Editorial Link Guide: How to make Writer & Editors link back to you?

Link building has evolved over time.

With each passing year, the tactics are changing.

SEOs are constantly trying new ways and tactics to build more backlinks.

Only a few know that building more backlinks isn’t always beneficial.

However, building more high-quality backlinks is what is required.

Guest posts were the best link-building technique, but Google's perspective on guest posting for backlinks has changed.

Guest posting is still among the best ways to build backlinks,

but you have to be careful in many aspects.

Editorial backlinks, on the other hand, are undoubtedly the stronger and more powerful type of link building.

In fact, they make up a highly effective type of backlink just because of their nature.

Today, I will walk you through the journey of editorial backlinks: what an editorial backlink is, what makes a website get editorial links, and how you can plan and build such links along with their overall impact on your SEO strategy.

So, without further ado, let's get started.

What is an editorial backlink?

An editorial backlink is when a content writer or editor includes a link in their article or blog as a reference.

They do this to support their argument and to prove they’ve done some research while writing the content.

Let’s assume a content writer is writing an article on “link building metrics for SEO.”

Google wants the content to be authoritative and to come from someone who knows what backlinks are.

Now, there are a lot of websites that have already published content covering this topic.

So, instead of writing thousands of words on different topics, the writer will look for references to support their argument.

This makes the content appear well-researched and authoritative in the eyes of search engines.

Do SEOs build editorial backlinks?

The answer is no, yes, and it depends.

An example of SEOs not building editorial links:

Editorial backlinks are usually general backlinks.

For instance, a content writer might search for a topic and include its link within the content.

Such backlinks often come from good, average, and even spammy sites.

You’re not in control of who links back to you or when.

An example of SEOs building editorial backlinks:

SEOs use different techniques to build links.

For instance, they buy guest posts to obtain backlinks.

The idea is to write as a third party and get a link as a reference, so Google or other search engines can’t detect that the backlink was intentionally built.

An example of SEOs not trying and still building editorial backlinks:

Sometimes, freelance writers and editors pitch different websites and offer to include their backlink in an existing article.

For this, they ask for an editorial fee or an alternative exchange.

For an SEO person, this is the ideal situation, as the opportunity arises unexpectedly and can help them build genuine, high-authority backlinks.

Are editorial backlinks and guest posts the same?

Definitely not. In guest post backlinks, SEOs reach out to different webmasters and offer something to get their approval.

Here are some common things SEOs generally offer to do a guest post:

• Offer unique and quality content
• Offer a link or guest post in return
• Offer a website or link audit to get a backlink
• Offer their services at a discounted rate for getting a guest post
• Offer reviews, UGC content, or similar items

Editorial links, on the other hand, are different from guest posting.

The editor usually finds a specific website from SERPs and includes its link within their article.

Editorial backlinks can also be paid or come from freelancers and are not always general.

How Brian Dean managed to build editorial and other types of links naturally?

It is not as difficult as you think. Many people and larger publications have already cracked the code here.

Just like Brian Dean, the person who created Backlinko—a genius.

He came up with the "Skyscraper Technique" for building editorial and other forms of links naturally.

He looked for ranking articles for main terms and created skyscraper content.

His content was more informational, useful, lengthy, and helpful for the audience.

This made his website page quickly appear at the top.

As a result, many people linked to that specific page whenever they were writing a similar article.

Brian Dean also internally linked other pages to pass page rank, or link juice, and created more pages like these.

Rinse and repeat. His website quickly became a major force with a high amount of natural backlinks.

How to make writers and editors link back to you so that you could build editorial backlinks?

At ReputePost.com, we help SEOs and webmasters with thousands of link building opportunities. You can look for different types of backlinks including editorial.

The key thing is to appear high in the SERPs or get the attention of writers, editors and journalists. They are the ones who can help you build such high authority backlinks.

Here are some key things that can help you appear high on the SERPs and attract editorial backlinks:

1. Create data-oriented content 

In case you want to build editorial links, you need to create quality content.

The best way to do this is to cover data-oriented topics.

While 90% of your competitors are covering general topics that are already covered, find the right opportunity in your niche.

Look for common problems, do research and cover them in an article.

This will help your page leap right at the top of the SERPs.

And, with that much visibility, others covering this topic will naturally link back to you.

2. Do not compromise on uniqueness and statistics

Creating data-oriented content isn’t the only thing you should be focusing on.

Instead, be unique and do not miss your opportunity with statistics.

Use tools like google trends, or alerts and be active in your niche.

Do not hesitate to test something that others aren’t doing.

Here’s an example:

A normal website will do keyword research and decide to write an article on “comment backlinks for SEO”. The topic will look like “What are comment backlinks in SEO”?

Insead of doing this, you can go for data and statistics. Your topic will look like “10 things to keep in mind when building comment backlinks in SEO”. In your guide, you’ll discuss various things and back up your arguments with data and research.

3. Be friends with bloggers, editors and journalists

Ever heard the quote "show me your friends and I'll show you your future"?

Now connect this saying with you and your work.

Try to build a relationship with bloggers, editors, and journalists.

They are usually the people who are actively writing for different websites.

With a good relationship, you’ll increase your chances of getting more links outside of this strategy.

This will help your link building campaign and mutually be beneficial for both parties.

4. Don’t be an introvert on social media

If you’re an introvert, keep this to you and do not let this impact your professional life.

Your website should have a clear social media strategy.

Stay active, communicate with others and see what others are doing.

Regularly share your content across different social media platforms.

This helps you build an audience or a brand outside Google.

The positive?

You will increase your chances of more visibility and potentially more links to your website.

5. Build links using other tactics

Getting editorial backlinks requires time.

It isn’t possible to start getting such high authority backlinks specially when your website is new.

You first need to build authority and credibility.

Therefore, look for guest posts or link insertion opportunities.

The authority niche edits are the most safest way to pass page rank to your website.

If your website is new, there’s no chance that you’ll get editorial links.

Instead of focusing on them from the start, diversify your link building profile.

Sometimes, a guest post becomes a source for a best editorial link!

So, focus on increasing credibility and authority and your website will start becoming ready to attract editorial links.

These are some of the most common and safest ways through which you can attract content writers, editors and journalists.

Instead of totally relying on them, your aim should be to target them from all fronts.

As your website strat becoming stronger, you’ll be able to build editorial links at a faster pace.

Wrapping up

Those who know about SEO will never stop you from building editorial backlinks.

Top SEO agencies even include editorial backlinks as their main link building tactic.

For editorial links, you have to do different things.

I discussed all those things with examples. And, I hope this article will help you create a better SEO link building strategy.

SEO is changing and backlinks from forums or web 2.0 sites aren’t the only source anymore.

In fact, relying solely on them can go wrong for your website and hurt your SEO performance.

As the competition is increasing in almost all niches, many SEOs are simply looking for white label link building solutions.

Such solutions are usually cheaper and more safe as compared to different link building techniques and their overall impact.

But editorial backlinks are still the best, and will remain that way.

And, they’ll get stronger with time.