How to Get Quality Links Without Guest Posting in 2022

Quality backlinks have long been one of the most important ranking factors for SEO. But the days of spammy guest posting to quickly build links are over. Google has cracked down hard on this practice, and it’s just not an effective strategy anymore.

So how can you get high-quality backlinks in 2022 without resorting to guest posting? I’m about to share 7 actionable (and ethical) link building strategies that have helped me grow my site to over 1.6 million total backlinks.

Let’s dive in!

1. Leverage HARO for Powerful Backlinks

HARO, or Help a Reporter Out, is a free service that connects journalists with expert sources. And it just so happens to be an incredible way to build white hat backlinks.

Here’s how it works: Journalists post queries on HARO looking for sources to interview or quote in their articles. You sign up as a source, keep an eye out for relevant queries, and then pitch yourself as an expert.

If the journalist likes your pitch, they’ll include a backlink to your site in their article. And these aren’t just any old backlinks – we’re talking about high-authority, contextual links from respected publications.

I’ve personally used HARO to build links from some incredible sites, like this one from a DR76 university:

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The key is to keep your pitches brief, valuable, and laser-focused on what the journalist is looking for. Don’t just spam them with a generic sales pitch.

2. Create Skyscraper Content

The Skyscraper Technique is a classic link building strategy that still works incredibly well today. The basic idea is to create a piece of content that’s significantly better than what’s already ranking for your target keywords.

Here’s how I do it:

1. Find a piece of content in your industry that’s already performed well in terms of backlinks. You can do this with a simple Google search.

2. Create a new piece of content that’s 5-10x better than what you found. This could mean making it longer, more comprehensive, more up-to-date, etc.

3. Promote the heck out of your new “Skyscraper” content. Reach out to everyone you mentioned, influencers in your space, and sites that have linked to the original content.

I used this strategy to create an epic list of 170+ SEO tools. It’s now earned over 1,000 backlinks from high-authority sites like Entrepreneur, HubSpot, and GoDaddy.

The key is to create something truly remarkable. Don’t just slap together a mediocre blog post and expect the links to roll in.

3. The “Moving Man” Method

This is a personal favorite of mine – it’s a clever twist on the classic broken link building strategy.

The basic idea is to find sites that have recently rebranded or retired a popular resource, and then reach out to the sites still linking to the old, outdated URL.

Here’s how it works:

1. Find a site that has recently rebranded or removed a popular resource. A great example is when SEOMoz changed their name to Moz a while back.

2. Use a backlink checker tool to find all the sites linking to the old, outdated URL.

3. Reach out to those sites and give them a quick heads-up about the outdated link. Offer to provide them with a link to your relevant, up-to-date resource as a replacement.

I’ve used this strategy to build some killer backlinks from high-authority, relevant sites. And it works because you’re actually providing value to the site owner by helping them improve their content.

4. Leverage Resource Pages

Resource pages are the holy grail of link building. These are pages that exist solely to link out to other helpful resources on a given topic.

To find these pages, search for things like:

• “[Your Topic] resources”
• “[Your Topic] links”
• “useful [Your Topic] sites”

Then, reach out to the site owners and politely ask if they’d be willing to add your relevant resource to their page. Just make sure you have something truly valuable to offer.

I’ve scored some great links from resource pages over the years, like this one from a DA87 site:

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5. Turn Unlinked Brand Mentions Into Backlinks

It happens all the time – someone mentions your brand or site in a blog post, but they don’t actually link to you. These are called “unlinked brand mentions”, and they’re low-hanging fruit when it comes to link building.

All you have to do is reach out to the site owner and politely ask them to link to your site. Something like this usually works well:

“Hi [Name], I just came across your latest article: [Article Title]. Awesome work! I wanted to reach out and say thanks for mentioning [Your Brand Name]. If you have a minute, it would be great if you could link to our site so your readers can easily find the post you referenced. Let me know if you have any other questions!”

This is a super simple way to pick up some easy backlinks.

6. Name Your Link Building Strategies

This may sound a bit strange, but hear me out. One of the best ways to get people linking to your content is to give your link building strategies a memorable name.

For example, I created a strategy called the “Moving Man Method” (which you just learned about). By giving it a catchy name, it made the strategy much more memorable and shareable.

In fact, people have written entire blog posts about the Moving Man Method, and those posts have earned me some killer backlinks.

The key is to come up with a name that’s unique, explains what the strategy does, and is easy to remember. Things like “The [Adjective] [Noun] Method” tend to work really well.

7. Reach Out With “Feeler” Emails

When it comes to link building outreach, you have two basic options: ask for a link in your first email, or send a “feeler” email first to gauge interest.

In my experience, the “feeler” email approach tends to perform much better. It goes something like this:

“Hi [Name], I was just browsing your site and noticed you have a great resource on [Topic]. I actually recently published a piece on the same topic that I think your readers would find valuable. Would you be open to taking a look at it? No pressure at all, just wanted to share it with you.”

If they say yes, then you can follow up with your link request. But by starting with a “feeler”, you’re much more likely to get a positive response.

And there you have it – 7 proven strategies for building high-quality backlinks in 2022 without relying on guest posting.

I know link building can be a grind, but trust me, it’s worth the effort. Quality backlinks are still one of the most important ranking factors, and these strategies will help you get the links you need to dominate the SERPs.

Let me know in the comments which of these techniques you’re most excited to try out. I’m always happy to answer any other link building questions you might have!

And don’t forget to check out MCRSEO – we’re a top-rated SEO agency in Manchester, UK that can help take your online presence to new heights.