I’ve seen too many businesses waste months on link building campaigns that go nowhere. They chase high DR sites like they’re collecting Pokemon cards, completely ignoring whether those links actually make sense for their business. Spoiler alert: a link from a DR 70 site about vegan recipes won’t help your B2B SaaS company rank for “project management software.”
This checklist gives you a systematic approach to link building that actually works. Not the theoretical nonsense you’ll find in most SEO blogs, but the practical, step-by-step process we use at Search Royals for our clients (and yes, we test everything on our own projects first because we’re not masochists who enjoy explaining failed strategies to clients).
Here’s what we’ll cover: planning your campaign properly, finding opportunities that matter, evaluating sites without wasting time, creating content that gets accepted, and making sure your links actually deliver value. No fluff, no outdated tactics from 2015, just what works right now.
Phase 1: Pre-Campaign Planning (The Boring Bit That Actually Matters)
Most people skip this part and jump straight to outreach. Then they wonder why their campaign feels like screaming into the void.
Audit Your Current Backlink Profile
Before you build new links, you need to know what you’re working with. Open Ahrefs or your preferred backlink tool and answer these questions:
- What’s your current Domain Rating?
- How many referring domains do you have?
- What’s your anchor text distribution? (If 80% of your anchors are exact match, you have a problem)
- Are there any toxic links dragging you down?
- Which of your pages have the most backlinks already?
This isn’t an academic exercise. Your existing profile tells you what’s possible. If you’re a brand new site with DR 5, don’t waste time pitching DR 80 sites. They won’t respond. Build a foundation first.
Action items:
- Export your backlink profile
- Identify your strongest linked content (this tells you what resonates)
- Flag any suspicious links for potential disavowal
- Note your current DR/authority as a baseline
Set Actual Goals (Not Fantasy Numbers)
“Get more backlinks” isn’t a goal. It’s a wish.
A goal looks like this: “Acquire 15 backlinks from DR 40+ sites in our niche within 3 months to support our target page for [keyword].”
Think about:
- Which specific pages need links? (Usually your money pages, not your homepage)
- What keywords are you targeting?
- What authority threshold makes sense for your current DR?
- How much time can you realistically invest?
At Search Royals, we work backwards from ranking goals. If you need to rank for “enterprise CRM software,” we analyze the link gap between you and competitors already ranking there. That tells us how many links you need and what quality threshold matters.
Calculate Your Link Gap
This is where most people realize they’re further behind than they thought.
Pick your top 3 target keywords. Look at the sites ranking in positions 1-3. How many referring domains do they have? What’s their DR?
The gap between their numbers and yours is your link gap. It’s not perfect math (relevancy and content quality matter too), but it gives you a target.
If the top 3 competitors have 500 referring domains and you have 50, you’re not closing that gap in a month. Be realistic.
Phase 2: Finding Link Opportunities (Where the Real Work Begins)
Now we get into the actual hunting. This is where testing matters.
Start With Low-Hanging Fruit
Before you spend weeks on outreach campaigns, grab the easy wins:
Unlinked brand mentions: Search Google for your brand name in quotes. You’ll find places that mentioned you but didn’t link. A simple email asking for a link converts at 30-40% because they already know you exist.
Reclaim broken backlinks: If you migrated your site or changed URLs, you might have backlinks pointing to 404s. Find them and redirect them properly. Free link equity you already earned.
Fix competitor broken links: Find broken links on competitor sites, then pitch your equivalent content as a replacement. This actually works because you’re solving a problem for them (broken links hurt SEO).
HARO and journalist requests: Time-consuming but effective if you’re quick. Journalists need expert quotes. You provide them. You get contextual backlinks from news sites. Everyone wins.
These tactics won’t scale to 100 links per month, but they’ll get you started while you build your outreach machine.
Analyze Competitor Backlinks (Steal Their Homework)
Your competitors already did the prospecting work. Use it.
Plug your top 3 competitors into Ahrefs. Look at their “Best by links” report. This shows which of their content pieces earned the most backlinks and from where.
Now ask yourself: Can you create something better? Can you pitch those same sites?
Here’s the key insight most people miss: if a site linked to your competitor, they care about your topic. They’ve already demonstrated they’ll link to content in your space. Your pitch just became 10x more relevant.
Warning: Don’t just copy the link list and spam everyone. That’s how you get ignored. Instead, understand why each site linked. Was it because of unique data? A compelling angle? A personal relationship? Then figure out if you can offer something similar or better.
Find Guest Post Opportunities That Don’t Suck
Guest posting gets a bad rap because most people do it wrong. They write generic content for generic sites just to get a link.
Here’s how we find quality guest post targets:
Search Google for:
- “[your niche] + write for us”
- “[your niche] + guest post guidelines”
- “[your niche] + submit article”
But here’s the critical part: most sites you find will be terrible. They accept any content from anyone, which means their DR is built on spam. Not useful.
Instead, look for sites that:
- Have clear editorial standards
- Publish regularly (not just when someone pays them)
- Have actual organic traffic
- Cover topics adjacent to yours, not identical
The best guest post opportunities come from reading publications in your space and noticing contributor bylines. Those writers got in. So can you.
Resource Pages and “Best Of” Lists
Every niche has resource pages listing the “best tools for X” or “top agencies for Y.” Getting on these lists is surprisingly straightforward if your product/service is actually good.
Find them by searching:
- “best [your category] tools”
- “[your niche] resources”
- “top [your service type]”
Then reach out with a simple pitch: “Hey, noticed your list of [X]. We built [Y] which does [specific unique thing]. Worth adding?”
Keep it short. These list curators get pitched constantly. The ones who respond care about providing value to their readers, so make it easy to say yes by explaining exactly what makes you list-worthy.
Phase 3: Evaluating Sites (Don’t Waste Time on Garbage)
This is where the onion model comes in. Most people just check DR and call it a day. That’s lazy and ineffective.
The Five Layers of Link Relevance
Not all backlinks are created equal. A link from a relevant site is worth 10x more than a link from a high-DR irrelevant site. Here’s how we evaluate relevance at five levels:
Layer 1: Website level Does the entire site cover topics related to yours? A marketing blog linking to a marketing tool makes sense. A marketing blog linking to a plumbing service doesn’t.
Layer 2: Category level Even if the site is relevant, which section is your link in? A link in the “SEO” category of a marketing site is more relevant for an SEO tool than a link in their “Social Media” category.
Layer 3: Article level Is the specific article about your topic? A link from an article about “link building strategies” is perfect for your link building tool. A link from “10 marketing trends for 2026” is less targeted.
Layer 4: Section level Where in the article does your link appear? A link in a section specifically discussing your type of solution is more contextually relevant than a link randomly dropped in the conclusion.
Layer 5: Anchor text Does the anchor text make sense in context? “Check out this link building tool” is natural. “Best link building software to increase rankings fast” is spam.
Each layer compounds. A perfect link nails all five layers. Most links nail two or three. That’s fine. Just don’t ignore relevance entirely because you’re chasing DR numbers.
Check These Metrics (But Don’t Obsess)
Yes, check Domain Rating or Domain Authority. But treat it as one signal among many:
- DR/DA: Aim for sites within 20 points of your own DR as a starting point
- Organic traffic: Use Ahrefs or SEMrush to verify the site actually gets visitors (many high-DR sites are dead)
- Referring domains: A healthy site should have links from diverse sources, not 1000 backlinks from 10 domains
- Spam score: Use Moz’s spam score or manually check if the site feels spammy (you’ll know it when you see it)
Red flags that scream “avoid this site”:
- Accepting any content from anyone with zero editorial standards
- Obvious link farms (50 “guest posts” published daily)
- No organic traffic despite high DR (it’s a shell)
- Selling links openly (Google hates this and so should you)
- Content in 15 different languages with no coherent focus
Read the actual content on the site. Does it feel like a real publication or a content mill? Trust your gut.
Phase 4: Outreach That Doesn’t Suck
Most outreach emails are terrible. They’re generic, pushy, and obviously templated.
Find the Right Person
Emailing “info@website.com” is a waste of time. That email address goes to someone who doesn’t make decisions.
Instead, find:
- The editor or content manager (look for bylines or an “our team” page)
- The site owner (use LinkedIn)
- Writers who cover your topic regularly
A specific person’s email address converts 3-5x better than a generic contact form.
Write Emails People Actually Read
Here’s the structure that works:
Subject line: Make it specific and personal. “Quick question about [recent article title]” beats “Guest post opportunity.”
Opening: Reference something specific about them. A recent article. A podcast episode. Something that proves you’re not mass-emailing 500 people.
Value proposition: What’s in it for them? Not you. Them. “I noticed you haven’t covered [specific angle] yet. I’ve got data from [X] that would work well for your audience.”
Single clear ask: One question. One action. “Would you be open to a guest post on this topic?” Not “Would you be interested in learning more about potentially exploring the possibility of maybe considering…”
Professional signature: Name, title, link to your site. No inspirational quotes.
Length: 100-150 words max. If you can’t explain your value in three paragraphs, your pitch isn’t clear enough.
Follow Up (But Know When to Stop)
Send one follow-up email after 5-7 days. “Hey [name], following up on my email from last week about [topic]. Still interested?”
If they don’t respond to that, they’re not interested. Move on. Sending five follow-ups makes you look desperate and annoying.
Phase 5: Creating Content That Gets Accepted (And Actually Provides Value)
You found a great site. They said yes to your pitch. Now don’t screw it up with mediocre content.
Match Their Editorial Standards
Every publication has a style. Some are formal and data-heavy. Others are conversational and story-driven. Read three recent articles on the target site before you write anything.
Notice:
- Average word count (don’t submit 800 words if they typically publish 2,000)
- Tone and voice (match it)
- How they structure articles (subheadings, bullet points, examples)
- Image requirements (do they use custom graphics or stock photos?)
Following their writer guidelines isn’t optional. It’s the bare minimum. If they say “include at least one data point per section,” don’t submit fluffy opinion pieces.
Your Link Needs to Earn Its Place
Here’s where most guest posts fail: the link feels forced.
You can’t just write an article about “content marketing trends” and randomly drop a link to your SaaS product in paragraph four. Editors see through that immediately, and if they don’t, readers will.
Instead, your link should answer a specific question or solve a problem mentioned in the content. If you’re writing about SEO strategy and you genuinely have a helpful resource on technical SEO, link to it where it makes sense. Not before. Not after. Exactly where the reader would benefit from more information.
Link placement best practices:
- Use natural anchor text (“this technical SEO guide” not “click here for best SEO services 2026”)
- Place your link where it adds value, typically mid-article in a relevant context
- Include 1-2 internal links to the host site (shows you care about their content)
- Add 1-2 other external links to authoritative sources (builds trust and looks less self-promotional)
If you can’t naturally incorporate your link without it feeling forced, your pitch was wrong. Pick a better topic next time.
Write Something Worth Reading
This should be obvious, but most guest posts are forgettable garbage written by people who clearly don’t care about the topic.
Your content should:
- Provide genuinely useful information (not rehashed basics everyone’s seen before)
- Include specific examples or data when possible
- Be well-researched and factually accurate
- Solve an actual problem the reader has
Minimum 1,000 words is standard, but length means nothing if the content is hollow. A tight 1,200-word article with actionable insights beats a rambling 2,500-word piece full of obvious statements.
Pro tip from testing: Articles with specific numbers in headlines (“7 ways” or “increase by 40%”) and articles with original frameworks or methodologies get linked to more often. Generic “ultimate guides” are oversaturated.
Run your draft through Grammarly or similar before submitting. Typos and grammatical errors signal carelessness. Editors notice.
Phase 6: Quality Control After Placement (The Part Everyone Forgets)
You got the link published. Congratulations. Your work isn’t done.
Verify Everything Immediately
Within 24 hours of publication, check:
Is the link live? Click it. Does it go where it’s supposed to go? Typos in URLs are more common than you’d think.
Is it dofollow? Most legitimate editorial links should be dofollow. If you negotiated for dofollow and got nofollow, ask them to fix it. (Though in 2026, nofollow links matter more than they used to, especially for LLM-based search systems that treat them as editorial signals.)
Is it tagged correctly? Check the link’s HTML. If it has rel=”sponsored” or rel=”ugc” when it should be a natural editorial link, that’s a problem. Sponsored tags are fine for paid placements, but if you did legitimate guest posting, the link should be natural.
Is the page indexable? Check robots.txt and meta tags. Occasionally sites accidentally noindex pages. A link on a noindexed page is worthless.
Does the anchor text match what you agreed on? Editors sometimes change things. If your carefully crafted contextual anchor became “click here,” politely ask them to update it.
Set Up Monitoring
Links disappear. Sites get redesigned. Content gets deleted. Publishers change their minds.
Check your acquired links monthly:
- Are they still live?
- Has the page dropped out of Google’s index?
- Has the site’s DR tanked (possible penalty)?
- Has the content been modified in a way that changes context?
Use a backlink monitoring tool or set up Google Alerts for the URLs where your links appear. Finding a dead link six months after placement is frustrating. Finding it immediately means you can fix it.
If a link disappears, reach out politely. Sometimes it’s an accident during a site migration. Sometimes the content was removed. Sometimes they purged old guest posts. Ask if it can be restored or if they’d consider linking from a different piece of content.
Phase 7: Campaign Management and Optimization (Making This Sustainable)
Link building isn’t a one-time project. It’s an ongoing process. The difference between businesses that succeed with link building and those that don’t is consistency.
Build a Weekly Rhythm
Sporadic effort produces sporadic results. Set up a weekly schedule:
Monday: Prospect for new opportunities (spend 2 hours finding 10-15 quality targets)
Tuesday/Wednesday: Outreach (send 10-15 personalized emails)
Thursday: Follow up on emails from last week and manage ongoing conversations
Friday: Content creation or editing for accepted pitches
This doesn’t have to consume your entire week. Four to six focused hours of link building weekly will outperform 20 hours of unfocused scattered effort.
Track What Matters
You need data to optimize. At minimum, track:
- Outreach sent vs. responses received (response rate)
- Responses vs. actual placements (conversion rate)
- Time from pitch to publication (helps with planning)
- Link quality metrics (DR, relevance score, traffic)
- Which tactics work best for your niche
After three months, you’ll see patterns. Maybe your response rate for broken link building is 15% but your guest post response rate is only 5%. Double down on what works. Kill what doesn’t.
Reality check: If you’re getting less than 10% response rates on outreach, something’s wrong. Your targeting is off, your pitch sucks, or both. If you’re getting 30%+ responses but zero placements, your content quality is the problem.
Know When to Outsource
Here’s the uncomfortable truth: link building is time-intensive and requires specific expertise.
You need to understand:
- Technical SEO concepts (relevancy, authority, indexation)
- Outreach psychology (what makes people say yes)
- Content creation (writing that editors actually want)
- Negotiation (discussing terms without sounding desperate)
If you’re a business owner or marketing manager, your time might be worth more focusing on strategy while someone else handles execution. We’re not saying this because we sell link building services (okay, we are a little), but because we’ve seen too many campaigns fail because someone tried to DIY it without the bandwidth or expertise.
Evaluate honestly: Is your time better spent here or on other growth initiatives? There’s no shame in outsourcing what isn’t your core competency.
Special Considerations for 2026
Link building evolves. What worked in 2020 doesn’t necessarily work now. Here’s what’s different in 2026:
Nofollow Links Actually Matter Now
For years, SEOs dismissed nofollow links as worthless. In 2026, with LLMs powering more search results, that’s outdated thinking.
Large language models training on web content don’t distinguish between dofollow and nofollow links when understanding relationships between content. If ChatGPT’s search or Google’s AI Overviews sees your brand consistently mentioned and linked (even with nofollow) across authoritative sources, that signals credibility.
Don’t chase nofollow links exclusively, but don’t dismiss opportunities just because they’re nofollow. Editorial mentions from legitimate publications matter regardless of the link attribute.
Unlinked Mentions Are Underrated
Similarly, unlinked brand mentions carry weight in LLM-based systems. When your company is mentioned positively across multiple contexts without links, that builds semantic authority.
This doesn’t mean ignore link acquisition. It means stop treating links as the only signal that matters. Brand visibility and mention context matter too.
Quality Over Quantity Isn’t a Cliche Anymore
It’s always been true that quality beats quantity, but Google’s gotten much better at identifying manipulative link schemes. Ten highly relevant links from real publications will outperform 100 mediocre directory links.
Focus on links that make sense. The onion model we covered earlier isn’t theoretical. It’s practical risk management. Irrelevant links won’t help you and might hurt you.
Red Flags and What to Avoid
Let’s be clear about what doesn’t work:
PBN links: Private blog networks are a terrible idea. They’re detectable, risky, and Google actively penalizes them. Don’t care how cheap someone offers them.
Paid links disguised as editorial: Buying links isn’t inherently evil (our marketplace exists for a reason), but if you buy links, they should be marked appropriately. Buying unmarked editorial links violates Google’s guidelines and puts your site at risk.
Exact match anchor text overload: If 50% of your anchors are “best link building agency Copenhagen,” you look manipulative. Vary your anchors naturally.
Link exchanges at scale: Trading links with 50 sites looks suspicious. Occasional reciprocal links between genuinely related sites are fine. Systematic link exchanges aren’t.
Comment spam and forum spam: Stop. Just stop. It’s 2026. Nobody’s ranking from blog comments anymore.
If a link building tactic feels sketchy, it probably is. Test strategies on your own properties first (like we do) before risking client sites or your main business site.
Wrapping This Up
Link building in 2026 requires structure, consistency, and honesty.
You need a system for finding opportunities, evaluating quality, creating content people actually want, and maintaining the links you earn. This checklist gives you that system.
Will it be easy? No. Nothing worthwhile is.
Will it be faster than hoping Google magically discovers your content? Absolutely.
The businesses that win at SEO are the ones that treat link building as a systematic, ongoing process rather than a one-time campaign they run when rankings drop. Build your process. Test what works. Optimize based on data. Keep going.
And if you decide this sounds like too much work (it is), we’re here to help. That’s literally what we do at Search Royals. We’ve built links for hundreds of businesses using this exact process, and we actually know what we’re talking about because we test everything first.
Either way, you now have a checklist. Use it.
