Link-Building Secrets Unveiled: AMA with SEO Pros, Part 2

Can you get quality backlinks on a zero budget? When should you build links yourself and when is it better to outsource? When does a paid backlink make sense and when is it a no-no? How can you know if your link-building efforts are not wasted?

In our latest live fireside chat, SEO pros Robert Kormoczi and Oussama Bettaieb shared practical tips on all this and more. Grab your coffee (or your favorite link-building fuel), and let’s dive in!

Missed Part 1 of the Link-Building AMA? Check it out here.

Q: Paid links are one of the controversial SEO topics. What's your take - are they a necessary evil, a risky thing, or a perfectly normal arrangement?

Oussama:
Honestly, I think everyone’s paying for links in one way or another. Whether it’s an agency paying for a placement fee or a client covering your efforts, there’s money circulating in this industry.

But there are three main drawbacks to paid links.

• First, you often don’t control the site where your link will end up. You might pay $100, and six months later, the page is gone or the site’s vanished, and your money is wasted.
• Second, they might tag it as a sponsored post. While that’s not the worst thing, it’s not always ideal if you’re looking to get the best return.
• And third, it’s tempting to rely on paying because it’s easy, but it can mean missing out on more creative, impactful ways to build links.

Paid links seem tempting and are kind of a standard in link-building - but they come with some risks

I’m not saying I haven’t tried paid links — I have, and I think most link builders have done it at some point.

But I see it as a last resort. If you’re in an industry where it’s nearly impossible to get links, maybe paying is an option, but I’d generally avoid it and try other tactics first.

Robert:
I agree, it’s a reality of the industry. Oussama explained it well—it’s almost like the Swiss bank model, where one party is paying, another is receiving. I don’t see a problem with it as long as you’re being responsible with natural placements that drive real organic traffic.

I worked with a cybersecurity firm that expected quick results: 20-30 links wasn’t enough; they wanted 50 or 60, so we had to outsource heavily to meet those demands.

The reality is, many companies pay because they don’t have the patience to wait for natural links. This demand keeps this industry going. If you want to generate leads or attract clients through SEO, paying for links is often a necessary investment.

Interestingly, even clients who don’t know much about SEO come directly asking for “link-building services,” not just “help to rank.”

The industry is mature, maybe even saturated. Everybody’s trying to stand out, and unfortunately, those with bigger budgets often dominate by paying for faster results. So, creativity and innovation become critical.

My advice: focus on relationship-building through personalized outreach. It sounds basic, but a thoughtful email — addressing someone by name, mentioning specific aspects of their site, and showing genuine interest — can go a long way. It’s time-consuming, yes, but it’s an effective way to build natural links without needing to pay every time.

Q: For in-house marketers with no link-building budget, are there any ways to get good links for free?

Oussama:
As an in-house marketer, you need to understand not only your industry but also the related fields around it. This is key to finding ways to attract people to link to your content.

For instance, when I worked for a UK-based real estate startup Getting On The Ladder, our competitors controlled nearly 99% of the market. It was an incredibly competitive space.

To get free backlinks, I looked into related industries that our target audience might also be interested in — like mortgages, since many people buying new homes need financing.

Building links for free is totally possible - here are the essentials

I reached out to mortgage sites and invited them to participate in a roundup article on our blog covering topics like mortgage options and government schemes. Even though our domain had DR2 and theirs was DR30-40, they were interested because we proposed a valuable topic.

As a result, they linked back to us, boosting our authority.

So, the key is to understand your niche's ecosystem. If your main industry is super competitive, reach out to peripheral fields with lower stakes, pitch them something compelling, and aim for a mention or a link back.

Robert:
In the short term, you could do ABC link exchanges in Slack communities. There are all sorts of industry-specific Slack groups out there where people exchange links, but be careful. You need to filter out those that look shady, or it can backfire.

Long term, I recommend a more strategic approach. If you're a business owner or working with small businesses, the content has to be high-quality, or no one will want to link to it.

I focus on understanding the business’s core goals and reaching out to specific, niche-relevant sites based on that. It takes time to build email templates, research relevant sites, and send out those outreach emails, but once the system is set up, it becomes easier to scale and can deliver better results than quick link exchanges.

Backlinks are a part of your overall SEO, marketing, and larger business strategy

Think of link-building like sales. You’re essentially convincing someone to link to your site, so why not study sales techniques? I learned a lot from sales podcasts, especially about email sequences and follow-ups. It’s made a big difference —even without a big budget, I’ve managed to get links from sites that none of my clients’ competitors had access to.

So, think like a salesperson, focus on building those connections, and remember, you don’t always need fancy software to do this; a few free tools and some persistence can get you very far.

Q: As an in-house marketer, how do I know when to build backlinks myself and when to outsource?

Robert:
It all depends on where your time is best spent.

Link building is time-consuming, so if there are other tasks — like content creation or running ads—that could bring more value, then outsourcing may make sense. If you have the budget and can find reliable people to help, outsourcing can give you back that time for more impactful work.

From my experience in the startup world, once companies completed their seed or Series A rounds and had more resources, they started hiring in-house link-building teams. This worked because they could train these teams, and within a few months, they were up and running.

So, it all comes down to budget, time, and personal preferences. There’s no one-size-fits-all answer, but if you’re stretched thin, outsourcing could be a game-changer.

Q: Many SEOs struggle to gauge the real impact of their link-building campaigns. Any advice on how to tackle this?

Robert:
It really depends on the company, but let’s break it down.

Why do people invest in SEO and link-building in the first place? Ultimately, it’s about client acquisition and driving higher revenue. I’ve worked in a range of industries — from web hosting to fraud prevention to the job search space—and the end goal for most CEOs, CROs, or CFOs is usually the same: client acquisition.

When I was at HubSpot, we had a tracking system that measured leads generated and how many of those turned into clients. We had around 200,000 Euros for PPC and 100,000 Euros for SEO.

Over time, we noticed that SEO was outperforming PPC, so we shifted more budget into link-building. For us, more links led to more organic traffic, which is one key metric.

Other companies might focus more on brand awareness or general organic traffic, which is fine too. But for companies focused on growth, the number of leads and customers is the real priority.

Oussama:
When launching a link-building campaign, it's important to set clear targets.

You can’t adjust your link targets every week or every month. I prefer a three-month cycle, sometimes even six months.

During that time, I focus on specific pages and keywords. As Robert said, it all comes down to growing the business, but link-building alone won’t get you there — it needs to be part of a larger strategy.

For example, if you’re targeting three high-value blogs, those are the pages to focus your link-building on — not just any blog. Ideally, you’re targeting pages with specific keywords or variations.

After three months, I evaluate the success of the campaign and decide if I need to pivot.

I look at:

• the keywords I targeted;
• the pages;
• the overall impact on the website.

If there’s an increase in leads, that’s a strong indicator of link-building success, but it’s also a result of combined efforts — paid campaigns, SEO, and so on.

I use tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, and SimilarWeb to quantify results. If you look beyond link-building and into SEO, tracking keyword rankings over time is one of the best metrics to follow.

Read more: 12 Best SEO Software Tools for Your Small Business [2024 Review]

I most trust data from Google Search Console and Google Analytics 4. I gather everything in Google Sheets and analyze it from there.

It’s not just about copying and pasting; it’s about creating models that can predict the impact of your efforts.

Try this 5-step framework for evaluating your link-building campaigns

For one client, we used these projections to estimate lead generation from each campaign and its value. Building a predictive model for next steps is essential. Google Sheets can handle this, but you could also use Python or other tools. It’s not about the tool but the methodology.

Read more: Can't Measure Link-Building ROI? Read this (A 5 steps’ Guide)

Q: Which link-building tactics used to work well but aren’t that effective anymore?

Oussama:
Backlink exchange comes to mind. It can still work, but only if you’re selective about the links you exchange.

If you’re grabbing links from random sources, it won’t impact the business. I still do link exchanges, but I’m cautious and focused on quality.

Guest posting is another one — it works, but it’s become harder because editors know they can charge for posts. And with the sites that don’t charge, there’s so much content submitted that it’s hard to stand out. I avoid anything that isn’t unique.

Focusing too much on Domain Rating (DR) and Domain Authority (DA) is another outdated approach. There’s more to it than those numbers.

Look at the website itself: who are they linking to, and what’s the balance between backlinks and referring domains? If they use commercial anchor texts like "buy now," they may not be the best sites for clients.

Many of the old tactics are about quick wins. I advise clients not to work with link-builders who only care about DR 70+ sites. Sometimes, a site with lower DR can offer more value.

A link from a highly trafficked site doesn’t mean much if nobody clicks on it. I’d prefer a link from a DR 10 site with engaged readers than a high-DR site where no one actually sees it. Especially since Google has confirmed that links with actual traffic and engagement pass more link equity or "link juice."

DR and DA are not the most important factor in backlink building, according to Oussama

Closing Thoughts

This fireside chat was packed with takeaways — link-building isn’t just about numbers; it’s about building authentic connections.

Robert and Oussama didn’t hold back, sharing tactical advice that breaks away from the usual noise to show how focusing on value, understanding your audience, and forging real relationships is the winning formula.

And if you want to build high-quality, free backlinks with vetted sites without cold emails, consider giving Ranking Raccoon a try. It's free for 14 days - and you can build unlimited strong backlinks!

We're rooting for you!