12 Backlink Strategies Beyond Guest Posting

Guest posts are a popular way to build backlinks, but they do come with some downsides.

For starters, it’s not the easiest method to scale. To get one new backlink, you often need to write and publish multiple blog posts.

It also takes quite a bit of time. Even after you’ve written and edited your guest post, the platform you’re posting on might take days or even weeks to publish it.

Looking for a more scalable way to boost your backlinks?

We’ve got you covered! In this post, we’ll share 12 strategies for building backlinks in 2024 without relying on guest posts.

12 Backlink Strategies Beyond Guest Posting

#1. Focus on Niche Edits

One effective way to build backlinks is through niche edits. This method involves reaching out to bloggers or website owners and asking them to add a backlink to your site in one of their existing blog posts.

Niche edits have a few big advantages over guest posts:

1. Scalable: You don’t have to start from scratch for each new post to get backlinks.
2. Easier for Site Owners: Adding a link to an existing post is usually simpler for site owners than dealing with the whole guest posting process, which involves formatting, optimizing, and more.
3. Potentially More Effective: Since you’re adding a link to a post that’s already published and likely has some authority, it can be more impactful than a brand-new guest post.

Here’s a simple process for doing niche edits:

1. Identify Your Target Posts: Find blog posts where your niche edits would fit well. For example, if your site is about wedding planning, look for posts about:

• Wedding planning tips
• Wedding planning checklist
• Wedding planning guide

1. Search for Relevant Posts: Use Google to find blog posts on these topics or related keywords.
2. Contact Bloggers: Get the contact details of the blog owners, reach out to them, and offer to exchange a backlink for a niche edit.

By following these steps, you can effectively build high-quality backlinks through niche edits.

#2. Create Long-Form, Authoritative Content

Building links is much easier when you have high-quality SEO content that people actually want to share.

For example, if your blog post is about “Top 5 Benefits of SEO,” it probably won’t attract many links. That topic is very common and has been covered by countless bloggers, media outlets, and SEO experts.

Instead, aim for something more valuable and specific, like “101 Most Important SEO Tips for 2024.”

Here’s why this type of content is more likely to earn backlinks:

1. More Value: It’s comprehensive and detailed, providing much more useful information than a basic overview.
2. Up-to-Date: It includes the latest and most relevant advice for 2024, making it more appealing and useful compared to outdated tips.

#3. Publish Statistics Articles

When bloggers want to add reliable sources or data to their articles, they often search for keywords like:

• “[topic] statistics”
• “[topic] trends”
• “[topic] data”

They then skim through a few articles, pick the one with the most interesting stats, and link to it in their latest blog post.

This means the website with the great article gets a free backlink without having to do any extra marketing!

You can see where this is going. By writing articles on related topics with valuable data or insights, you can naturally attract backlinks. If your article is more detailed or useful than what’s currently out there, you’ll likely earn some high-quality links.

#4. Try HARO

Help a Reporter Out, or HARO, is a marketplace that connects reporters with people who can provide the information they need.

When a journalist puts out a request for specific information or sources, people can reach out and offer their help with the story.

Using HARO for link-building without guest blogging is pretty straightforward.

Just sign up, watch for the daily emails, and send a pitch whenever you see a request on a topic you know well.

In return for your valuable input, journalists will usually include a backlink to your website in their article.

Also Read: Top 5 Link Building Myths Debunked

#5. Do Competitor Backlink Outreach

If a website links to one of your competitors, there’s a good chance they might link to you too.

To find out which websites link to your competitors, just run their sites through tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush. You’ll get a list of those sites and can see which ones might be worth reaching out to for your own backlinks.

Gather all the info on which bloggers have linked to your competitors. Then, reach out to them with a tempting offer. Here are a few ideas for what you could propose:

1. Highlight Your Strengths: Let them know why your site, product, or post is better than the competitor’s. For example, “I saw you mentioned [product] in your blog. Our product is similar but has [unique features]. Would you consider featuring us too? We’d be happy to send you a free sample.”
2. Offer a Backlink Exchange: Suggest a mutual benefit. For instance, “If you link to us, we’ll give you a free backlink from a guest post we’re doing next week.”
3. Propose a Payment: If you prefer, you can offer to pay for the backlink. For example, “We’d like to offer you X USD for a link back to our site.”

By making a compelling offer, you increase your chances of getting those valuable backlinks!

#6. Get Featured in Media

It might be a bit tricky, but when it works, it can be really effective.

Here’s a simple plan:

1. Create Unique Content: Start by gathering new research on a topic related to your field. Use this to create an engaging report, infographic, or webpage.
2. Reach Out to Reporters: Find journalists who have covered similar topics and share your new resource with them.

For inspiration on what kind of content might work well, check out this post with examples of successful link bait.

#7. Create Roundup Posts

Here’s a simple trick to score lots of backlinks without guest posting:

1. Pick a Roundup Topic: Choose a theme for a roundup article related to your niche. For example, if you’re into SEO, you could write something like “10 Up-and-Coming SEO Influencers to Watch in 2024.”
2. Write and Publish: Once your article is ready, reach out to the people you featured and let them know about it.
3. Ask for Shares: Request that they link to your article in their latest blog posts or share it on their social media.

Even if only a few people follow through, you could end up with two to four backlinks from just one post on your site.

#8. Negotiate Link Exchanges

Building backlinks through link exchanges is a useful strategy that doesn’t involve guest posting.

The idea is simple: you help boost someone else’s ranking, and they help boost yours in return. It’s a win-win!

But, be careful—Google considers link exchanges a potential violation of their guidelines, so there’s some risk involved.

So, how can you do link swaps without risking a penalty?

Luckily, there’s a way to make it safer!

If you’re cautious, you can use a three-way link exchange. Instead of swapping links directly with another site, you involve a third site:

1. Site A links to Site B
2. Site B links to Site C
3. Site C links back to Site A

This way, it looks like there’s no direct link exchange, which keeps things low-risk!

#9. Promote Your Blog Content (And Build Links Organically)

Once you publish an article, it’s tempting to just move on to the next one. But that’s missing a big opportunity!

To get your content in front of more people and increase the chances that others will link to it, you need to promote it well. The more eyes on your article, the more likely someone will find it valuable and link to it.

So, when you have a really interesting post, follow these steps to boost its reach:

1. Share it on your social media profiles (like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn).
2. Post it on your personal profile, especially if you have friends who blog about similar topics.
3. Submit it to other social media platforms (like HackerNews, Reddit, Pinterest).
4. Notify your email subscribers about the new article.
5. Promote the post in relevant Facebook groups.

This way, you’ll maximize your article’s exposure and improve your chances of getting those valuable backlinks!

#10. Use HARO for Roundup Posts

Here’s a cool way to use HARO as if you were a journalist.

Instead of hunting for people to feature in your next roundup post, you can simply send out a query on HARO.

For example, if your topic is “10 Most Common SEO Mistakes,” you can ask sources to share the mistakes they see the most.

After your article is published, ask those sources to help promote it by linking to it from their own websites. Then, pick the most interesting responses to include in your article.

#11. Create Useful Web Resources

Creating content that people naturally want to link to is one of the best ways to get backlinks without doing guest posts.

A great example of this is HubSpot’s website grader.

HubSpot has a simple tool that grades your website on speed, SEO, mobile friendliness, and security.

They didn’t have to do anything extra to get all those organic backlinks you see below. The tool itself brought them in!

You might also produce the following other kinds of helpful online resources:

• Online calculator (e.g. “calory calculator”)
• Information hubs (e.g. a page with hundreds of recipes)
• Checklists
• Free web apps

#12. Give Testimonials

If you’re an expert or authority in your field, this is a great trick to try.

You can offer to write a free testimonial for another website or business in exchange for a backlink to your own site.

For example, if you’re a fitness influencer, you could review a company that sells weightlifting gear.

It’s a win-win: you get a free backlink, and they get a positive testimonial!