Although backlinks improve domain rating and search engine results page (SERP) ranking, some marketers doubt whether they’re worth the investment. Brands often focus on PPC ads instead. They would rather run multiple social media campaigns than spend a few hundred dollars reaching out to webmasters.
Should you invest in editorial placements? The answer: yes! However, we encourage learning to execute editorial placement strategies correctly first. Study how to do editorial placements, assess the most effective ways to utilize the benefits of editorial placements, then incorporate backlinks into your marketing campaigns.
Editorial placements are backlinks incorporated into existing or indexed content. In most cases, webmasters add new backlinks to eliminate outdated information, verify claims, or update any statistics mentioned.
Webmasters can actively add and remove new backlinks any time they want. However, they sparingly use free, unsolicited editorial placements since these links significantly benefit the website mentioned. In terms of SEO value, they’re similar to sponsored guest posts. Webmasters can either sell editorial placement spots or ask for something of similar value.
After understanding editorial placements and how to execute them, you can now gauge whether you should invest in them or not. Here are some of the reasons why you need these backlinks:
Linking your website to a reputable, respectable brand leaves a positive impression on Google. Crawl bots transfer link equity between backlinks. As such, web pages with multiple high-quality editorial placements gain more authority, enabling them to rank higher in SERPs.
Editorial placements help you position your brand as an industry thought leader. For instance, let’s say a finance site made an in-depth review of the tax reform. If you also run a finance blog, you can use this opportunity to incorporate your insights into their indexed content.
Just make sure to provide fresh, valuable information. Webmasters receive dozens of editorial placement requests daily, so you have to set your pitch apart.
Similar to a guest post, editorial placements also serve as excellent tools to build brand awareness. These links introduce your website to new, qualified readers. To ensure that you reach the correct audience, share insights on industry-relevant topics, and reach out to reputable publications.
The most effective way on how to do editorial placements is to research your prospective publications. Remember: landing more backlinks will not automatically improve your ranking. Google even penalizes websites that they suspect run link schemes, so avoid spammy, poor-performing domains with no authority.
Also, research the article where you want to add a link. Webmasters only insert quality editorial placements that bring value to their website, so make sure to pitch unique articles with relevant information.
Quality beats quantity when it comes to pitching. Instead of sending the same cover letter and link to dozens of publications, narrow your prospects down to the most relevant, feasible options. Your piece should match their site’s content. For instance, you cannot expect to land a fitness editorial placement on a finance blogging platform.
Don’t worry if link building still confuses you — you’re not alone. Check out the most commonly asked questions we get about editorial placements.
Neglecting domain ratings is a common mistake when landing backlinks. Having disreputable websites link to your pages does more harm than good. In the worst case, Google can categorize your site as “spammy” based on your low-quality, irrelevant editorial placements.
Focus on landing quality backlinks from reputable publications in your industry. For instance, let’s say you run a finance website. Strive to earn editorial placements in recognized sites like The Balance or NerdWallet. Meanwhile, health and wellness brands can target sites like Healthline or Livestrong.
No, a guest post and editorial placement are not the same. Editorial placements are backlinks incorporated into existing posts, while guest posts primarily consist of freshly written and published articles.
Overall, landing a quality editorial placement benefits your domain authority and SERP ranking. Just make sure to focus on quality backlinks. Editorial placements and sponsored guest posts only boost site performance if they come from relevant, reputable, and high-ranking publications.
Also, don’t worry if you still find the concept of editorial placements confusing. Before mapping out your marketing strategy, reassess the benefits of editorial placements and see how they fare against other tactics like sponsored guest posts, on-page SEO, and PPC ads.
Do you still have doubts about whether you should invest in a solid link-building strategy? Let Automatic Growth shed some light on the topic! Check out our piece explaining the importance of quality backlinks.
