Link building outsource advice
-
I have been limping along doing link building myself for several months now. Creating relationships, asking for links, writing some articles and press. So far, decent results, but I need to take it to another level.
I used SubmitEdge's 400 manual directory submission product, but still not seeing many links coming from it.
So, I would like to hire an onshore SEO to help me with link building. After getting several quotes from reputable companies, I found the process very frustrating.
I know this business is not about guarentees, but they all want $600-$1000 per month for a fairly open ended service. All they tell me is that they will submit to directories, social media sites, shopping sites, and some niche sites. No guarentees of how many (or what quality) of links I'll get, or even how much time they even plan to spend.
Any suggestions on what I should expect? and any suggestion companies?
-
Best thing you can do is check fiverr and maybe digital point and be VERY VERY selective in who you hire. Test them on a site you don't care too much about and be detailed in the tasks you give them. Stay away from mass submission type stuff; directories, articles, etc.
I'd look for someone who can truly do niche linking or competitor offset links for you (in house). Maybe someone on craigslist you can train.
-
Thanks so much for your input Kristi and Mike. I've had the similar experience with offshore link building.
But what about some of the reputable SEO firms and their link building product. I know there are lots within this forumn. I would like to hire someone to help me compliment what I can't do with my team, but I need some transparency in the practice. Looking to partner with someone that can compliment what I am already doing.
Suggestions?
-
I know your pain. Been there. My experience was not good. Tried 2 of them. Even though they promised relevant, gramatically correct English postings, they did not deliver. I believe they were acting as middle-men to low-cost labor offshore who did not write solid English nor know anything about the niche my product was in. Plus, they did some questionable things with links that if done on large scale would probably get my site banned. Fortunately I was able to stop it before it got out of control.
The only way I would use an outsourced service again is to pre-approve every post/article in advance (at least for the first 50 or until I got very comfortable with their work). And that's tedious enough (and time consuming enough) that I'm not sure what value they're adding at that point. I could hire my own low-cost labor and then do the same approval process and then post them (cutting out the middle man).
It's really hard when site owners give testimonials like "my SEO firm is great" because the site owners are often unaware that their outsourced SEO firm is using black/grey hat tactics (eg JC Penny). If you're going to hire someone and pay them hundreds/month then take a long time to interview them. Ask for customer references. Ask for data on improvements they've made for their customers (what were the rankings before they started, and how did they improve over the months?). They should have multiple examples of monthly improvement for multiple clients, and then explain to you which white-hat techniques they used to achieve those results. If they refuse to share client references (where you can get on the phone and speak to some of their clients) or data then move along and look elsewhere; there are a million scamsters out there...
-
I have tried both types of services. The open-ended "directories and social media sites" are not worth it. Honestly, I would hire a college intern looking for SEO experirence and a possible future job and train them the way YOU want it done. Meaning, high quality relationships built, real emails sent with personality, guest posting articles that they can create, etc.
It would be much more value than the bigger open ended companies, unless you get a great recommendation from someone on who to hire.
The truth of it is that those bigger type companies who you would be paying are also hiring the cheap interns who don't care about your business and don't know who you are. If you hire them directly, at least they will care more.
Good luck!
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
-
We are moving to HTTPS and wanted to know if our link building efforts were in vain or will the link juice pass to HTTPS?
We are switching to HTTPS and want to make sure the links we've gotten in the past will still transfer since they are pointing to HTTP? I'd hate to go back through and ask people to please add an s to the link.
Link Building | | bryant25560 -
Guidelines for keyword-targeting and link building?
Hello, Every month, I set a goal of targeting 10 - 15 relevant keywords for my website. I then attempt to boost my site's rankings for these terms through a combination of content writing and white hat, non-paid link building. My question is: Are there general guidelines for keyword-targeting and backlinks? Is it healthy to target 10 - 15 different keywords (or more??) like this per month?
Link Building | | BBEXNinja0 -
Building links to reviews: Movies, Restaurants, etc
My site has lots of reviews: Movies, TV, Music, Restaurants, etc. I'm looking for sites that take critic reviews and link back to the critic's site. We're already on Metacritic.com and Rottentomatoes.com, which seems to be the two biggies for movies & tv. But I'm sure there are more out there. Also, I'd love to find sites for restaurant reviews (specifically in the Boston area). Are there any lists out there of sites like these? I'm NOT looking for UGC sites that allow user reviews. I'm looking for sites that accept professional critic reviews, preferably via some sort of automated feed. Thanks Mozzers!
Link Building | | BostonWright0 -
How we can Compare these 3 Link Building Tools
1. http://ontolo.com 2. http://www.buzzstream.com 3. http://raventools.com If you want to add more kindly add. lets find best one...
Link Building | | vinku0 -
Are you using ArticleBase.com for link building?
I'm digging my way through my competitors' link profiles on OSE and came across one that had been using a site called ArticleBase.com Apparently you can publish articles for free and browse other published articles for usage on your own site (provided you follow their TOS). It actually seems like a nifty idea. I'm wondering if anyone has utilized this site for re-publishing content and building external links. Worth the effort? Thanks!
Link Building | | TBiz0 -
A good link builder / link building agency for Spanish content
Hi, I am looking for a good link building agency or freelance to execute a link building strategy for the next months. The content is in Spanish. Could anyone recommend me a good agency or a good link builder for Spanish content? Thank you very much! Jorge
Link Building | | jorgediaz0 -
Link Building Features/Tutorials
I am previewing this software and am getting a little lost in its features. I am really looking for something that will help me identify link prospects, filter out the low-authority domains, and organize this information into an actionable list. Can anyone point me to resources (tutorials, etc.) on how to do that with this software? Which tools should I be using and how can I use them to reach these goals?
Link Building | | Falconberg0 -
Can anyone recommend a great link building firm?
I'm looking for a reputable firm that builds high quality links to a high quality site. These links should be located on a page with high Page Rank/Page Authority and should also have high quality links pointing to the page. I am not looking for forum posts/blog comments or directory listings. Can anyone recommend a firm that they use personally who specializes in this? I've had a look through the SEOMoz directory, which is great, but if anyone could provide some recommendations to go along with that, it would be appreciated! Thanks.
Link Building | | torontojon0