Wednesday, 30 June 2021

"“ Dana DiTomaso is the founder and president of Kick Point, a Canadian-based digital marketing..."

““

Dana DiTomaso is the founder and president of Kick Point, a Canadian-based digital marketing agency. She is well known for her ingenious and innovative presentations on tracking and analytics, as well as other growth marketing strategies. She’s presented at SMX, Local Search Summit, and Engage, and we’re thrilled to welcome her back to this year’s MozCon Virtual where she’ll discuss modern web development that puts SEO first. Check out what she has to share ahead of this year’s show!

Secure your seat


Question: 2020 was quite the year, what were you up to this past year? Any surprises or favorite projects you worked on?

Dana: Like many people I actually ended up moving! I now live on Vancouver Island and I can practically see the USA from my house — not that I’ve been able to visit. I also completed my first course, hopefully of many, for LinkedIn Learning on the topic of technical SEO. My next course is already in progress and will be covering how to transition from Google Analytics Universal to GA4, and that should be out in the fall.

At Kick Point, we grew over the past year and we’re now a team of 12! Like a lot of agencies, we did see some good come out of an otherwise pretty awful time for many, we’re very fortunate.

Q: What is the biggest shift you’ve seen in the SEO industry over the past year? How does that impact your work at Kick Point, if at all?

D: The biggest change this year was the rollout of Core Web Vitals, which as I write this, is only just happening now. I am extremely curious to see how it impacts SEO over the remainder of 2021. I don’t want to say too much more in case it ages badly!

Q: Last year, you discussed how to use a discovery process to turn red flags to green lights. Will we see any of the same themes come through in your presentation this year? How so?

D: Absolutely! This year is really a companion piece to last year. Last year I covered discovery for marketing projects, and this year I’m covering discovery for website projects. These discovery processes have made such incredible changes at Kick Point in terms of how we work with new clients — it’s really been amazing. I hope that people who listen to my talk are able to take away some of the lessons that we’ve learned and apply them to their own processes.

Q: In your MozCon talk, you’ll be discussing how to build a website with a search-first mindset. What inspired you to discuss this topic at MozCon 2021?

D: I think it’s a topic that isn’t covered enough. We unfortunately often still see a real divide between the developer and SEO worlds and I’m hoping that we can work towards bridging that. Particularly with the advent of Core Web Vitals, these two teams need to work together more than ever before.

Additionally, this talk is based on a lot of our own learnings in terms of better ways to run website projects. Since we have adopted this process, website projects are just more fun — less stress, on time, on budget, all those things that we all want in a website project but seem impossible to achieve. I’m not saying this will magically fix everything but it’ll definitely put you on a happier path.

Q: What are some of the challenges SEOs face in the web development process?

D: Being taken seriously! I’ve been working in this field for 21 years now and I can’t even tell you the number of times that I’ve been on a call with a developer or development team discussing SEO recommendations and just being completely dismissed — that these recommendations aren’t necessary, that we’re wrong, or that the developer knows better. And it’s an incredibly frustrating place to be in. I’m sure other SEOs reading this have had similar experiences.

Q: Why is it important for SEO to be at the forefront when it comes to website development? How has the relationship changed over the years?

D: Because it’s so much easier and cheaper to get SEO recommendations added in at the beginning instead of trying to shove things in later after the site is done. I think that developers are more aware of SEO now but there is still a lot of mistrust. I think it’s important to set the tone that you aren’t there to throw the developer under the bus — they aren’t an SEO expert, and shouldn’t be expected to learn all this specific SEO stuff. Showing that you’re there to help right from the start can really help that relationship thrive.

Q: What’s your #1 tip for ensuring that SEO gets a seat at the table in a website rebrand?

D: You need to start with education. Either the leadership team that you’re working with doesn’t understand the power of SEO or they may have a really outdated understanding of what SEO is and what it can do. Tom Critchlow has an excellent article that he recently published on how to convince executives to care about SEO and I’d say that is required reading.

Q: What are the key takeaways you want the audience to walk away with?

D: I want people to understand that there is a space between waterfall and agile when it comes to website development processes. I hope that people will enjoy our blueprint process and it’ll help them make better website plans. Finally, I’m really excited to show off the keyword research presentation idea that I got from Rebekah Baggs and Chris Corak — it’s so good!

Q: Who in the MozCon lineup are you most excited to watch this year? Anything else you are looking forward to?

D: The talks by Dr. Pete, Areej AbuAli, and Britney Muller all look great! And of course I’ll be watching Brie Anderson’s talk since GA4 is very close to my heart. I’m also really looking forward to hopefully having an in-person MozCon next year! There is really nothing that can replace the experience of speaking to a live audience.


A big thank you to Dana for her time! To learn more about Dana’s upcoming presentation, see details on our other speakers, and to purchase your ticket, make sure you click the link below!



- http://monleyhomes.blogspot.com/2021/06/mozcon-virtual-2021-interview-series_30.html
from Tumblr https://monleyhomes.tumblr.com/post/655465034258022400

- http://monleyhomes.blogspot.com/2021/06/dana-ditomaso-is-founder-and-president.html
from Tumblr https://monleyhomes.tumblr.com/post/655476356222763008

"Dana DiTomaso is the founder and president of Kick Point, a Canadian-based digital marketing agency...."

Dana DiTomaso is the founder and president of Kick Point, a Canadian-based digital marketing agency. She is well known for her ingenious and innovative presentations on tracking and analytics, as well as other growth marketing strategies. She’s presented at SMX, Local Search Summit, and Engage, and we’re thrilled to welcome her back to this year’s MozCon Virtual where she’ll discuss modern web development that puts SEO first. Check out what she has to share ahead of this year’s show!

Secure your seat


Question: 2020 was quite the year, what were you up to this past year? Any surprises or favorite projects you worked on?

Dana: Like many people I actually ended up moving! I now live on Vancouver Island and I can practically see the USA from my house — not that I’ve been able to visit. I also completed my first course, hopefully of many, for LinkedIn Learning on the topic of technical SEO. My next course is already in progress and will be covering how to transition from Google Analytics Universal to GA4, and that should be out in the fall.

At Kick Point, we grew over the past year and we’re now a team of 12! Like a lot of agencies, we did see some good come out of an otherwise pretty awful time for many, we’re very fortunate.

Q: What is the biggest shift you’ve seen in the SEO industry over the past year? How does that impact your work at Kick Point, if at all?

D: The biggest change this year was the rollout of Core Web Vitals, which as I write this, is only just happening now. I am extremely curious to see how it impacts SEO over the remainder of 2021. I don’t want to say too much more in case it ages badly!

Q: Last year, you discussed how to use a discovery process to turn red flags to green lights. Will we see any of the same themes come through in your presentation this year? How so?

D: Absolutely! This year is really a companion piece to last year. Last year I covered discovery for marketing projects, and this year I’m covering discovery for website projects. These discovery processes have made such incredible changes at Kick Point in terms of how we work with new clients — it’s really been amazing. I hope that people who listen to my talk are able to take away some of the lessons that we’ve learned and apply them to their own processes.

Q: In your MozCon talk, you’ll be discussing how to build a website with a search-first mindset. What inspired you to discuss this topic at MozCon 2021?

D: I think it’s a topic that isn’t covered enough. We unfortunately often still see a real divide between the developer and SEO worlds and I’m hoping that we can work towards bridging that. Particularly with the advent of Core Web Vitals, these two teams need to work together more than ever before.

Additionally, this talk is based on a lot of our own learnings in terms of better ways to run website projects. Since we have adopted this process, website projects are just more fun — less stress, on time, on budget, all those things that we all want in a website project but seem impossible to achieve. I’m not saying this will magically fix everything but it’ll definitely put you on a happier path.

Q: What are some of the challenges SEOs face in the web development process?

D: Being taken seriously! I’ve been working in this field for 21 years now and I can’t even tell you the number of times that I’ve been on a call with a developer or development team discussing SEO recommendations and just being completely dismissed — that these recommendations aren’t necessary, that we’re wrong, or that the developer knows better. And it’s an incredibly frustrating place to be in. I’m sure other SEOs reading this have had similar experiences.

Q: Why is it important for SEO to be at the forefront when it comes to website development? How has the relationship changed over the years?

D: Because it’s so much easier and cheaper to get SEO recommendations added in at the beginning instead of trying to shove things in later after the site is done. I think that developers are more aware of SEO now but there is still a lot of mistrust. I think it’s important to set the tone that you aren’t there to throw the developer under the bus — they aren’t an SEO expert, and shouldn’t be expected to learn all this specific SEO stuff. Showing that you’re there to help right from the start can really help that relationship thrive.

Q: What’s your #1 tip for ensuring that SEO gets a seat at the table in a website rebrand?

D: You need to start with education. Either the leadership team that you’re working with doesn’t understand the power of SEO or they may have a really outdated understanding of what SEO is and what it can do. Tom Critchlow has an excellent article that he recently published on how to convince executives to care about SEO and I’d say that is required reading.

Q: What are the key takeaways you want the audience to walk away with?

D: I want people to understand that there is a space between waterfall and agile when it comes to website development processes. I hope that people will enjoy our blueprint process and it’ll help them make better website plans. Finally, I’m really excited to show off the keyword research presentation idea that I got from Rebekah Baggs and Chris Corak — it’s so good!

Q: Who in the MozCon lineup are you most excited to watch this year? Anything else you are looking forward to?

D: The talks by Dr. Pete, Areej AbuAli, and Britney Muller all look great! And of course I’ll be watching Brie Anderson’s talk since GA4 is very close to my heart. I’m also really looking forward to hopefully having an in-person MozCon next year! There is really nothing that can replace the experience of speaking to a live audience.


A big thank you to Dana for her time! To learn more about Dana’s upcoming presentation, see details on our other speakers, and to purchase your ticket, make sure you click the link below!



- http://monleyhomes.blogspot.com/2021/06/mozcon-virtual-2021-interview-series_30.html
from Tumblr https://monleyhomes.tumblr.com/post/655465034258022400

MozCon Virtual 2021 Interview Series: Dana DiTomaso

Dana DiTomaso is the founder and president of Kick Point, a Canadian-based digital marketing agency. She is well known for her ingenious and innovative presentations on tracking and analytics, as well as other growth marketing strategies. She's presented at SMX, Local Search Summit, and Engage, and we're thrilled to welcome her back to this year’s MozCon Virtual where she’ll discuss modern web development that puts SEO first. Check out what she has to share ahead of this year’s show!

Secure your seat


Question: 2020 was quite the year, what were you up to this past year? Any surprises or favorite projects you worked on?

Dana: Like many people I actually ended up moving! I now live on Vancouver Island and I can practically see the USA from my house — not that I’ve been able to visit. I also completed my first course, hopefully of many, for LinkedIn Learning on the topic of technical SEO. My next course is already in progress and will be covering how to transition from Google Analytics Universal to GA4, and that should be out in the fall.

At Kick Point, we grew over the past year and we're now a team of 12! Like a lot of agencies, we did see some good come out of an otherwise pretty awful time for many, we’re very fortunate.

Q: What is the biggest shift you’ve seen in the SEO industry over the past year? How does that impact your work at Kick Point, if at all?

D: The biggest change this year was the rollout of Core Web Vitals, which as I write this, is only just happening now. I am extremely curious to see how it impacts SEO over the remainder of 2021. I don’t want to say too much more in case it ages badly!

Q: Last year, you discussed how to use a discovery process to turn red flags to green lights. Will we see any of the same themes come through in your presentation this year? How so?

D: Absolutely! This year is really a companion piece to last year. Last year I covered discovery for marketing projects, and this year I'm covering discovery for website projects. These discovery processes have made such incredible changes at Kick Point in terms of how we work with new clients — it's really been amazing. I hope that people who listen to my talk are able to take away some of the lessons that we've learned and apply them to their own processes.

Q: In your MozCon talk, you’ll be discussing how to build a website with a search-first mindset. What inspired you to discuss this topic at MozCon 2021?

D: I think it's a topic that isn't covered enough. We unfortunately often still see a real divide between the developer and SEO worlds and I'm hoping that we can work towards bridging that. Particularly with the advent of Core Web Vitals, these two teams need to work together more than ever before.

Additionally, this talk is based on a lot of our own learnings in terms of better ways to run website projects. Since we have adopted this process, website projects are just more fun — less stress, on time, on budget, all those things that we all want in a website project but seem impossible to achieve. I’m not saying this will magically fix everything but it’ll definitely put you on a happier path.

Q: What are some of the challenges SEOs face in the web development process?

D: Being taken seriously! I've been working in this field for 21 years now and I can't even tell you the number of times that I've been on a call with a developer or development team discussing SEO recommendations and just being completely dismissed — that these recommendations aren’t necessary, that we're wrong, or that the developer knows better. And it's an incredibly frustrating place to be in. I’m sure other SEOs reading this have had similar experiences.

Q: Why is it important for SEO to be at the forefront when it comes to website development? How has the relationship changed over the years?

D: Because it's so much easier and cheaper to get SEO recommendations added in at the beginning instead of trying to shove things in later after the site is done. I think that developers are more aware of SEO now but there is still a lot of mistrust. I think it’s important to set the tone that you aren’t there to throw the developer under the bus — they aren’t an SEO expert, and shouldn’t be expected to learn all this specific SEO stuff. Showing that you’re there to help right from the start can really help that relationship thrive.

Q: What’s your #1 tip for ensuring that SEO gets a seat at the table in a website rebrand?

D: You need to start with education. Either the leadership team that you're working with doesn't understand the power of SEO or they may have a really outdated understanding of what SEO is and what it can do. Tom Critchlow has an excellent article that he recently published on how to convince executives to care about SEO and I’d say that is required reading.

Q: What are the key takeaways you want the audience to walk away with?

D: I want people to understand that there is a space between waterfall and agile when it comes to website development processes. I hope that people will enjoy our blueprint process and it’ll help them make better website plans. Finally, I’m really excited to show off the keyword research presentation idea that I got from Rebekah Baggs and Chris Corak — it’s so good!

Q: Who in the MozCon lineup are you most excited to watch this year? Anything else you are looking forward to?

D: The talks by Dr. Pete, Areej AbuAli, and Britney Muller all look great! And of course I’ll be watching Brie Anderson’s talk since GA4 is very close to my heart. I’m also really looking forward to hopefully having an in-person MozCon next year! There is really nothing that can replace the experience of speaking to a live audience.


A big thank you to Dana for her time! To learn more about Dana’s upcoming presentation, see details on our other speakers, and to purchase your ticket, make sure you click the link below!

Tuesday, 29 June 2021

"“““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““ Ahead of..."

““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““

Ahead of her MozCon Virtual 2021 presentation, Amanda Milligan walks through three components that can make your content newsworthy enough to attract links: data, emotion, and impact.

Don’t forget to grab your ticket to see Amanda’s full presentation — A Live Guide to Finding & Filling the Gaps in Your Link Strategy — along with our other incredible speakers!

Secure Your Seat at MozCon Virtual

Photo of the whiteboard with handwritten notes on making newsworth content. Click on the whiteboard image above to open a larger version in a new tab!

Video Transcription

Hi, everyone. I am Amanda Milligan, the Growth Director at Fractl, and today I want to talk to you about how to make newsworthy content. My career has been in marketing and communications, but my degree was in journalism. So this is a topic that is near and dear to my heart. 

So my MozCon presentation is actually on how to perform a link gap analysis, which basically means how to find out who your competitors are getting links from and then how to brainstorm how you can get similar links. Well, when it comes to actually building those links, newsworthy content is the best way to do that. I’m going to talk to you about some of the elements that are really important in creating that type of content. 

Data

So first, data. Data is really crucial to this process because most of us do not have breaking news operations or full news rooms for our brand. We are not actual reporters.

This is not our full-time job. So we can’t be just reporting on the newest thing that’s happening. We almost have to create our own news by digging in and investigating topics that are interesting to us. 

Internal data

So original data is a great way to do that. You can start with seeing if you actually have any internal data at your company that would be of interest to relevant publications. A lot of companies overlook this aspect.

Obviously, you have to have permission to do so. But you might have information that would be really interesting. Or maybe you have an email list or an audience that’s pretty active that you can survey or poll and find out some information that would be appealing to people. So that’s a good place to start. 

Public data

Otherwise, there’s public data available. The government alone has tons and tons of publicly available datasets that you can use and even combine different datasets to see some really interesting things.

An example of a combination of that is for our client Porch.com. We looked at information about how much different household chores, no, not chores, but home improvement projects cost, and then we surveyed people to ask how often they did those home improvement projects. We were able to see the cost of home improvement over many years of time. So that’s an example of using two different datasets combining for new insights.

Surveys

Thirdly, surveys and other types of data collection are great if you don’t have the answer and data yet. Maybe you can run a survey. Maybe you can scrape social media. Maybe there is another way. We’ve done germ swabbing. Anything you can do to collect data. Basically a good way to think about it is ask yourself a question that’s interesting to you and would be interesting to your audience or think about what’s interesting to your audience.

If there is no answer, ask yourself how you can find it. Then this piece will make the rest of the process exponentially easier, because when you go to pitch a reporter, you’re going to say, “I have exclusive research, new data that no one else has really talked about before.” That is hugely appealing to the media. 

Emotion

The second component here is emotion. Is what you’re working on going to make somebody feel something? Now I actually have a sample headline down here from TechRepublic. This is actual coverage from a piece that we pitched.

It says: “Your Zoom background may not make you look as professional as you think.” Now you read that, and you’re like, “Wait. What?” We’re all on Zoom. That’s not good. So that has an element of surprise to it, right? The reason why I say to think about this, it comes sometimes inherently, when you’re coming up with ideas, we all tend to think of things that are going to have some kind of an emotional resonance.

But if you think about this stuff from the beginning and you imagine maybe what a headline might look like or what’s going to be the interesting takeaway from something, you can really focus in on the interesting parts of a project. You can also see here – so this headline is from a survey that we did I believe — more original data. So they’re able to say some new claim that they weren’t able to say before.

So emotion. If you are not really sure which direction to go in, try surprise, focus on surprise, because a lot of journalists like to focus on things that are new and unexpected. Also we did a study many years ago, I think 2013, where we looked at all the viral images of that year, and we polled people on what emotions were most present.

Surprise was the most present one. So it’s actually very prevalent in viral content. But we’re not even talking about viral content. We’re talking about anything that does well in digital PR. Surprise is a really great way to do that. So as you’re creating a piece of content or a project, ask yourself as you’re doing it, like what do you expect and did the results come back that way.

Obviously, you have to work with what the data gives you. But if you found it surprising, odds are someone else is going to find it surprising. Make sure that’s highlighted in the results. When you pitch it, make sure it’s highlighted in the body of your pitch. 

Impact

Thirdly, impact. Impact, it has some other names. Sometimes we talk about newsworthiness.

Prominence is one of them. Basically, is it actually affecting the audience? When a journalist decides what to write, they want to know: Does this impact my readers? How does this affect their daily lives? So if you look back at this headline example, TechRepublic, their audience most likely has been on a lot of Zoom calls in the last year or so.

So they know, when they saw this pitch, this is going to be interesting to a lot of people. This is more in the general audience bucket. You can do projects and I have another video about tangential content, which you can check out, that’s along these lines. But you can think, “What impacts a wide audience?” If you’re trying to get national news coverage or appeal to a pretty general audience, you have to think about what’s going to impact a lot of folks.

What do we have in common? What is something that we’re going to be able to all relate to? Or you can still apply this in a niche perspective. You don’t always have to appeal everybody. But if you’re going to do that, then you need to focus in and think, “How is this going to impact that specific person that I have in mind, that set of people?” If you’re able to do that and explain in your pitch to the journalists I think this insight is interesting because XYZ, and they see that it has an impact for their audience, they’re going to be more likely to cover it, because it’s in their interest not only to get their audience to click on these stories but to inform them about things that they might be interested about.

In this case, it’s that they might not look as professional as they thought. I put this headline here because it’s an example of all three of these things. We often like to think we have our digital PR perspective involved from the very beginning of creating content. You don’t want to have them separate. You don’t want to create something and then have somebody pitch it later and have no idea kind of where it came from or why you went that direction.

Think about: What is it that we’re trying to get out of this? What’s the question we’re trying to answer? If you have a thesis, is it correct? Are you proving it wrong? Those are going to be the interesting bits that are going to lead you to getting the coverage like this. So I went through a lot very quickly. The whole point of this is if you come up with something newsworthy, if it’s appealing to a certain group of people, if it’s original information, and it has a lot of emotional resonance, you’re going to be able to pitch that to the media and hopefully get media coverage for your brand, which not only gets you brand awareness and a very authoritative positioning, because your brand is being mentioned alongside original research that your brand did, but also incredible backlinks, which again ties into the whole backlink analysis side of things.

SEOs are really always looking for ways to get excellent links, but you have to earn those links and you have to earn it through creating newsworthy content. So thank you so much for joining me today. I really appreciate you taking the time and best of luck out there.

Video transcription by Speechpad.com

 Tweet your questions and comments about content marketing using #MozBlog!

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"For over 20 years, SEOs and content marketers have built links across the web to get their content..."

“““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““““

For over 20 years, SEOs and content marketers have built links across the web to get their content in front of their target audience.

As Google grows smarter, so do these link-building SEOs – gone are the days of spammy link schemes and black hat SEO. Enter modern link builders who are focused on placing high quality, relevant links on sites guaranteed to drive the most important metrics: conversions and revenue.

But how far have we really come, and are there any lessons we can take from the past to inform where we go from here? We asked eight link building experts their thoughts on this very question, as well as what our readers can do to stay ahead of the link building curve!

For more link building tips, be sure to check out our recent update to The Beginner’s Guide to Link Building:

Read the Guide!

How important are links, really?

Historically, links have been a sure-fire way to build authority and visibility for your business. However, as Google begins to focus on other tactics such as user experience, will that change how links factor into search visibility?

Russ Jones, Search Consultant at Moz, says that the value of a well-placed link isn’t going anywhere: “Google will find more and more ways to extract value from the link graph and click stream data. The link remains king.”

Britney Muller adds that “If Google disappeared tomorrow, would you still get qualified traffic to your website (via your link profile)? That’s exactly how I believe we should be thinking about link building today.”

Backlinko founder, Brian Dean, has a different perspective:

“I think links will be less important as time goes on,” he says, but agrees that they’ll always be a major part of the algorithm. “Links are actually a really good signal! Especially today with Google more focused on E-A-T, links are a great way to size up whether a site is credible or not. Without links, they’d have no real way of knowing if the content on a page is legit.”

Has the definition of a “high quality link” changed?

The short answer is yes, and (surprise!) it depends on your goals.

In the early days, SEOs tested Google with sketchy link schemes. These low quality links offered a quick fix of link juice, and a boost in rankings. Today, link builders have ditched the black hat tactics in favor of a more relevant and consumer-focused approach, and quality over quantity.

Carrie Rose, CEO at Rise at Seven, has this to say: “The definition of a high-quality link has massively changed over the years. Relevancy is a huge topic online right now — but what does a relevant link actually mean? Ultimately, we track that based on is it a link that is driving traffic to your website, of whom are your audience? Too many link building strategies focus too much on ‘link juice’ and SEO metrics such as DA — but care less about link engagement metrics. SEOs, link builders, and digital PRs should care more about understanding where their audience is, high traffic websites, and gaining links from there instead.”

Russ Jones agrees: “I believe that Google has dramatically increased the degree to which the relevancy of a link matters,” he says, adding, “Google has placed greater influence on links that come from topical authorities as they combat issues like fake news and link spam. If this is the case, it means that link builders need to narrow their focus and fight for links from industry peers.”

As relevancy becomes more important, our experts encourage other link builders to focus on the audience rather than the outlet.

Tamara Sykes, Public Relations Specialist at Postali, believes that “It’s obviously great to get a backlink in a recognizable outlet like the Wall Street Journal. However, if your audience isn’t there, it only serves half of its purpose. You’ll get a ‘vote’ from a high DA site to prove that yours is more trustworthy, but it may generate little to no traffic because the audience isn’t as invested in what content you have to offer.”

Domenica D'Ottavio, Marketing Manager at Fractl, prefers to diversify her link portfolios, noting that high quality links can mean different things in different campaigns.

“The definition of a high-quality link can change depending on your goals,” she says. “Not all links are created equally for every business. In my opinion, the ideal portfolio has a 1) high volume of 2) relevant and 3) high-quality backlinks. If you’re a business in the personal finance space, for example, you might want a mix of links from sites like The Motley Fool, CNN Money, and smaller finance blogs like The Penny Hoarder, Budgets are Sexy, or I Will Teach You To Be Rich.”

Lastly, as with most things in marketing and SEO, Andy Crestodina of OrbitMedia reminds us that there are also a half dozen other factors to consider including DA, follow vs. nofollow, outgoing links and much more! So be sure to take these factors into consideration as you develop your link building strategy.

Image Source

The role of link building in SEO is stronger than ever

Developing high quality content and distributing that content to respected sites in your target market can be an extremely scalable and cost-effective way to build and maintain authority in your niche. So, it’s not surprising that link building and digital PR is rapidly becoming a core strategy for many brands.

Carrie Rose highlights the fact that link building and digital PR industries have grown rapidly:

“The responsibility to create good quality content and improve trust to a site no longer purely sits within SEO. Having a good link building strategy which is performing well can improve trust, authority, and therefore rankings for a site. High quality links and high traffic can also increase traffic in the masses… It also has a huge impact on branded search (the holy grail).”

Brian Dean agrees, saying “Content and links have always had significant overlap (after all, people generally link to a page based on the content on that page). But the tie between the two is stronger than ever. That’s because many other tried-and-true link building strategies (like large-scale guest posting) no longer work. Which means your link building efforts largely rely on the content that you’re putting out.”

Surena Chande believes that, overall, the quality of link building campaigns has improved since Google’s E-A-T update: “We’re producing more topic-relevant campaigns for our clients rather than thinking solely about ideas that would land coverage,” she says, adding that SEOs and link builders are now working together to “reevaluate their concepts and ensure they are true to a brand.”

Getting buy-in is easier — if you focus on the metrics that matter

Because of the extra visibility in recent years, our experts agree that it’s easier than ever to get the buy-in from higher-ups. “I don’t need to tell an executive that a link is like a vote. They know that now,” says Russ Jones. “I don’t have to say ‘80% of purchases online begin with a search’. They know that now, too.”

“Link building has a way of showing direct results for executives and stakeholders and therefore becomes easier to get the buy-in,” Carrie Rose says. “Traditional PR, creative, or offline marketing strategies are receiving less and less budget and attention because of its inability to prove ROI and we see that budget reallocated to link building and digital PR efforts.”

Andy Crestodina agrees: “Just show an executive the Moz Link Explorer ‘Compare Link Profiles’ report and they’ll get excited …or upset. Once a stakeholder sees the data, they usually want to take action. The key is to guide the ideas away from the spammy actions and toward high-quality content marketing and influencer outreach.”

With less internal education and campaigning at the executive level, marketers are now faced with tougher questions around how their specific strategies impact ROI. To do so, our experts recommend keeping things simple and taking it slow.

“It’s important to explain that Domain Authority moves very slowly. It takes patience,” Andy says, adding, “it’s a proxy metric for PageRank. It’s not Google. Focus on the actions, not the reports.”

If you need some help breaking down metrics, check out Andy’s Whiteboard Friday:

Russ Jones breaks things down even further: “Report simple campaign statistics such as: ‘referring domains and referring traffic are increasing’. Coupled with a generic metric like DA or PA, this gives stakeholders the most important answers about the quality of the link building campaign. Second, we report the increased traffic and rankings relative to competitors based on the work. It is important, though, to provide context wherever possible. If a competitor has been out-spending you and acquiring more links because of it, we shouldn’t let that go unreported.”

Tamara Sykes finds that it’s helpful to provide some background on sites that link to her content. “I go as far as to share what that website’s purpose is, who its audience is and the website’s SEO stats,” she says. “This helps me paint a picture of why this link is relevant to a brand, rather than sharing a number that only shows ‘Hey, we got 12 backlinks’.”

Where should link builders focus?

Google is getting better and better at recognizing high quality, relevant links. “They’re super good at identifying links that don’t fit with a natural pattern. And it’s not just obvious black hat spam,” Brian Dean says. “Google can also filter out many grey hat approaches (like mass guest posting), which basically only leaves a handful of link building approaches: digital PR, targeted outreach, and content designed to get links.”

So when it comes to link building strategy, where should link builders and digital PRs focus their efforts?

Get creative

Test out new content mediums to stand out from the pack!

Carrie Rose notes that, even though we’re seeing more automation in marketing, “Robots can’t manufacture creativity. That’s where the best links come from — where content is more creative than their competitors and brands are getting links others can’t replicate.”

Andy Crestodina recommends creating new tools and original research that features bite-size, shareable nuggets such as stats, graphs, and infographics. “These are 100-times more link-worthy than anything else on your domain,” he says.

Build relationships

As the market becomes more saturated, it will be especially important for link builders and digital PRs to deepen relationships with respected publishers and authors in their industry. But you don’t need to overthink it.

Andy believes that a little personalization goes a long way: “Link building has a bad reputation for a good reason: spam. Spammers send cold emails to website owners, clogging our inboxes with the same messages.”

But how do you build those connections in the first place?

Warm up the conversation by engaging with that author or editor on social media! Domenica D’Ottavia uses Twitter to connect. “Twitter is an excellent tool for building those relationships with journalists,” she says. “Reach out to them, like their stuff, respond and retweet, show them you’re a real person… When you finally outreach them with your link building project, they’ll recognize your name from your interactions on Twitter and will be much more likely to respond positively to your PR pitch.”

Others agree that the ROI of mass outreach continues to decline, remembering the days of in-person link building. “Believe it or not, I used to CALL people, introduce myself, explain how interesting I thought their ‘X’ business was,” says Britney Muller. “I’d ask some questions and then weave in a thoughtful proposition of us linking to each other’s websites.”

“People are becoming numb to any non-targeted outreach,” Brian Dean adds. “If you are good at personalization, there could still be a chance of securing links but the bar of what qualifies as ‘personalized’ is higher than ever. Now you almost need to mention their dog’s name to get a response.” (Note to all the link builders out there: my dog’s name is Ginger.)

Learn more about great outreach from Britney’s Whiteboard Friday on the subject! 

Tap into influencer networks

Influencer marketing is a growing field and, no, it isn’t just for consumer brands and Instagram. Leveraging experts to elevate your content can capture the attention of your target publishers and audience.

Surena Chande says that “utilizing expert commentary is one of the strongest and most overlooked techniques in link building. If you have clients who are experts in their field or have access to the CEO, you can utilize them to build links with minimal effort for both you and your client.”

“Link building is influencer marketing,” says Andy Crestodina. “You’re pitching an influencer (usually blogger or editor) with a request, usually some kind of collaboration. When you combine influencer marketing with original research, you have the ingredients in place. Your content supports their content. Links begin to appear spontaneously. You’re attracting them. Do it right and high DA sites will link to you every few days. Magic.”

Image Source

Capitalize on trending topics

In a news cycle that is constantly changing, hot topics can rise and fall in the blink of an eye. But if you have your timing right, you can ride the trend wave to secure extra eyeballs from editors and readers.

“I believe that the pandemic, particularly the early stages in 2020, taught the industry a very harsh lesson in the form of reactive outreach and campaigns forming one of the best methods of outreach,” Surena Chande says. “I was so used to conceiving campaign ideas for large-scale interactive pieces, and the unpredictability of the situation taught us that we had to quickly change our approach to link building.”

“Jumping on a trending topic and creating a project or link building campaign around something that’s already earned the attention of journalists” says Domenica D’Ottavio, but notes to proceed with caution. “While newsjacking is a clever way to earn a ton of links very fast, it’s also pretty risky. You have to work around the clock to get your idea created before the topic has lost relevance, and it might flop if you’re too late to respond, wasting your investment.”

Our experts also advise to stay on top of the news across the web, read articles from a variety of publications weekly, study what journalists are asking for when they put out #journorequests, and analyze what angles they take on topics as they go viral. This will ensure that you are well positioned when it comes time to pitch your content.

Conclusion

At the end of the day, link building has undergone some major changes in the last 15 years (likely for the better!), but what’s old is new, and many of the same rules continue to apply:

  • Relevant content will always perform so long as you target the right audience

  • Links remain a major part of how Google determined the expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness of a site.

  • Creativity and timeliness in link building will be rewarded

Big thank you to our expert contributors:
  • Andy Crestodina

  • Britney Muller

  • Brian Dean

  • Carrie Rose

  • Domenica D'Ottavio

  • Russ Jones

  • Surena Chande

  • Tamara Sykes



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"We love you, Russ. There are so many ways to remember you, endless facets to who you were and your..."

“““““““““““

We love you, Russ.

There are so many ways to remember you, endless facets to who you were and your impact on SEO. Where do I even begin?

You were the funniest guy in the room. You would gear up for a joke with that wry smile and sparkle in your eye, and we always knew what was coming. Your sense of humor was keen and clever and ever-present.

I remember being ill and jetlagged on the way to put on a mini-MozCon for a valued, strategic client — you made the 2.5-hour winter car ride pass by in a breeze with your entertaining and hilarious stories. You could make charming conversation about anything and with anyone. Listening and laughing with delight to your stories about growing up as an identical twin, current events, memories from past MozCons, and ideas about what we could build at Moz next, you transformed my tired and cranky mood into happy and creative energy. Your spirit and laughter was infectious.

You were brilliant. Our longtime friend, links API power user, and collaborator on the blog, it was only a matter of time before you became a full-fledged Mozzer. When we officially welcomed you to Moz in 2015, it was like coming home. From the start, you showed up eager and ready to innovate. Over the years you were relentless in your quest for better data, holding tech giants and the SEO industry accountable. You’ve left an indelible mark on Moz: our link index and keyword corpus bear witness to your passion for reliable, quality data and meaningful metrics. Keyword Explorer wouldn’t be here without you. Your work on the new Domain Authority score was transformative. And your commitment to the SEO community, to relaying complex ideas clearly and with conviction, were second to none. You were always there when we needed you.

You were bold and courageous. You stuck up for your beliefs and staunchly defended them, be they professional or political. You were a loyal and steadfast advocate, always willing to wade into the fray for your friends and colleagues, the best kind of friend to have. I learned a lot from watching you debate and explain with flair, class, and compassion in all the SEO corners of the internet. Conversations that I didn’t have the stomach for, you would enter into with a smile, guided by the flame of your convictions.

I loved your devotion to your family and how you treasured time with them above all else. You would think deeply about whether you were being the best dad, husband, brother you could be. The same curiosity and drive for greatness that you applied to work, you also applied to your personal relationships. You wanted to be good at loving your family because you believed they deserved that from you. I felt it when you brought them to MozCon and you talked about watching your daughters grow and learn. You were always asking yourself, “How could I be a better dad in this moment?” Your passion for service and making the world better was driven, in part, because you wanted a better world for your girls.

There’s so much we still wish we could say to you. There are words left unsaid, projects unfinished, ideas unrealized. But beyond all else, I just want to say thank you, Russ, for the incredible impact you’ve had: on Moz and Mozzers, on the SEO community, on everything and everyone you touched. On me.


To the SEO community, I invite you to revisit the vast legacy Russ gifted us with his blog posts, Whiteboard Fridays, and MozCon presentations, linked below. Remember him for all he gave us. We’re lucky to have these memories of a brilliant soul gone too soon.

Whiteboard Fridays:

MozCon presentations:

Blog posts:

A memorial site has been set up in his honor at rememberingrussjones.com. There you can read more about Russ and his great loves in life, share a memory, and make a donation to a fund for his family.

Our grief is deep. Our love is deeper. Today, I’ll be raising a glass (Scotch, neat) and I ask you to join me in this toast: To Russ, who pushed for excellence, who always strove to make life a little easier for others, and who always had a sparkle in his eyes and a joke at the ready. Goodbye, my friend.



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How to Use Chrome to View a Website as Googlebot

The author's views are entirely their own (excluding the unlikely event of hypnosis) and may not always reflect the views of Moz.