Hiring a backlink builder is tricky if you do not know what to watch out for. Usually, when a company hires me to build backlinks it’s either a Chief of Marketing, Head of SEO, or the owner of the company.
Often the prospective new client I am talking with knows quite a bit about SEO in general, but 99% of the time they are not a backlinks expert (hence they reach out to me).
The following information can be utilized for companies looking to hire a link building company. These ideas should help guide your company in the right hiring direction.
Red Flags from Bad Backlink Builders
There are many red flags when it comes to the quality of links that are built by various freelancers and SEO/backlink agencies. The biggest red flag is when you receive a spreadsheet full of random sites with low metrics (no wonder they are cheap!) These sites often come with additional baggage, such as:
- High spam scores
- Link farms
- Sites that have been penalized for bad practices in the past, or are currently penalized
- Sites that get traffic from everywhere in the world except your target country
- Sites that have NOTHING to do with your industry!
Besides the recycled lists of link farms and spam factories, there are other factors to consider. Let’s pretend that the provider you are in contact with does not provide you with a long list of less than desirable sites. Could they still be bad at their job?
If a link builder offers you guarantees of increases in rankings or organic search traffic you should be very leery. Unless they have a real crystal ball, there is just no way of telling whether or not their efforts will be rewarded by Google.
If you are unable to preview the websites you will be getting links from, and unable to review the content that is being created in order to link out to you, you should avoid doing business with that backlink company.
If the link provider can not guarantee a certain turnaround time, or does not guarantee your satisfaction 100% with what the deliverables are, run for the hills!
Signs of a Good Backlink builder
Someone who is good at link building knows how to avoid the bad sites. They also know how to structure the process so that it is efficient, transparent, and the deliverables and expectations are clearly explained and documented so there are no surprises in the end!
A link builder or agency with proper experience knows how to build layers of transparency into the backlink process. This way everyone knows what to expect.
✔️ Well spelled out minimum metrics
(The minimum required metrics are for the websites that you plan to get links from. I personally make sure that authority scores such as Ahref’s DR, estimated organic search traffic (ST in Ahrefs) are documented. This sets the minimum bar.)
✔️ Sharing the sheet of tentative backlink targets and wins
(Sharing a Google sheet with the client in order to document the sites that have been approved for backlinks, and where we are in the process with each, is extremely helpful and helps the client know the immediate status of the backlink project.)
✔️ Getting approval of sites and content
(The link builder provides you the list of websites they intend to build backlinks from, before any links are built. This way you get the chance to approve these sites. You should also be able to approve the articles being created for the purpose of linking to your site, so you can gauge the skill level of the writer and also make sure the article doesn’t paint anything in relation to your business in a bad light.)
✔️ Guaranteeing a number of links and price per link up front
(Before deciding to do business with any link building agency, you should know how many links you are going to get, and what they will cost.)
✔️ Knows what NOT to guarantee
(A good link builder knows better than making guarantees on things such as traffic increases, rankings increases, and increases in authority scores.)
✔️ Finds niche related sites
(The websites that the link builder is targeting for you should be related to your industry. This is a tell tale sign of someone who knows what they are doing, and/or has the drive to actually go out and find you sites to match your niche VS showing you recycled lists of general blogs)
✔️ Has a track record
(The backlinks wiz you hire should have been in the business for some time, and has a lot of reviews and ratings to prove it. You can always call a couple of references, but I believe in the power of the numbers/ratings/reviews system and think that the proof is usually in that pudding!
Prices for Backlinks
The price per backlink varies WIDELY. At the bottom of the bucket you can find cheap backlink providers willing to build links for close to $20 each! (I would HIGHLY recommend avoiding these opportunities at ALL COSTS - they will hurt your SEO efforts!)
At the top end of the spectrum, there are very authoritative online publications that charge tens of thousands of dollars per link placement.
In the middle of the backlinks price spectrum world, you will see a range of link costs generally between $200 and $700/each depending on the level of authority the website has. For my link building agency, I put together a backlink costs calculator for transparency.
Various Pay Structures for Backlinks
Some link providers charge on an hourly basis, and others charge per backlink, or per month for an unknown amount of backlinks. Personally, I always charge per backlink. Our links come in blocks, so clients typically purchase blocks of 10 links at a time, in various multiples.
Charging per successfully gained link is the most fair way to provide backlink services. This way the client is only paying per success.
Paying a backlinks provider hourly or on a fixed monthly basis, without any guarantees of a certain number of links is a bad idea. First, the provider is improperly incentivized.. They are getting paid whether links are gained or not.
Summary
There is a large sea of backlink providers to be found online. If your company is going to make the investment into your backlink profile, be sure to choose the right person who will most likely help your efforts, and not hurt them!
The ideas mentioned above should be a guide in making that hiring decision. If you need further help, just Google “link builders” and call the first company that pops up organically! (my company 😁)
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