Sample Link Building Campaign Letter
So you want to start a link building campaign? You need a good link request letter, one that’s friendly and professional, and that won’t be offensive or annoying to site owners or webmasters.
Inbound links to your website are one of the most important factors in search engine ranking algorithms today. In our book Search Engine Optimization: An Hour a Day, we tell the story of how one of our link requests got into the hands of a vengeful blogger, and how his attempt to humiliate us fell flat because we wrote a “bulletproof” link letter.
Here’s a sample link building letter that you can adapt to your own needs:
Dear Ms. Alphabeth, [always use the person’s real name if you have it],
I’ve greatly enjoyed looking through your pet plankton website, especially the “Plankton of the Month” photos. I have a website on a related subject and I think it might be of interest to your readers. It’s “Care and Feeding of Pet Plankton” on ZappyCo.com. This page provides a detailed plankton care plan, including homemade algae snacks, tank maintenance, and even a section on how to set up a trust fund for your plankton. The page is located at http://www.zappyco.com/planktonics [use the exact URL that you want the site to link to].
I thought a good place on your site to link from would be on your “links” page, here: http://www.planktonlove.com/links [use the exact URL that you hope the site will link from].
Here is a description that you can use if you like:
ZappyCo’s Plankton Care and Feeding Tips
Recipes, tank cleaning instructions, and tips for keeping plankton pets happy.I hope you find this link appropriate and useful. We at ZappyCo would certainly appreciate a link from your site. Please feel free to contact me with any questions.
Sincerely,
Harlan Zappy
Web Marketing Manager, ZappyCo
[Use your full name, title, and if possible, use an email address from the site requesting the link.]
What’s good about this letter? For starters:
- It doesn’t employ hard-selling techniques.
- It’s personal and specific. It doesn’t require any guessing or composing should the recipient want to provide a link.
- It doesn’t promise a link exchange. If the link is appropriate and your site has high-quality content, you shouldn’t need a link exchange.
In Search Engine Optimization: An Hour a Day we give additional pointers on writing a bulletproof link letter and making your site more “linkable.” We also walk you through the steps of starting and maintaining a long-term successful link building campaign. Follow these pointers and you’ll be sure to bring in those red-hot inbound links that your website needs and deserves!
30 COMMENTS
I’m a search marketing manager myself, and found your articles about search marketing very useful. Thanks for great tips and techniques. I enjoyed it.
I joined my company as a web developer but my company wanted me to do SEO due to my good analytical skills. But it was really difficult to do a thorough plan and execute in a comprehensive manner. But some expert SEO offered me your book “SEO An Hour A Day” .. Now my life is simple. I have a daily plan and i enjoy my work ..
Thanku so much 🙂
I’ve been working on seo for my own and my clents’ sites, but have lacked the structure to get it done in an efficient way, and to delegate to (and monitor work performed by) others.
While I’m only just getting started with your book, I am highly optimistic that it will help move us to the next level (and maybe several levels).
Thanks for what has already proven to be a handsome return on investment.
db
I’m responsible for maintaining the website for our business and found your book “SEO An Hour A Day” a great help. In particular, your guidance on the tedious task of link building was invaluable.
Thank you.
Alex
I am the person who is responsible for SEO and Marketing in our company. I have really enjoyed your book “SEO An Hour A Day” and hope to be using it to further optimise my site.
Thank you so much for all the valuable content. As a new SEO intern this is helping a lot.
i’m readding your book ,it is good books.thanks
Hi, I’m from Romania, thanks a lot for this usefull sheets and demos.
Great job, guys!
[…] at yourseoplan.com. They are so awesome, they’ve even put together a really great example of a link cover letter. Try taking this template and writing some of your own! Share and […]
Hi, I’m from Ireland and in the middle of launching my company.
I purchased your book last year, and I Finally got around to Reading it, Thankfully !! Although I have a marketing and website company building my system, it pays for me to know and understand SEO. It’s true what the book says ” Nobody knows your business like you do “.
I have tidy up a few things, and I am much more aware of what I’m doing on S.E.O, and i am constantly going back over your book.
Even with a company backing me for S.E.O and marketing, they can’t read my mind and see where I’m going with the website, and it is much easier to get my point accross and keep an eye on things.
I would Highly recommend your Book to anybody who is dealing with a website of any nature ,and dealing with S.E.O, as it’s obvious now that employing someone do something you completely don’t understand can be costly and time consuming in the long run.
[…] you to get out that list of prospective sites to link to your site and send off some of those link letters you’ve […]
I am studying SEO and find a good SEO book to read. I came across to see your book sample after reading book reviews is 4 stars from 5 stars. That’s good SEO book.
However, Thank you for information in this blog.
thanks this helped me with my SEO!
Thank you both so much for sharing so much information on your Book but also for providing so many templates, which are brilliantly designed and so time saving.
I wish you both continued success.
It is such a nice and perfectly written book with the classic SEO Worksheets and tools.
Keep up the good work..
Himanshu
Webmaster,
DNSPOINTERS.COM
Hi, Your site is rich in variety.
I enjoyed your site very much plus your book, it was very handy.
I’m from Iran.
Bye.
I was suspicious of the title ‘in an hour a day’ but your explanation makes perfect sense and controls what can be a time-sucking never-ending task. Like any aspect of any business, it all starts with the PLAN! Thanks so much for sharing a structure that we can use to do sound SEO on our sites.
Hi I am from India I have really enjoyed your book “SEO An Hour A Day” and hope to be using it to further optimise my site.
Hi, Thanks for this link exchange request. I was searching for this for long time and my friend gave me this link. It looks Great. Thanks Again
Thanks so much for this insightful article and the example link request letter. We’ve used it as a template in our current linking campaign and we’re getting great positive responses. Keep up the great work and I wish you continued success!
Thanks for this example. It’s exactly what I’ve been looking for. Turns out I was on the right track. Thanks again!
I am studying SEO and find a good SEO book to read. I came across to see your book sample after reading book reviews is 4 stars from 5 stars. That’s good SEO book.
Thank you Very much I’m using this sample letter and is working for me.
Keep up your awesome work!
I am one of loyally readers of your book SEO: an hour a day, 2nd edition.
I found it really useful and informative. I lived in China so I have the translated version back in my home. Just begin the link building work myself and I must say as a newbie I found it really hard and don’t know where to start. Your book give me a big picture for it, thank you very much. But I think some more detail information and method sharing will make this book more wonderful. Do you mind if I write to you and ask some questions in my mind after complete reading your book?
That was extremely helpful!
Webmasters seem to always neglect my ‘link request’ emails, so I’ll definitely be borrowing a few expressions off your letter and try again!
Thanks for sharing
Hi Gravity! Thanks for the sample link building letter I am novice to link building strategies I came to read your article while i was trying to figure our how a link request letter should be, your sample link building letter really attracts me and i am going to use your method of requesting… hope it will work well 🙂 Keep up your work of offering free stuff!
[…] respond to the issues they address in their content, you can offer up your page as a solution. A link request (I just linked to a 5 year old post) that is targeted and customized will answer the question, […]
Again…your site…your book…your organizational tools for making my job easier are a blessing to me and the company I work for. I am also a student in a web design course at a State College and will be passing this on to everyone in my five classes.
You make my life easy and may this bring you many blessings.
Thank you
Michael
Again…your site…your book…your organizational tools for making my job easier are a blessing to me and the company I work for. I am also a student in a web design course at a State College and will be passing this on to everyone in my five classes.
You make my life easy and may this bring you many blessings.
Thank you
Razon
Thanks so much for the tools and insight. Your book is a huge weight off my shoulders!
Sheldon
Comments are closed.