Need some more backlinks to boost your search rank? If so, then it might be time to compose a link outreach email for SEO.
If you’re unsure about how to compose an outreach email, read on.
If you’re unfamiliar with the concept of link outreach, it’s an email-based “cold call” to a webmaster who owns a site that you really want to link to your own website.
And yes, you can get a backlink with that kind of pitch.
However, you will have to know what you’re doing.
Link Outreach Email General Tips
Before we get into specific outreach email strategies, let’s first go over some basic principles.
For starters, proofread your work.
And then, when you’ve done that, proofread again.
Seriously, nothing will limit your ability to secure a backlink more than a pitch letter filled with grammatical errors and typos.
On the other hand, you don’t have to write like William Shakespeare to get a positive response. So don’t stress too much over your word choices and sentence structures.
Next, use short subject lines.
You’re busy. So is the person you’re trying to reach.
Limit your subject line to as few words as possible so that the webmaster can quickly get the message you’re trying to convey.
Outreach Email: Keep Subject Lines Short
Also, some email readers won’t display excessively long subject lines. So your message could get cut off if you get too verbal.
Next, do some research.
Even though the people you’re contacting won’t know you, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t know anything about them.
Take a few minutes to do some up-front research. Read blog posts that they’ve written. Check out their online biographies.
You might be able to reference one or two things about the person in your outreach email. That could help you land a backlink.
Finally, don’t follow up more than three times.
If you get too aggressive, you’ll just alienate the people you’re trying to reach and possibly hurt your brand in the process.
Instead of being a pest, focus on the “warm” leads.
Now that we’ve looked at a few basic principles of effective email outreach, let’s go over some specific strategies you can use to snag backlinks from people you don’t know.
Link Outreach Email – Offer a First Preview
Sometimes, the best way to get a backlink is to ask the webmaster if he or she wants a “first look” at the content you’re linking to. This strategy usually works best if the content is an infographic or a video.
Obviously, most webmasters will want to make sure that they’re linking to relevant and helpful content. That’s why it’s a good idea to give them a glimpse of your work before asking for a link.
Here’s what an outreach email that uses this strategy might look like:
Subject: Interested in a Movie About Social Media Marketing?
Hi James,
I love your guide on social media marketing. You really did a good job.
I wanted to let you know about a new social media marketing movie that just launched featuring Jay Baer, Michael Stelzner, Brenda Ster, Joel Comm, Mari Smith, Sue Zimmerman, Leslie Samuel, Sunny Lenarduzzi, Viveka von Rosen and Amy Landino.
The movie is live now so you can watch it here.
https://ignitevisibility.com/social-media-marketing-movie/
We would love it if you can share this on social media. Also be a great idea to link to this from your guide so that it’s really the most complete guide on social media marketing online.
You may also want to consider doing a review of the movie if you like it!
Thank you so much for your help,
Joe
Chances are pretty good that James would love to see that before any other bloggers in his space get their hands on it. With that kind of an email, you should get a positive response.
Also: if you don’t promise James an exclusive look, there’s no reason why you can’t pitch that infographic to multiple webmasters.
Make an Exclusive Offer In Your Link Outreach Email
As we’ve just seen, you can sometimes pitch several webmasters the same thing. On other occasions, though, you might need to offer just one webmaster an exclusive look.
This strategy will work well with popular blogs that are always looking for a “scoop.” That is, they want the story before anyone else gets it.
It also works with journalists. They always want to be the first one with a new story.
Here’s what an exclusive offer outreach email would look like:
Subject: Exclusive New Research About Email Marketing
Hi James,
I love your guide on email marketing. You really did a good job.
I wanted to let you know about some new email marketing research that our digital marketing company just released.
You can see a small portion of the study by clicking on the private link at the end of this email.
I would like to know if you’d be interested in an exclusive look at the whole report? Also, it would be a great idea to link to it from your guide so that it’s really the most complete guide to email marketing online.
You may also want to consider doing a separate article about the research.
Thank you so much for your help,
Joe
As you can see from the example, the email is a tease. It shares just a glimpse of one of the more interesting stats as a way to whet James’ appetite.
If you’ve got some original research that will be of value to people in your target market, pitch it to a high-profile blogger or journalist for an exclusive look.
Promote Something Relevant In Your Link Outreach Email
Look for a blog that’s recently posted an article related to your own business model. Then, offer to include additional info.
Usually, webmasters will be happy to include new content that bolsters the point they’re trying to make in one of their own articles.
That, by the way, is one of the reasons why outreach emails are so effective. Webmasters are almost always looking for fresh, relevant content. If they can get it for free and don’t have to spend time writing anything, they’ll usually jump on the opportunity.
Here’s an example of an email that offers relevant content:
Subject: You’re Right About Email Open Rates
Hi James,
I read your article on how to improve email open rates. You’re spot-on that marketers should focus more on teasing the email content rather than promoting an outside article.
I know that because our firm conducts research for digital marketers. Recently, we’ve compiled a variety of email marketing stats collected from businesses of varying sizes across several industries.
It looks like you got ahead of our report!
Feel free to view that report by clicking on the link at the end of this email.
I would like to know if you’d be interested in research we have that shows a direct correlation between click-through rates and the types of action words included in the subject line? If so, I’ll be happy to write something up for you.
Also, it would be a great idea to link to our report from your guide so that it’s really the most complete guide to email marketing online.
You may also want to consider doing a separate article about the report.
Thank you so much for your help,
Joe
In this case, Joe is offering to share content relevant to an article that’s already on the blog.
Make a Direct Offer In Your Link Outreach Email
Sometimes, it’s best not to overthink your strategy. Just flat-out ask if you can write content for the blog.
You should still put some salesmanship into it, though. Make it clear how the webmaster benefits if you write an article.
Here’s an example of an outreach email that makes a direct offer:
Subject: How Would You Like Some Free Content About Email Marketing?
Hi James,
I appreciate your blog posts about email marketing. I’ve learned quite a bit by reading through your content.
Our firm conducts research for digital marketers. Recently, we’ve compiled a variety of email marketing stats collected from businesses of varying sizes across several industries.
Feel free to view that report by clicking on the link at the end of this email.
I would like to know if you’d be interested in a write-up of some of the more surprising stats that we’ve discovered? I’ll be happy to take care of that for you..
Also, it would be a great idea to link to our report in one or more of your blog posts. You’ll find that our research supports the points you’re making.
You may also want to consider doing a separate article about the report.
Thank you so much for your help,
Joe
That’s basically a direct pitch. It’s probably the most common type of email you’ll send when trying to build your backlink profile.
Drop a Name (But Not Just Any Name)
One way you might secure a backlink is by dropping a name in your email pitch.
Not just any name, though. Drop the name of the webmaster you’re sending the email to!
Here’s how you might do something like that:
Subject: Your Research Is In Our New Report
Hi James,
I’ve been reading through your digital marketing blog for the past 6 months. Your observations about email marketing are outstanding.
In fact, our market research company included some of your data in our upcoming report, entitled “Important Facts and Figures About Email Marketing in 2018.”
You can download the PDF by clicking on the link at the bottom of this email.
We would love it if you can share this on social media. Also be a great idea to link to this from your blog posts so that your readers have even more evidence that you’re offering them great advice.
You may also want to consider writing a separate article about the report.
Keep up the great work!
Regards,
Joe
You might notice that Joe didn’t put any call to action in that email. He didn’t have to.
James will likely view the report. If he likes it, he’ll link to it from his own blog because it promotes his brand.
Use Social Proof In Your Link Outreach Email
It may be the case that you’ve got some great content on your blog that’s receiving lots of social shares. Maybe it even went viral.
If so, mention that in your outreach email.
Why? Because it’s a form of social proof. It lets webmasters know that they’re linking to quality, in-demand content.
Here’s how you can include social proof in your pitch:
Subject: Everybody’s Talking About These Email Marketing Stats
Hi James,
I noticed that your blog has a lot of great content about email marketing.
Our digital marketing research firm has just published a new report that validates some of your advice. As of now, that content has more than 2,200 shares on Twitter and 1,700 shares on Facebook.
You can see the report by following the link at the end of this email.
I’d be happy to summarize it for you and include it as an article on your own blog.
We would love it if you can share a link to the report on social media. Also be a great idea to link to it from your blog.
You may also want to consider doing a separate article about the research as well.
Thanks so much for your help.
Regards,
Joe
After reading a pitch like that, the webmaster is likely to believe that a similar report will get quite a few shares on his or her own website. That’s why it’s effective.
Outreach Email: Include Social Proof
Mention Broken Links
Be a Good Samaritan and you might find that you earn a backlink.
Check out some websites that have a “Blogroll” or something similar where they list blogs that their readers might be interested in.
Scroll through that list of sites, clicking each one along the way. You might (and probably will) find a few broken links.
Send the webmaster an email alerting him or her that there’s a broken link on the site. Within that email, gently request a link to your own site.
Here’s how that email might look:
Subject: Broken Link On Your Site
Hi James,
I was browsing through your site an noticed that you have a link to AllYouNeedToKnow.com. It looks like that link doesn’t work anymore. It returns a 404 error.
There are other broken links as well. I’ll be happy to send you a complete list if you’re interested.
Also, I think my own site DigitalMarketingResearch.com would be a great fit for your blogroll. It’s got exactly the kind of market research that I think your readers will find interesting.
Regards,
Joe
Often times, webmasters will “reward” you for pointing out broken links by adding your own link in their lists of related sites.
Wrapping It Up Link Outreach Emails
If you’ve got some great content on your site but still need to improve your rank, look for link building opportunities on other, well-established sites.
Start by contacting the site owners with an outreach email. Use one of the examples given above as a source of inspiration.
Then, post some relevant content on another blog and watch your backlink profile grow.
