When it comes to SEO, most people automatically think of writing blog posts and landing pages that target specific keywords. However, many people need to realize that a lot goes on behind the scenes to boost domain authority and ensure those posts end up at the top of the SERPs.
One critical behind-the-scenes element of SEO is link building. Since link building is tedious, many marketers and website owners outsource it to a team of link building specialists.
This article will discuss everything you need to know about choosing the best link building services. We will start by discussing why you’d invest in link building and what to look for in a link building service. We’ll also compare some of the top link building vendors. To wrap things up, we will review some red flags to look for when choosing professional link building services.
Why invest in link building?
Link building is an essential part of SEO. It involves securing backlinks to specific pages on your website on other high-quality websites that discuss relevant topics.
This technique provides vital context to search engines and helps them understand your content. For example, lawyers who offer divorce mediation services should get links from articles about divorce, legal services, or splitting assets.
Building links on your own is possible. However, the process is time-consuming and requires extensive outreach, management, and monitoring. Hiring out for these efforts is much more efficient and often more effective.
A competent link building agency should have the workforce to carry out a backlink strategy. They should also have the media connections and content creation team to handle this process. Leveraging a dedicated team is more efficient than handling it in-house.
What to look for in a link building service
Consider the company’s experiences, expertise, past results, and more when investing in a link-building service. Let’s take a closer look.
Services offered
There are several ways to approach the link-building process. It is essential to hire a specialist whose methodologies align with your brand.
Some types of link building services include:
- Guest blogging: This includes publishing free guest posts on sites and including links to your site.
- Digital PR: This includes press mentions that link to your site.
- Unlinked mentions: Find places on the internet that mention your brand, but the content needs to link to your site.
- Listicles and round-ups: Secure spots on sites that rate the best businesses for different offers or services.
If you’re looking to boost your search rankings, any organic link building tactics will do. If you want to build thought leadership and brand recognition, link building efforts that lean toward PR are more appropriate. Ensure they only use white hat link building.
Some backlink services are part of a more comprehensive offer from digital marketing agencies. If you need more marketing support, opting for a full-service marketing agency makes the most sense.
Experience with relevant clients
One of the most important things to look for when choosing a link-building company is relevant experience. A large part of link building provides context to search engines, meaning the SEO company you hire needs the knowledge to connect those dots.
It doesn’t mean the provider needs to work with your competitors. However, relevant industry knowledge is necessary.
Results from past clients
It’s essential to ensure they’ve provided measurable results for these clients. You want to know that the money you invest is worth it.
A significant perk of SEO service, including link building, is that results speak for themselves. Fortunately, tangible data should showcase past clients’ return on investment. With access to this data, you can also create some expectations about the results you can achieve.
Some data points to look for include:
- Increase in traffic for client sites
- Increase in DR/DA for client sites
- Competitiveness or keywords ranked
- Number of clients they worked with in the past
Any professional SEO service should have most of this data readily available.
Quality control
Not all backlinks are created equal. Low-quality backlinks can hurt your domain and search engine rankings. Look for a vendor that prioritizes quality over quantity in their link-building efforts.
To assess the quality control aspect of a provider, ask if there is a minimum domain authority (DA)/domain rating (DR) that they aim for. There is no specific industry standard to strive for, but Moz’s DA and Ahref’s DR ratings operate with a 100-point scale where higher is better.
With that in mind, it’s a good sign if a link building service aims to secure links from sites with a DA/DR of around 50 or higher.
Another critical question is about the quality control layers for the content production process. Many link-building services submit free guest posts to publishers with their clients’ links sprinkled throughout.
If this is the case, you need to ensure that any content your brand is attached to is also high-quality.
According to Forbes, 59% of B2C marketers consider high-quality content the most effective SEO strategy. Great content has to engage your target audience and offer solutions and answers to what readers are looking for.
Pricing that fits your budget
Budget is another crucial factor to consider when comparing link building services. Luckily, some options fit any budget, ranging from a couple hundred dollars to over $10,000 per month.
Although finding a link-building service that is friendly to your budget is essential, that doesn’t necessarily mean that “budget-friendly” is the way to go. You get what you pay for, so pinching pennies and opting for the cheapest vendor is not the way to go.
Partnerships with media publishers
Organic link placement is vital for link building, and op-eds and similar features are a great way to secure those links. That’s why choosing a link building service with partnerships with media publishers for blogs, magazines, newspapers, and similar sites is essential.
In addition to traditional media connections, look for link building providers who have connections with non-traditional media publishers.
For example, podcasters and live streamers in your industry may be open to guest features on their shows. These features a great way to secure backlinks. The podcast includes your information in the show notes and on any landing page hosting the show.
7 best SEO link building services
Let’s examine some of the best link building services on the market.
1. uSERP
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uSERP is an SEO agency offering link building services, supported by high-quality content production and tried-and-true SEO methodologies. This service guarantees backlinks in high-quality articles on domains with a DR of 60 to 90 (or higher).
This link building service has supported hundreds of businesses in their SEO efforts across many industries. One of uSERP’s most notable clients is monday.com. With the help of uSERP’s link building services, monday.com increased its traffic by nearly 78%.
Link building plans from uSERP start at $10,000 monthly for 13 articles. SEO strategy, consulting, and content creation services are also available.
2. editorial.link
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editorial.link is another excellent link building service for SaaS businesses. It specializes in PR-focused link building. Thanks to a collection of well-established press contacts, editorial.link ensures quick turnaround times with link placements to help clients boost their SEO faster.
This service provides high-quality links on domains with an average DR of 50 to 90.
editorial.link’s plans start at $1750 monthly for five backlinks. This company also has a money-back policy if you’re not 100% satisfied with the backlinks it secures.
3. Siege Media
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Siege Media is an organic growth agency offering link building services for SaaS, FinTech, and e-commerce businesses. This service focuses on quality while achieving your desired quantity of backlink placements.
In addition to link building, Siege Media offers content strategy, content creation, web design, and more.
You can purchase backlinks from Siege Media for as little as $250 per link, but the company does not publish full monthly plan details on its website.
4. The HOTH
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The HOTH is a full-service SEO company that offers link building, strategy, and content creation. This service provider prioritizes quality in its link building efforts by assessing a domain’s Moz DA, Ahref DR, and monthly traffic. Plus, they guarantee link placements within a month.
What’s unique about The HOTH is that they also offer link building services geared toward local SEO. This is an excellent option for B2C businesses that want to establish a foothold in their local market.
Backlinks from authoritative websites start at around $400. However, users can opt for link placement in short articles on lower-quality domains for a lower fee.
5. Page One Power
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Page One Power is a link building agency that has been around for over 13 years. They offer link building, digital PR, and SEO content services. This agency specializes in SEO for SaaS companies. However, they also serve clients in health, B2C, and more.
Link building services from Page One Power start at $600 per link for unlinked mention outreach and guest posting services.
6. FATJOE
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FATJOE is a full-service SEO agency that offers link building and content creation. It also provides services for businesses to grow their sites and white-label services for companies to sell under its branding.
What is interesting about this link building service is that users can purchase lower-quality backlinks for a small monthly fee. This is not ideal for companies whose SEO efforts are in growth mode, but it’s suitable for those just starting out.
7. Stellar SEO
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Stellar SEO is an SEO link building services that offers blogger outreach, guest posts, and niche edit services. This agency specializes in the financial, legal, real estate, and restoration industries.
Like FATJOE, Stellar SEO offers white-label link building services that other businesses can package as their own. Like FATJOE, Stellar SEO charges based on the quality of links.
Stellar SEO’s link building plans start at $2500 per month.
Link building approaches to avoid
Now that you know the top link building services to consider, discussing some harmful approaches to link building is essential. A vendor might have to consider other approaches if they use these methods.
Here’s what to look out for:
- Private blog networks (PBNs): Some SEO specialists create a contained ecosystem for link building by leveraging a network of their own domains. Typically, these websites only exist to serve their link-building efforts. This technique creates “unnatural inbound links,” which Google frowns upon.
- Paid links and guest posts: Google has a long-standing policy about paying for links, so if your vendor pays the publisher to feature your link, that could hurt your site. (Note: You can pay a vendor to place the links if they use organic placement methods.)
- Links from bad domains: Backlinks from low-quality domains will not help your SEO efforts. They can lead to de-indexing and damage your domain authority.
- Irrelevant links: Some link building services insert links in irrelevant articles with irrelevant anchor text. Since link building is supposed to create a helpful context for search engines, this approach is not fruitful.
- Press releases: A few years back, Google shared in a webmaster hangout that addressing links in press releases is essential. These links do not hurt your link-building efforts but do not help them, so paying for them is not worth it.
As you vet prospective link building services, feel free to ask them directly about their approaches to ensure that they aren’t using methods that could hurt your site. As the client, it is your right to know.
Final thoughts
There is a lot to consider when choosing a link building service provider. However, there are plenty of excellent backlink services to choose from, so you’ll find one that meets your needs.
If you’re looking for a reliable link building service that guarantees high-quality backlinks, uSERP is an excellent option. Book a call to discuss your SEO goals so we can determine how best to help you!
