Imagine a content so well-written, informative, and engaging that others voluntarily send their audiences your way.
That’s how you can get editorial links, summed up in a line.
This article will help you stop imagining such a situation and actually start attracting editorial links. Without spending a dime or resorting to witchcraft.
In this article, we’ll walk you through:
- A brief introduction to editorial links
- A how-to guide for attracting editorial links
- The two-phase process
- 5 types of content that attract the most editorial links
- Reaching the right audience
- 4 more ways to attract editorial links from powerful domains
Let’s dive in.
Editorial Links: What, Why, And How?
Google has 200+ known ranking parameters that affect your website’s position on SERPs. The shiniest stars of the constellation, however, are backlinks.
And you can use a wide variety of white-hat (and some not-so-white hat!) practices for getting backlinks. The popular ones include paid backlinks, guest posting, link exchanges, etc.
But the most effective, safe, and coveted type of backlink is the editorial link.
A backlink is called an editorial link when the sheer value of the page is the reason why others link to it. You don’t have to contact the writer or webmaster and without any request or persuasion, people just decide to link back to your content because they find it offers value to their own audiences.
How Are Editorial Links Different From Other Types Of Backlinks, Say Paid Links Or Guest Post Links?
Technically speaking, a backlink is a backlink.
But Google really functions high on morals.
So the genuine stuff impresses it much more. And more weightage is given to the editorial links than the others. (That’s what makes editorial backlinks worth striving for!)
Also, given that it is a genuine backlink that you have acquired, it is unlikely to lead to a penalty from Google or any other search engine.
Attracting Editorial Links: How-to Guide
On the surface of it, it seems like there is hardly anything that you can do to get editorial links. By definition, they are supposed to come to you ‘naturally’.
But there isn’t anything against using catalysts to fasten and boost the process of organically getting editorial links, is it?
Now the simplest way is to get link-building services.
Link-building experts know what content attracts the most editorial links and they have some well-kept tricks under their sleeves which let them get quality editorial backlinks for your domain.
That ultimately results in higher search engine rankings, wider audience exposure, and brand/authority building for you. Minus the hassle of writing, optimising or promoting the content.
The other way, of course, is understanding the nitty-gritty of editorial links and going DIY.
Heads up: You’ll need a lot of time and patience for that.
If you are still up for it, the guide ahead can be your roadmap for that journey.
The Two-phase Process Of Attracting Editorial Links
Let’s break down the definition of an editorial backlink.
As evident, there are two qualifying criteria for getting editorial backlinks.
- One, create quality content that offers value.
- Two, reach the right audience.
You can achieve these two things in two phases as elaborated below:
Phase 1 – Create Content That Gets The Most Editorial Links
Ideally, any kind of quality content – which is engaging, entertaining, and informative – should get mentions from others. But there are some specific types of content that are likelier to get organic backlinks.
The Top 5 Of Those Content Types Are
- Original research or survey
Most people prefer backing up their claims with data. And when data is mentioned, its source is referenced and linked.
Thus, carrying out original research and surveys and publishing that data is a great way of attracting editorial links.
- Infographics
Visual content has a unique charm. People like getting information that’s easily understandable and beautifully presented. So when you do that with an infographic, people will link to it. Infographics also help you reach a wider audience by showing up in the image search.
- Evergreen, long-form content
Topical content and the latest news are great. But their effect dies down with time. Not in the case of evergreen, long-form content though. The content remains relevant and useful for a longer time and when one person links to your content, it gets more visibility and thus, many more people might also link to it. And given that the content remains relevant for longer, even if the process takes longer, it does you no harm.
- Free tools
Who doesn’t like free stuff!
A free tool, say a free headline generator or a quick plagiarism checker, will have many takers. You can either let others use the tool you have created with a code that includes a link back to your site. Or you can let others share the results generated by the tool with a link to the source (your site!). Plus, reviews and roundup listings will come in too.
- Attractive stories
Getting paid to sleep. A 12-year-old getting a PhD. A dancing dolphin.
How often do you come across such stories? Not often, right? But when you do, these are the stories that take over the Internet and almost everyone is writing about them. With, of course, links to the original source. If you have a unique or quirky story, creating content around that can create a lot of digital buzz and get you plenty of editorial links.
Phase 2: Reaching the right audience with SEO
Your content will get links from editors only when the editors first get to see your content. That will happen when your content ranks higher up in the search results for the relevant queries.
So carrying out SEO on your site is important. You might also want to hire SEO experts for tangible results.
Psst! You can also share and promote your content on social media to grab the right eyeballs.
4 Smart Ways You Can Attract Editorial Links From Powerful Domains
Dishing out quality content and making it reach the right audience isn’t a quick process. It takes practice, patience, and persistence. But you need editorial links fast. So here are 4 smart ways to quickly attract editorial links from powerful domains.
- Help A Reporter Out (HARO)
Journalists and reports need sources for their stories. Using platforms like HARO, you can see what reporters need expert opinions on what topics. Just reply to the reporter you can help with your expertise and experience. And if your response gets selected, the reporter will quote you and link back to your site.
- Be open to interviews
When you get interviewed by industry-leading people or platforms, they give you one mention. That interview, when quoted or featured elsewhere, gives you a potentially perennial stream of editorial links.
- Claim unlinked mentions
It often happens that people mention you or your work and forget to link it back to you. Sign up for Google Alerts and when someone talks about you on the web, you’ll get a notification. Then you can go to that page, and see if you got your due backlink or not. If not, you can request the writer for a backlink. And because the mention was organic, claiming unlinked mentions is 100% organic.
- Stroke people’s egos
People like being praised and appreciated. So when you mention people in your content or put them on a list of the bests, they are likely to feel proud. And then, they’ll let people know you mentioned them on their sites with a link to your site. Simple psychology!
Getting Started
With that, we have shared all the information that you needed to attract editorial links from powerful domains. Now you can either contact a link-building agency or start DIY-ing. And if you find this guide useful, don’t forget to share it with others.