Link Building with Link Request Emails

It’s hardly the method of choice for most SEOs, but sending link request emails can still be a useful link building strategy. After all, criticisms aside, it produces completely organic links; another webmaster looks at your website and may or may not decide to link to it. That you requested they do so makes little difference, since the email merely brought your site to the webmaster’s attention. If you think about it, it’s not unlike other forms of online advertising.

The key to success with link request emails is all in the execution. Most will fail to produce a link. Many won’t even get read. Done correctly, a handful of those sent out might generate a favorable response. Done incorrectly, you can count on getting a whole lot of nothing (or worse, a bunch of irritated webmasters) for your trouble. It’s the difference between minimal return and no return.

Here are a few guidelines to consider when you’re composing your emails.

• Write a provocative subject. The first step to having your link request considered is to get it read. Be sure to compose a subject that is likely to get your email opened, such as “Re: Their Page’s Title.” Don’t mislead, but don’t entitle your email, “Link Request,” since that’s just asking to have it deleted.
   
• Keep it short. Time and again, webmasters note that the best (i.e. least annoying) link request emails are brief. Don’t provide a lengthy lead-in to the purpose of your email; get to the point tactfully but quickly and conclude the same way. The less you get on the webmaster’s nerves, the more likely they are to consider your request.
   
• Personalize. Do you like getting scripted phone solicitations or “Current resident” junk mail? Of course not. Neither do webmasters. If the reader feels your email was automated or templated, they’re likely to show you as much consideration as they think you’ve shown them. If you know the webmaster’s first name, opening with that is a great start. It’s also useful to say a word or two about their website to demonstrate that the email was composed by a human being who actually visited it.

  Note: Using templated link request emails is perfectly fine. After all, writing a good one can be painstaking work and much of what you have to say will be the same from one email to the next. The point here is that it shouldn’t show. Each email should be customized enough that it sounds like it was composed specifically for the intended reader.
   

• Be polite. Much like link recovery, a webmaster is under no obligation to honor a link request. Ask nicely. Paying their website a compliment can help you get on their good side. If you’re promoting a business website, make your request as professional as possible.
   
• Show benefit. Briefly explain how a link to your site will sync up with their site’s theme and add value for their visitors. If you’re willing to provide a reciprocal link, be sure to say so. In fact, if you’re really gunning for their link, put up a link to their site before sending the email and tell them where to find it. The more incentive you give them to put it up, the more likely they are to do so.
   
• Provide code. In case they aren’t very HTML savvy, provide code for the link that can be copied and pasted directly into their site. Note that customizing this code to the specific website can be an effective way of personalizing the email.
   
• Signal your credibility. Some websites use third party services to build links. Show that you’re actually associated with the site in question by sending from an email address at that domain. It also helps to provide your contact information at the end of the email. Whether or not the webmaster chooses to contact you (most won’t), it still demonstrates that you’re a real person who is willing to discuss the link request.

It’s important to remember, of course, that link request emails are not highly favored for a good reason: They’re annoying. Many webmasters will consider your email to be spam. At best, they may delete it outright and/or filter your email address. At worst, they may respond in an irate manner.

If you’re willing to put up with a few angry emails and a lot of rejection, however, link request emails can net you a handful of valuable, organic links in places where no automated link exchange, directory, or text link ad ever could. They’re definitely not anyone’s first choice for link building, but for a growing website, link request emails can be an effective compliment to an existing link building campaign.

This entry was posted on Saturday, May 12th, 2007 at 7:30 am and is filed under Website Promotion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.