If you follow our blog, you already know that we mostly focus on how-to articles.
It’s time to switch things up a bit and share a success story with some concrete results from our own outreach.
In this link building case study, we’ll share exactly how we landed 55 guest posts in a little bit over a month.
Let’s begin!
Link building cheat sheet
How Do We Build Links?
Guest posting is our “money-making” strategy to grow both our referring domain and backlink profiles.
It also brings in a nice extra bit of referral traffic and generally improve our online presence.
While we run various other link building campaigns in the background including link insertions, the skyscraper technique, and listicle strategies, guest posting remains our primary focus.
To efficiently scale our guest post outreach, we use our own tool, Respona.
For the purpose of this case study, we began by identifying 1,000 websites actively accepting guest posts, primarily within the SEO, digital marketing, and content marketing niches.
All done with Respona’s dedicated guest posting campaign template, which significantly streamlines the process.
Here’s how it works:
Respona automates the creation of search strings and applies search engine operators, such as “intitle:write for us,” to our target keywords, saving us countless hours of manual searching.
It also comes with SEO filters like search traffic and domain authority that help find ONLY relevant websites that make sense for us to collaborate with,
Next, the tool provides AI-generated keyword suggestions, helping us discover relevant opportunities we might otherwise miss.
It also runs several searches at the same time and automatically adds relevant opportunities.
Respona’s email sequence builder comes with AI variables (not just your standard “first_name”) that help create unique, high quality link building pitches at scale.
In addition to guest posting sites, Respona identifies the most relevant contacts at each website, focusing on individuals responsible for quality content, SEO, partnerships, or the website owner.
We configure it to locate two contacts per opportunity, across all seniority levels.
The next option is to skip catch-all domains, and enable generic emails like “[email protected]” to catch sites where specific contact emails are not found.
We also use the built in contact verifier to verify the found emails.
Our initial outreach email template was straightforward and designed to provide value by offering keyword research:
Subject: your keyword gap results
Hi there,
Would it be ok to send over a few topic ideas for your blog?
I’d love to do keyword research and find what terms your competitors are ranking for, but (website) isn’t.
No strings attached if you didn’t like the topics.P.S.
Here’s an example of a piece I’ve written recently: respona.com/blog/guest-blogging/
Beyond securing links within the author bio section of our guest posts, we strategically use them to facilitate ABC link exchanges.
This allows us to avoid direct reciprocal link exchanges by offering our link partners links from our guest posts in exchange for links from their own sites.
We also get 3-7 links per guest post this way as opposed to just one.
Now, there are two ways to get guest post placements, so let’s get into the nitty-gritty of both.
These strategies are perfectly usable manually, but Respona can speed up the process exponentially (as explained above).
Guest Posting Strategy 1 – “Write for Us” Pages
Our first guest posting strategy centers around the readily available “Write for Us” pages.
It’s a straightforward approach that leverages a simple Google search engines operator: intitle:”write for us”.
This operator instructs the search engine to exclusively display pages with “Write for Us” in their title.
By adding your niche keyword to this search operator, you can quickly uncover relevant websites actively seeking guest contributors.
For instance, if your niche is SEO, a search query like intitle:”write for us” + SEO will generate a list of websites in the SEO niche with dedicated “Write for Us” pages.
To expand your search and discover even more opportunities, experiment with variations of the search string.
Try using operators like intitle:become a contributor, intitle:become a guest author, or intitle:”guest blogger guidelines”.
These pages typically provide an email address or a contact form, making it easy to initiate contact and pitch your ideas. Bookmark or add promising search results to a Google Sheet for streamlined outreach (if you’re not using Respona).
Author’s Note: Steer clear of pages advertising paid “guest posting services.” All guest post collaborations should be organic and free of charge. We also recommend conducting your own outreach instead of relying on third-party services.
Guest Posting Strategy 2 – the Content Gap Pitch
Our second SEO strategy focuses on identifying and filling content gaps.
This works even for websites that don’t openly accept guest posts and don’t have a “write for us” page.
This is all about providing value and not a plain guest post pitch that content managers see a dozen times a day. The value lies in doing real keyword research and helping the prospect “plug” that content gap – hence the name.
We try this on every link partner after wrapping up a successful link collaboration after establishing a link collaboration with a partner. The existing relationship helps land that guest post – and in combination with the value add, you’d be surprised just how effective it is.
You’ll need a keyword monitoring tool like Semrush or Ahrefs for this.
Here’s the step-by-step process:
- Input your prospect’s website into the Keyword Gap tool of Semrush or Ahrefs.
- Navigate to the “Missing” tab to discover keywords that your prospect’s competitors are ranking for, but your prospect is not.
- Select a few relevant keywords and develop article ideas that would address these content gaps.
- Compose a personalized pitch that includes a screenshot of the missing keywords as proof of your research.
Here’s an example of an email template that has worked super well for us:
Subject: your keyword gap results
Thank you, {first_name}!
Would love to collaborate more in the future!
By the way, I was playing around in Semrush and noticed that your competitors [list 2 competitors] are ranking for [keyword] but you aren’t.
I actually happen to have a writer in house who is a [keyword] nerd and would love to write a high-quality piece of content covering that topic for you.
Let me know if you’re interested?
[Sign-off]
Why This Strategy Works:
- You’re providing valuable insights and solutions, rather than a generic pitch.
- You’re offering to create content that directly addresses your prospect’s needs and improves their SEO.
- This approach often bypasses the long wait times associated with websites that have public “write for us” pages.
- It allows us to turn link collaborations into guest posting opportunities, and build long-term partnerships..
The content gap strategy is our preferred approach due to its efficiency.
It eliminates the need for separate guest posting outreach when we’re already running other campaigns, allowing us to maximize the value of existing partnerships.
Campaign Results
Our campaign involved reaching out to precisely 1,000 guest posting websites, distributed across four separate campaigns.
This effort yielded 205 replies, translating to a reply rate of just over 20%. This is a strong return for cold outreach emails focused on link building.
Our average open rate across the four campaigns was 60.5%. While a 20%+ reply rate is considered very high for cold outreach, a 60% open rate is fairly average.
However, not all replies were positive. There were three types of responses:
- Positive: “Yes, you can write for free” (55/205)
- Paid: “Yes, but you have to pay” (137/205)
- Negative (13/205)
Surprisingly, despite targeting websites with “Write for Us” pages, the most frequent response was a request for payment. Nearly three times as many websites required an “editorial fee” compared to those willing to publish our guest posts for free.
This raises the question: should you pay for guest posts? The answer depends on your objectives.
However, keep in mind that Google explicitly discourages link building and guest blogging in exchange for monetary compensation.
If you’re going to be paying for links, they must be marked as sponsored, otherwise you’re risking a penalty.
Additionally, sites that request money for links or guest posts are usually link farms and not worth the money.
Despite the prevalence of paid opportunities, we successfully secured 55 free guest post placements from our 1,000 outreach emails.
This represents a 5.5% success rate with relatively low-effort outreach emails. And every guest post netted us 3-7 quality links from other authoritative websites, not just one.
This leads to the question of whether investing time in outreach to websites with “Write for Us” pages is worthwhile.
Our assessment is a nuanced “yes, but it shouldn’t be your sole source of links”.
Use a combination of link building strategies at scale – only then will you see a similar level of success.
Before we wrap things up, we also recommend that you check out link building case studies by our clients as well.
Link building cheat sheet
Now Over to You
Guest posting is the most effective link building strategy, but it should be supported by link insertions, the skyscraper technique, and listicle placements to be the most effective.
Need help getting links to your own site?
Don’t hesitate to start your 14-day free trial with Respona to see it in action.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Is guest posting still effective for link building?
Yes, guest posting remains highly effective. It allows you to build high quality backlinks, establish authority in your niche, and drive targeted traffic to your website.
However, it’s crucial to focus on providing valuable content and targeting reputable websites.
How do you find legitimate guest posting opportunities?
You can find legitimate opportunities by using Google search operators like “intitle:write for us” and exploring websites in your niche.
You can also use SEO tools to identify content gaps and pitch relevant topics to websites that don’t explicitly advertise guest posting. Tools like Respona can automate much of this process.
We also recommend supplementing your link building effort with link insertions on a relevant anchor text, the skyscraper technique, broken link building, listicle placements and other link building campaign types.
Should I pay for guest post placements?
Generally, no.
Paying for guest posts violates Google’s guidelines and can result in penalties. Focus on building genuine relationships and providing valuable content to earn free placements on reputable websites.
How can I improve my guest post outreach success rate?
Personalization is key. Use AI variables to create unique pitches, research your prospects, and offer valuable content ideas.
Providing a screenshot of keyword gap data is a great way to show value.
Also, follow up politely if you don’t receive a response.
How many links should I expect from a single guest post?
While the author bio typically provides one link, you can strategically use guest posts to facilitate ABC link exchanges, netting 3-7 links per guest post.
This approach avoids direct reciprocal linking and enhances the naturalness of your backlink profile.
