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Guest blogging is all the rage right now, and rightfully so. Offering content to another website is a great way to improve your SEO and your reputation while also helping out the site by offering quality content for nothing but a mere backlink. In a roundabout way, guest posting means that you are asking a website for a backlink to your website in exchange for something else. It isn’t easy, but it certainly sounds in reach, right? Small businesses have caught on quickly making guest blogging one of the most popular ways to earn backlinks.
However, small businesses can’t forget that there are other ways to earn backlinks. Aside from just guest blog links, you have what are called “editorial links.” Editorial links are links that you earn naturally, without asking, that generally come from very authoritative sites. These links aren’t easy to get, but usually provide the best reward.
Top 5 Tips to Earning Editorial Links
An important thing to remember is that an editorial link is not going to appear in an author bio box, but within the actual content. Google likes to see editorial links because they are harder to earn, and therefore hold more weight. A few ways to earn these types of links include:
1. Get the PR Department Involved.
The PR department’s job is to talk with editors of big publications and help a company gain that kind of visibility. Although they might not ask for backlinks, ask them what kind of content is newsworthy and what your best chances are of making a link happen on a given website. In some cases if the PR pro has an existing relationship, he/she can ask the editor directly.
2. Use Your Competition for Leads.
This works the same way when you’re looking for places to guest post. You want to look at your competition and see where they are earning guest posts, and then try and go after those same sites. With editorial links, try to use Bing or Google Webmaster Tools to see where your competition is earning these links, and then go to that site and become as active as you can (consider submitting a few guest posts first to get to the editor).
3. Reference Another Company.
Anytime you mention another company in one of your articles (so you’re giving them an advertorial link), make sure they know it. Mention them in all of your social shares and ask them to share your article—they will be more inclined to do so since they are mentioned. Once you’re on their radar, they will be more likely to not only read your stuff, but also return the favor.
4. Interview and Be Interviewed.
Make yourself available for interviews and you’re sure to gain some editorial links (not to mention interviews are some of the most shared content on the web). Interview others to help bring new eyes to your blog and get the content shared on that person’s blog. After all, the blog is going to want to highlight an interview with one of their own.
5. Get to Know Curators.
Content curation is when a site puts together a post of some of the best content for that week or that month, usually on a specific topic. If you can get one of your articles onto the curated post, it counts as an editorial link. Get to know the curators and always send him/her great posts that you think might work well. If nothing else, you’re on their radar.
Once you break into the world of editorial links and start to earn more and more, you will find that it will be easier than at the start. It’s also important to remember that editorial links need to be completely relevant and helpful to readers. Do not expect your PR professionals to ask for a link when it doesn’t make sense, and don’t add in editorial links to your own content for the benefit of anyone but your readers.
Do you have any tips when it comes to earning editorial links? Any experiences making it happen? Let us know your story and tell us what you think in the comments below!
Amanda DiSilvestro is a graduate of Illinois State University. Although she graduated with an English Education degree, she found herself working as a full-time blogger in the SEO/social media department at HigherVisibility, a leading SEO company.
Amanda DiSilvestro is the Marketing Manager for Coastal SEO Consulting. She has been writing about all-things digital marketing, both as a ghost writer, guest writer, and blog manager, for over 10 years. Check out her website amandadisilvestro.com to learn more!
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