Is it worth pursing PR and guest posting just for links?
-
I'm still new to SEO, but I have a decent foundation on it.
To me, it seems like guest posting and earning PR on quality sites is good for the coverage, but will those one-off links really make a difference?
I'd have to assume that SEOs earn their worth when they build scalable links (i.e. tools that people link to, guides, etc)
So, while PR is nice, I feel as if I shouldn't focus my time there, but spending time on building a product such as QuickSprout.com's SEO audit tool, Cappex's college match tool, CNN's budget calculator, Moz's google weather report, etc.
-
Pursuing any avenue just for links is the wrong way to go about it. Press Release links have gotten hit bad lately because of their misuse and overuse... but if you have some news on your business that is actually PR worthy then shopping it around to respectable sites and getting your news out there to the right people can increase your qualified traffic. Same goes for guest posting. Its been hit bad lately but its not about the links per se. Getting your name out there, branding, sharing useful information or something humorous or poignant can help people learn who you are, increase your qualified traffic, etc. etc. and you don't need a followed link to reap the benefits. It also wouldn't hurt to look into social for branding and community purposes. And a product/tool/widget/infographic can also be a great way to gain links and/or spread via word of mouth/social mentions. But be sure not to go embedding any hidden links in sharable widgets or you'll get bitch slapped by Google as well. As Andy put it, creativity is the key here. There are so many ways of earning links, getting shared and being seen online that there practically is no limit to what is possible.
-
First, I'd forget about doing guest blogging for the sole purpose of gaining links. Matt Cutts, Google's head of web spam, told us in clear terms that online marketers should stop doing this. (I'd add that people should not have been doing this in the first place.)
Rather, I'd focus on contributing to online publications for the purpose of increasing awareness and coverage of your company, website, product, and/or service among a specific, targeted audience. Don't worry about the links. They'll come naturally themselves as long as you do online PR in the right way.
For more, I'd suggest looking at my Moz post on the topic: http://moz.com/blog/an-introduction-to-pr-strategy-for-seos
In short, I'd focus on the websites from whom you would want links even if Google did not exist. If you sell widgets, then you want a mention -- with or without a link! -- on a website that is read by people who are interested in widgets. Think about this issue like this and don't worry too much about getting links directly.
-
I honestly wouldn't look at PR services to build links Brandon. Google is well on to this one and it could do you more harm than good.
For links, there are hundreds of available tactics that can all help you, without penalty, and like you say, if you build something that people want, you will build links more naturally. Everyone likes a good tool, but the same is also said for great articles, studies and research that might have been done, but perhaps that you can improve on.
The only limitations here, are how creative you can get
-Andy
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
How many links per week/month should a link building campaign acquire?
I am running a linkbuilding campaign for my company. I am mostly focusing on guest blogging opportunities and responding to emails from HARO. How many links would I have to acquire each week or month to be considered doing a good job over a 6 month or a year time period? Thank you,
Link Building | | fersu0 -
Sponsored post
If we are to get a quality blog to write a "sponsored blog post" for us and if they clearly state it is "sponsored" should the link back to our website be "no follow"? From an SEO stand point is it even worth getting the link if its "no follow"?
Link Building | | roberthseo0 -
How do I search for a link within a competitors website that is linking my website?
Hello, I have just been checking my link profile and according to webmaster tools a competitor is linking to my website. Is there anyway of finding this link besides looking at every page within their website? Many thanks
Link Building | | mblsolutions0 -
Link building strategy - my weak link!
Please help me understand link building. I've read the articles on Moz, but they seem vague to me. Specific questions: 1. How do I get my webpage on good quality sites? 2. Guest blogging? Good or not? 3. What about when people pick up one of our blog stories and publish it on their site with a link back? Is that bad now because it is duplicate content??? 4. Forum posts with a link in the signature? Good or not? 5. Directories - I get it that these are no longer good... are they severely negative? Should I take them down. 6. PR - Looks like this is bad... right??? 7. Youtube - any value? 8. Pinterst, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram? Any value to backlinks here? 9. What about sites like redit? 10. Anything else I should consider?
Link Building | | CalicoKitty20000 -
Guest Blog Posting : Is that all it is made out to be?
Experts frequently mention that one of the best way to build the link is to guest blog with some authoritative blogs in your niche after Penguin, Panda and other animals invaded SEO landscape. At the same time everyone agrees that "Content is the king" and if you have unique and useful content, people would link to you without any extra efforts on your part. Do you see any contradiction in those statements? I spent my time, my resource, my genius writing up very good posts. As a matter of fact all my post are good (IMHO), but I can churn out only 2 or 3 masterpieces per month. Should I share my content willingly as a guest post to other websites who are not my local direct competitor of course, but nonetheless are in my niche, thus adding to their authority on the subject? I will get a link out of it. Would I get a significant traffic? I doubt that. At least from my limited experience. Or should I strengthen my own site striving to be such authority in my niche? But without strong external link profile Google shall frown upon me and my site. Personally I inclined more to save most of the content for my own blog. What do you gals and guys think?
Link Building | | SirMax0 -
Using an SEO Agency to build one-way links for you via link exchange
There are a number of SEO agencies which offer link building as part of their SEO offerings. I believe they build one-way links to the client site, by offering another link in exchange to the liking site. So, if the client site is "C", and link is being requested from site "A", the site "A" owner is offered a link from site "B" in return. Is this a good and/or recommended practice?
Link Building | | thinkvidya0 -
RSS links vs. contextual links
Which has more value? Passes more "link juice"? Auto generated rss links or contextual links?
Link Building | | nicole.healthline0 -
Link Acquisition - PA vs PR
I am wondering if someone can please advise on link acquisition. I have the opportunity to acquire a few good backlinks that will bring both traffic and some potential link juice. All things aside, if we are strictly comparing Page Authority with Google PageRank which will provide the most benefit to my SERP ranking? 1. Google PageRank 4 and Page Authority of 25 or 2. Google PageRank 2 and Page Authority of 35 We are strictly talking about SERPs!
Link Building | | initialeffort1