- Nov 28, 2017
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Dear BHW stars!
If I had to pick the most scalable free link-building technique, broken link building would top the list. It's a fantastic strategy, especially for bloggers and newbies looking to boost their site's SEO.Here are these:
1. Target Resource Pages in Your Niche
Find resource pages related to your field.
- Search for resource pages: Use search queries like "your keyword + resources" or "your keyword + links" to locate them.
- Identify broken links: Install the free Chrome extension Check My Links. When you visit a page, click the extension icon to highlight working links in green and broken ones in red.
- Offer your content: If you have relevant content, reach out to the site owner and suggest it as a replacement for the broken link.
Take advantage of your competitors' dead links.
- Examine competitors' sites: Use tools like Ahrefs to explore your competitors' backlink profiles and identify broken links pointing to their sites.
- Develop similar content: Create content that matches or improves upon the dead resource.
- Reach out: Contact the websites linking to your competitors' broken pages and propose your content as an alternative.
Recover broken links that once directed users to your site.
- Find lost backlinks: Use tools like Semrush's Backlink Audit to identify broken links that were intended for your site.
- Fix the issue: Set up 301 redirects to relevant pages or recreate the missing content.
- Inform webmasters: Let them know you've fixed the issue and thank them for linking to your site.
Make use of expired domains with existing backlinks.
- Discover expired domains: Use services like ExpiredDomains.net to find domains in your niche that have expired.
- Evaluate backlink quality: Ensure the domain has valuable backlinks using SEO tools.
- Recreate content: Restore the original content or create improved versions on your site.
- Reach out: Contact sites linking to the expired domain and suggest they update their links to your new content.
Use Wikipedia's dead links to build credibility.
- Find dead links: Browse Wikipedia articles related to your niche and look for dead link citations.
- Create valuable content: Develop content that fits the context of the dead link.
- Edit the article: Replace the dead link with your resource, following Wikipedia's guidelines.
Find outdated content through the Wayback Machine.
- Identify outdated pages: Use Archive.org to find content that has been removed but had valuable backlinks.
- Recreate the content: Develop similar or improved content on your site.
- Reach out: Contact sites still linking to the outdated content and suggest your new resource.
Don't ignore broken links on your own site.
- Audit your site: Use tools like Screaming Frog to find broken internal links.
- Repair or redirect: Update the links or set up 301 redirects to relevant content.
- Improve user experience: Regular maintenance ensures visitors and search engines have a smooth experience on your site.
Template 1: Suggesting a Replacement for a Broken Link
Subject: Found a broken link on [Their Website]
Hi [Name],
I was browsing your [Page Name] and noticed that one of your links to [Broken Link URL] isn't working. I recently published a similar resource that might serve as a good replacement: [Your URL]. It could be valuable for your readers.
Best regards,
[Your Name]
Template 2: Offering Content to Replace a Competitor's Broken Link
Subject: Update to your [Article Name]
Hi [Name],
I came across your article on [Topic] and saw that you linked to [Broken Link URL], which seems to be no longer active. I have a comprehensive guide on [Topic] here: [Your URL]. It might be a helpful replacement for your readers.
Cheers,
[Your Name]
Apply these strategies and you can enrich your backlink profile. Thus, improve your search engine rankings. Remember, the key is to provide genuine value to the sites you reach out to.
Happy link building!
