prepare a budget of $1,500 to $5000.

What to Avoid During Link-Insertion
When prospecting for sites for link insertion, avoid link farms, as they are dangerous for your SEO. Remember that they will also sell links at a low cost, but Google will deem them link spamming.
Many such link farms may even have a high DA or domain rating (DR) through underhanded means, making those metrics somewhat unreliable.
You can check their organic traffic using tools like Ahrefs’s ‘Site Explorer’ to get a better idea of whether they are a legitimate website or a link farm.

Skyscraper Technique or Linkable Asset
Linkable assets are content that is worthy of linking. The linkable asset strategy is to ask a website to send links to high-quality content you just created. It increases the chance of getting a backlink.
A linkable asset campaign in which you try to replace a website’s backlink to one of your competitors with your own by creating better content is called a skyscraper technique.
Here, you check which pages of your competitor got a backlink from a high-DA website. (We have discussed competitor backlink profile analysis later in this blog).
Then, you create similar content with more value.
Afterward, you ask the authoritative website owner to replace their backlinks to your content.
How Can Linkable Asset Campaign Help You
Linkable asset campaigns can aid you in the following ways-
- Backlink Opportunities: Since your content is high quality, the websites will likely send a backlink.
- Backlink Control: It helps you control the backlinks you receive by telling website owners where to send them instead of to any random page on your site.
- Allows Skyscraper Technique: The skyscraper technique is proven to work wonders in SEO ranking and competition.
How Do You Prospect for a Linkable Asset Campaign?
When prospecting or searching for websites for your linkable assets, you can-
- First, find suitable websites with a topic or niche like yours.
- Then, find specific pages on that site with content that may benefit by linking to your asset. For instance, if your content is a case study, other pages that require that information may gain value from linking to it.
- Finally, ask the site owner to send backlinks, mentioning why your asset is suitable content for a link from that page on their domain.
What Not to Do During a Linkable Asset Campaign Prospecting?
When looking for sites to send links to your linkable assets, avoid the following-
- Don’t go for irrelevant sites or pages.
- Avoid using low-quality content as your asset. While it may be worthy of linking, remember that others may try to build skyscrapers on your content.
- If the website charges an amount, ensure that the site has a high DA to avoid any ROI loss.
Getting Backlinks
The most common reason people run a link prospecting campaign is to get backlinks from a website. To do this, you simply ask a site to send backlinks to your domain without specifying anything.
As always, you have to prospect for websites within the same niche and of high quality for the backlinks to hold high value. Otherwise, you can’t expect much link equity to pass.
Remember that many link farms will try to sell backlinks. Since this is black hat SEO, be sure to avoid them at all costs. Prioritize the quality of the link rather than the quantity.
If you are wondering how to find high-DA websites for links, you can use different SEO tools. There are free tools like Linkody or paid tools like Ahrefs or Semrush.
Guest Posting
Guest blogging is fun when you do it right. It is the process of writing blogs for another website that they will publish on theirs. You can add a backlink to this piece on your own site.
An effective guest posting strategy requires multiple steps done right-
- First, you need to prospect for the right websites suitable for a guest post. Obviously, not all of them will accept blogs from guests.
- Next, you need to study that site and generate ideas for guest post topics. The topics must be relevant to the group’s audience so that you can contribute value to them.
- Then, pitch the ideas to the website owner in a requesting and sincere tone. The pitching must be personalized. If it is made from scratch, that is all the better.
- If the site owner accepts your request, you write the article following their guest post guidelines and submit it. The site owners then publish it on their site.
Why Do You Need Guest Posting for Your SEO?
Guest posting can impact the SEO of your site positively in the following ways-
- Generate Traffic: After reading your guest post, audiences from another site may become interested in what you have to offer, which can drive organic traffic to your site.
- SEO Improvement: Having a backlink from a high-DA website (be it your own blog) contributes greatly to your SEO ranking.
- Potential Collaboration: Helps build relationships with high DA sites, making a future-proof backlink source for you.
How to Find High DA Websites That Accept Guest Posting?
Prospecting for a specific site within your niche that takes guest posting can be tricky. However, you can try the following methods-
- Some of these sites will promote the fact that they accept guest postings (which helps them too). Look out for them and reach out.
- Check a site’s ‘author’ or ‘about’ page for people working there. Then, check the names of the people who wrote the blogs or content there.
If they don’t match, the site probably accepts guest posts from outside people.
- You can use tools like ‘Guest Post Tracker’ to find sites with specific DA. Usually, a rule of thumb is to stick within sites with 30-70 DA for starters.
Anything below 30 DA will not contribute much to guest blogging, and anything over 70 DA will likely have too strict rules or be picky.
- Use Google’s search operator to specify “Guest Post,” “Add Article,” or “Write for Us,” etc. in your search, and Google should show you results that contain these keywords.
We have explained Google search operators in more detail later in this article.
- Analyze the backlink profiles of your competitors using Ahrefs or SEMrush. Check each competitor’s top linking sites. See which of their backlinks came from blog posts.
This way, you can find several guest posting sites quickly without having to spend so much.
- Check the author’s info under articles and see if it mentions the author to be a ‘guest blogger.’ If it does, then that article can be a guest post as well.
- Notice a website’s forums and comments and search with ‘guest blog’ on the site. You may find topics related to guest blogging.
Moreover, you can also visit Slack Communities and other online forums with topics related to SEO and guest posting and get ideas from people there.
- Search for names of guest bloggers on Google. Then, search with each name on Google.
Chances are that you will find some of their published articles on various websites that accept guest posts.
- You can use AllTop to get a list of blogs in your particular niche. Then, research some of these sites, and sure enough, you will find some that accept guest posts.
Use Ahrefs ‘Website Traffic Checker’ to estimate a website’s search traffic. Aim for ones with at least 1000 organic visitors.
Guest Post Farms and How to Avoid Them
There are websites that only post blogs from guests and charge a fee for them. These websites hardly provide any value to their audience and typically have low organic traffic.
A site can be a guest post farm if you notice the following-
- No content on it is published by the name of any worker (from its author/about page) of the site.
- The website has no payment option for guest posts or charges a fee during outreach.
- Its posts are on topics that aren’t often within the same topic, niche, or industry.
Determining Your Target Domains for Prospecting
Now that you have chosen what you are prospecting for, you need to make some aims about your target domains. You usually have to look at the site’s niche and authority or rating.
Niches You Should Aim for
Deciding which niche to target for link prospecting is more complex than it may sound. Yes, you may want to go for the ones that focus mainly on your own niche.
However, you may not always find high-authority sites within your niche. Sometimes, you must broaden your search and check out sites with a related niche.
You may even have to choose a much broader niche if the site is highly authoritative. For example, suppose your niche is in gazebo building DIY. You can either-
- Stick to a similar niche by prospecting other sites that discuss DIY gazebo building. Or,
- Go for related niches, like sites that focus on different types of DIY buildings, like houses, sheds, piers, boats, etc. Or,
- Target websites with an even wider niche, like housing content, different DIY sectors, bigger structures, construction sites, interior designing, landscape designing, gardening, etc.
The more relevant the website content is to your site’s content, the better to target them.
Target Metrics and How Much or Less to Aim for
As we said, you can’t aim for too low or too high when prospecting websites. However, before that, you should understand the SEO metrics well. There are-
- Domain Authority (DA): From 0 to 100, you can quickly check a website’s DA with any SEO tool. We advise you to prospects for sites within 30 to 70 DA.
- Domain Rating (DR): Also ranging from 0-100, you can check the DR of a website using various SEO tools. There is hardly any difference between DA and DR.
- Organic Visitors: The traffic count of a website in one month. Sites with an organic traffic of over 1,000 are worth prospecting for.
- Traffic Value: The value of a site’s visitor. Simply put, it refers to the amount the site can profit from the traffic it gets.
The lowest you should aim for is sites with at least a $1,000 traffic value or higher.
How much DA, traffic, and traffic value you should aim for depends on your own site’s condition. If you are totally new, aiming for the lower end of the spectrum we mentioned above is suitable.
If your site’s ranking is decent now, look for sites with at least equal DA and traffic as you, if not higher.
Deciding on a Prospecting Method
So far, we have been making strategies and creating aims for link prospecting. Next, it is time to find some websites that fall within your criteria and list them out.
Afterward, you can try them one by one.
Finding websites to make a list is not as difficult as it may seem. There are various methods to perform this, and you can try all of them. They are as follows-
- Google Prospecting
- Ahrefs Prospecting
- Competitor Link Analysis
- Generative AI Prospecting
Google Prospecting
One of the most straightforward links prospecting methods is using Google’s search option for websites. However, it is not as simple as you will be using search operators here.
What are search operators, you ask? Have you ever noticed that Google often shows search results where some part of your search keyword is missing?
When that happens, Google asks whether you want your result to contain those keywords. If you click it, Google search again, but with quotation marks around those keywords.
This is an example of a search operator. For example, check the difference between the search results in the image below-

On the left side, you got results that literally excluded a significant part of your keyword, ‘headlight.’ However, on the right side, you used Google’s search operator.
So, you got more focused results. Google added these operators to allow deep searching. Some other such search operators you may need during your link-prospecting are-
- Excluding Certain Terms from the Search Results: Add the term at the end and add a minus symbol ‘-’ before it with a space before the minus.
- Get Alternative Results: Add an uppercase ‘OR’ between two keywords, and Google will show pages that include either the keyword before the ‘OR’ operator or the one after it.
- Including Certain Keywords: If you only want search result pages that include a particular keyword, add quotation marks around it, as we did in the image above.
If you are prospecting for websites within a particular niche and for specific reasons, you can use the search operators to deep-search them.
For example, if you are searching for sites with headlight content, you can try prompts like-
- Headlight “blog”
- Headlights “information”
- Headlights “websites”
Listing the Google Prospects
Adding your findings to a list may be time-consuming, considering you must insert many. Tools like LinkPitch can help you add your search results directly to a spreadsheet.
Ahrefs Prospecting
One of the biggest reasons to use Ahrefs or other paid SEO tools to prospect over Google is that you get to filter many things easily. Some filters you may use here are-
- Selecting a specific DA or DR range
- Choosing a specific type of content
- Choosing site language
- Choosing a time range, allowing you to see recently published content
How to use Ashrefs Prospecting
Here is how you can use the Ahrefs SEO tool to prospect for your preferred website types-
- Go to Ashrefs and sign in
- Go to their ‘Content Explorer’ page
- Search with your preferred content title
- Use the filters to sort the results within your criteria
- Add the results to a Google sheet to list them out

Competitor Link Analysis
You can see what websites your competitors are getting links from to aim for those sites. It is a widespread tactic that many SEO experts use, known as competitor analysis.
Here is the process of Competitor Link Analysis-
Find your competitors first.
You can do it with a simple keyword analysis (keywords that help your site rank within the top ten pages of SERPs) using Ahrefs’ “SERP Overview” tool.
You first search with the keyword here. Then, check the top ten ranking sites with that keyword and a DA or DR similar to yours. Make a list of three. These are your competitors for that keyword.
Remember to use the filter to only ‘Dofollow.’

Next, check your competitor’s backlink profile using Ahrefs’ free ‘Backlink Checker’ tool or its paid ‘Site Explorer’ tool. The latter shows more than just your competitors’ backlinks.

Now, you can see which authoritative sites are sending backlinks to your competitors. You can also check the specific pages that are getting the inbound links.
These pages can help you find several referring domains. Use the ‘Referring Domains’ tool by Ahrefs for any given page.
So, go to your competitors’ top pages and find their referring domains (i.e., domains that are linking to that page).

Among these referring domains, you can use your previously made prospect target criteria to sort out some websites, adding them to your prospect list.
Generative AI Prospecting
You may already be aware of various generative AIs that may help with prospecting. Some of them, whether free or paid, have promising results.
In fact, many suspect they will replace search engines in the future. Of course, these generative AIs will improve much as time passes. So, should you use them for prospecting?
Well, as alluring as the idea may sound, the accuracy of even top AI models is still unclear. There have been instances where they showed irrelevant results.
We don’t think the casual generative AIs are ready to take on complex SEO tasks yet unless you have found or developed a top-notch one.
However, you can always use AIs for various reasons when developing link-building strategies. According to Forbes, many are already using them.
A simple search is all it takes for you to create a list. You may need some prompt engineering skills to make the results more focused according to your prospecting needs.
Depending on the necessity, you may need to use brand keywords or non-brand keywords in different prompts.
What’s Next with the Prospect List?
Your link prospecting campaign should be followed by the outreach campaign. Here, you will reach out to the site owners from the list of websites for backlinks, guest posts, link insertion, etc.
You can either create personalized outreach methods, like writing bespoke emails for each site, or create automated outreach to a high number of sites.
The latter may be better for your ROI. However, it is best to leave some of the best websites on your prospect from the mass outreach and use manual outreach for them instead.
Some Outreaching Methods
If you are confused about what outreach method you should choose for the prospected websites, any of the following may help you-
- Guest post outreach
- Email outreach
- Link insertion outreach, where you are paying for the link.
Which method you select depends on the reason for your prospect. If you want to guest post on a site, a guest post outreach with some blog ideas in the pitching is mandatory.
Meanwhile, if you simply want some backlinks, you can write personalized emails to the website owner about your posts worth sending links to.