How to assess the link-building efficiency?

S

Santeri_G

Newbie
Joined
Oct 20, 2025
Messages
7
Reaction score
2
Hello all!
From time to time, our PR teams ask us for link building for some articles. We did that, and PR teams asked us what the results were. We said some articles are ranked well for specific keywords. PR teams said, 'That's ok, but we need more.'
They need numbers to show to management. Management approves the budgets, so it is reasonable to ask us about results. But I have no idea which indicators add to our reports. We can't measure referral traffic from the articles or know how many users read the articles.
 
Advertise on BHW
Santeri_G said:
We can't measure referral traffic from the articles or know how many users read the articles.
Click to expand...
you can measure all types of traffic with some analytics software, what are you talking about?
 
Santeri_G said:
Hello all!
From time to time, our PR teams ask us for link building for some articles. We did that, and PR teams asked us what the results were. We said some articles are ranked well for specific keywords. PR teams said, 'That's ok, but we need more.'
They need numbers to show to management. Management approves the budgets, so it is reasonable to ask us about results. But I have no idea which indicators add to our reports. We can't measure referral traffic from the articles or know how many users read the articles.
Click to expand...
In situations like this it usually comes down to focusing on the SEO signals you can actually track like keyword rankings search visibility and the quality of the links since that tends to give a much clearer picture of performance when direct traffic or readership data is missing
 
Track Domain Authority of sites you placed links on, number of backlinks built, and keyword ranking improvements over time. Those are solid numbers management understands. Tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush make it easy to pull these into a clean report.
 
in my experience, rankings alone are usually not enough for management.
i normally look at keyword improvements, organic traffic growth and whether the linked pages gained more visibility over time.
link building is often easier to justify when you can show a positive trend in traffic and rankings but not just the number of links built.
 
When I worked at a company where management was directly involved, I used to send before-and-after reports. Showing ranking improvements, organic traffic growth, hell even i send impressions improvements from google search console.
 
Just pull up search console and show them the growth in total ranking keywords for those pages, management loves graphs, so show them the dr or authority score increase too, even if it's mostly a vanity stat, If the ranks are moving up, your links are clearly doing the heavy lifting.
 
Santeri_G said:
Hello all!
From time to time, our PR teams ask us for link building for some articles. We did that, and PR teams asked us what the results were. We said some articles are ranked well for specific keywords. PR teams said, 'That's ok, but we need more.'
They need numbers to show to management. Management approves the budgets, so it is reasonable to ask us about results. But I have no idea which indicators add to our reports. We can't measure referral traffic from the articles or know how many users read the articles.
Click to expand...
Ahrefs or Semrush can give you indicators and/or measure your traffic.
 
One way to make link building reports more meaningful is to compare organic traffic and keyword visibility before and after the links were acquired it helps show the broader SEO impact even when direct referral data isn't available..
 
Santeri_G said:
Hello all!
From time to time, our PR teams ask us for link building for some articles. We did that, and PR teams asked us what the results were. We said some articles are ranked well for specific keywords. PR teams said, 'That's ok, but we need more.'
They need numbers to show to management. Management approves the budgets, so it is reasonable to ask us about results. But I have no idea which indicators add to our reports. We can't measure referral traffic from the articles or know how many users read the articles.
Click to expand...
my approach would be to use an easy before and after comparison. i would take down the current status of the impressions, positions, organic clicks nd the quality and quantity of the referring domain prior to the campaign nd then make the comparisson later on.
 
I would use a simple before and after report showing impressions, clicks, keyword rankings, and search visibility. Even without referral traffic data, these numbers can clearly show the impact of the campaign.
 
Santeri_G said:
Hello all!
From time to time, our PR teams ask us for link building for some articles. We did that, and PR teams asked us what the results were. We said some articles are ranked well for specific keywords. PR teams said, 'That's ok, but we need more.'
They need numbers to show to management. Management approves the budgets, so it is reasonable to ask us about results. But I have no idea which indicators add to our reports. We can't measure referral traffic from the articles or know how many users read the articles.
Click to expand...
the best approach would be keeping the report as simple as possible while concentrating on the trends nd not attempting to provide proofs for the fact that each link contributed to achieving the specified result. it should include the cost of the campaign, number nd quality of earned links, changes in organic clicks nd if the rankking keywords were added to the target web pages.
 
Santeri_G said:
Hello all!
From time to time, our PR teams ask us for link building for some articles. We did that, and PR teams asked us what the results were. We said some articles are ranked well for specific keywords. PR teams said, 'That's ok, but we need more.'
They need numbers to show to management. Management approves the budgets, so it is reasonable to ask us about results. But I have no idea which indicators add to our reports. We can't measure referral traffic from the articles or know how many users read the articles.
Click to expand...
I’d measure the impact around the article instead. Things like keyword/ranking improvements, GSC impressions and clicks, new referring domains, branded searches, referral traffic where trackable, and whether the target page gained visibility after the placement. That gives management actual numbers without pretending we can measure readers we don’t have access to.
 
Santeri_G said:
Hello all!
From time to time, our PR teams ask us for link building for some articles. We did that, and PR teams asked us what the results were. We said some articles are ranked well for specific keywords. PR teams said, 'That's ok, but we need more.'
They need numbers to show to management. Management approves the budgets, so it is reasonable to ask us about results. But I have no idea which indicators add to our reports. We can't measure referral traffic from the articles or know how many users read the articles.
Click to expand...
Rankings alone rarely tell the full story. I would report keyword position changes, organic traffic growth, referring domains, backlink quality, and estimated search visibility before vs after link building.
 
I’d keep it straightforward: rankings, site visits, Google views, clicks, and new backlinks. Put the results side by side for before and after, so managers can spot the change fast.
 
Advertise on BHW
You must log in or register to reply here.
Sign up now!

Main Menu

Home Main Forum List Black Hat SEO White Hat SEO BHW Newbie Guide Blogging Black Hat Tools Social Media Downloads

Marketplace

Account Selling Content / Copywriting EBooks / Methods Hosting Misc Proxies For Sale SEO - Link building SEO - Packages Social Media Social Media - Panels Web Design More

Making Money

Affiliate Programs Hire a Freelancer IM Journeys Making Money Pay Per Click Site Flipping Want to Buy

BlackHat World

Dispute Resolution Forum Suggestions & Feedback Introductions Lounge
Back
Top