Tiered link building is an essential search engine optimization (SEO) tactic that involves obtaining backlinks from websites that fall into different categories of authority and relevance. Implementing a structured approach to link building can maximize a website’s ability to rank higher in search engines.
Search engines like Google determine how authoritative and essential a website is primarily based on the number and quality of other sites linking to it. Links essentially act as “votes” that influence rankings. Not all backlinks have equal weight, however. Links from high-authority sites in a relevant niche provide a more significant boost than those from newly created blogs.
A tiered strategy recognizes this link equity concept and systematizes earning backlinks. The aim is to build links, known as “referring domains,” from sites segmented into quality tiers. The higher tiers have the most power to influence search rankings for targeted keywords.
This comprehensive guide will explore tiered link building, its intended impact, and tips for mapping out a practical step-by-step plan.
The main topics will include:
- What is Tiered Link Building? A definition and explanation of its role within a holistic SEO plan
- Tips for Optimizing Tier 1 Links: Strategic guidance on acquiring influential backlinks from authority sites
- Building Tier 2 and Tier 3 Links: Approaches for obtaining links en masse to amplify the effects of Tier 1 links
- Measuring Success: Key metrics to track to assess the ROI of investment into a layered link-building campaign
- Common Mistakes to Avoid: Pitfalls that can undermine progress or possibly jeopardize site rankings
An adequately orchestrated tiered link-building strategy requires significant effort but pays dividends over time through better search visibility and organic website traffic. This comprehensive guide provides online businesses the blueprint for executing a successful campaign from top to bottom tiers.
What is Tiered Link Building?
Tiered link building is a strategic approach to obtaining incoming links from websites that fall under different categories based on their authority within a given niche. The goal is to build links across three separate tiers: Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3. Each tier plays a specific role in improving a site’s domain authority and search rankings.
Tier 1 refers to securing backlinks from the most reputable and influential sites within an industry or topic area. These are often published resources like significant news outlets, web traffic analysis tools, directories with high domain authority, and the most trusted independent review websites. Tier 1 links carry the most weight in Google’s algorithm calculations because they come from sites with significant clout.
Think of industry authorities like The New York Times or Bloomberg. Links published on these large properties signal trust and credibility to search engines. A single link may take months to acquire through dedicated outreach and relationship-building. However, the payoff can elevate website rankings substantially by lending extreme credibility.
Tier 2 refers to respected blogs, small publications, lesser-known analysis websites, niche directories, web 2.0 properties, etc. Tier 2 typically describes resources that enjoy robust traffic and engagement among enthusiasts but have not yet broken into the mainstream. These sites still publish quality signals that search algorithms pick up on when crawling the web.
For example, a guitar gear blog may not have the reach of Rolling Stone but can move the needle if a link appears on a popular modeler pedal review. The web is filled with obsessed bloggers who wield influence among devotees. Brand mentions on these passion project sites add up, increasing relevance and authority around chosen keywords.
Finally, Tier 3 represents the broadest group of generally low-authority sites from which search engines still crawl and index links, such as small blogs, armchair review blogs without an audience, lesser-visited web forums, and content aggregators. Many businesses disregard these bottom-tier sites, but Google technically follows their linking patterns and can use this activity to validate backlinking across higher tiers.
The main goals and benefits of employing a tiered methodology are –
1) Efficiently build links en masse across diverse sites to shape how algorithms view your domain authority.
2) Target website traffic spikes by earning links from genre and niche-specific blogs in Tiers 1 & 2.
3) Control link velocity and allow riskier efforts around Tier 3 to bolster a more conservative high-tier strategy.
Tips for Optimizing Tier 1 Links
The most critical component of a tiered link-building campaign is securing authoritative backlinks from brand-name sites and industry publications with high domain authority and search traffic. Landing a Tier 1 link takes persistence and a strategic approach.
Start by researching competitors and websites ranking highly for target keywords to identify sites linking to those domains. Use a tool like Ahrefs to analyze what properties often appear under “Referring Domains” reports. Take note of websites driving significant organic traffic.
Compile a list of 20-50 high-authority sites accepting contributor posts, listicle mentions, product reviews, interviews and expert quotes. News publications, magazines, and mainstream blogs should factor prominently on this list.
Conduct further analysis on each site’s domain and page authority scores, organic search traffic numbers, website engagement metrics, and typical links per content piece. Filter down to roughly 15-25 viable targets considering this data.
Now prepare tiered outreach across these targets involving:
- Personalized story pitches highlighting novelty, exclusivity, and newsworthiness angles.
- Niche contributor posts that align closely with a publication’s vertical and top-performing content.
- Guest posts aimed at driving lead generation or sales.
- Trade product reviews for thorough testimonials.
- Contribute expert insights for relevant listicles or special features.
- Response rates for cold Tier 1 link pitches might sit around 2-3%, meaning expect lots of non-replies. But with a robust outreach list, securing just 1-2 placements per quarter can pay dividends.
Patience and regular follow-ups set apart successful Tier 1 link builders. Don’t overly optimize anchor text links, which might raise flags. Instead, focus on conversions and clicks from earned feature placements.
Measure Tier 1 links based on domains acquired rather than sheer numbers. One broadcast link on a premium site outweighs multiple links from lesser properties. Prioritizing influential sites also reduces the workload of manually building hundreds of links. Quality handily beats quantity when it comes to elite backlinks.
Building Tier 2 Links
Tier 2 links come from sites less authoritative than top-tier media but with engaged niche audiences. Goals include:
- Boost website credibility in the eyes of search algorithms by acquiring backlinks from respected blogs/publications beyond Tier 1 places
- Continue targeting sites relevant to your industry – their endorsement matters more than domain authority
- Funnel highly targeted visitors from blogs enjoying strong organic traffic but lower overall domain strength
- Diversify backlink profile with additional domains to augment a small number of Tier 1’s
- Employ more aggressive outreach activity compared to Tier 1
Slightly Less Authoritative But Still Relevant Sites
Types of Tier 2 sites might include:
- Well-trafficked blogs focusing on single categories/products
- Known publications that lack household name recognition
- Lesser-visited sites in a company’s niche sector
- Specialized directories with strong page authority for certain topics
- Web 2.0 and profile link building properties
- Relevance remains essential – almost on par with authority/traffic numbers. But loosening constraints on domain strength allows you to cast a wider net.
Automation Tools That Can Help
Software can assist with:
- Site prospecting to quickly find blogs/zines publishing related content
- Initial outreach tasks like cold emails at scale
- Follow-up sequences every 2-3 days after first touch point
- Analyzing campaign metrics across link placements
- Tools streamline cumbersome manual workflows. But personalized relationship-building should continue driving tier 2 link acquisition efforts. Prioritize blogger partnerships through persistent nurturing.
Maximizing Your Tier 3 Links
Lowest Tier But Still Provide SEO Value
Tier 3 refers to low-quality sites with minimal traffic or engagement. But their linking value includes:
- Provides more data points for search engine crawlers reading signals about site credibility
- Sheer volume of links can demonstrate popularity even if individual links lack authority
- An easy “quick win” to build momentum before pursuing higher tiers
- Low-risk link building unlikely to trigger algorithm penalties
So while the sites themselves do not move needles, cross-site linking patterns do matter. A blanket of niche blogs linking to a website still beats no links whatsoever.
Easy to Obtain at Scale
Types of Tier 3 sites:
- Small personal blogs, microblogs
- Obscure forums and classified sites
- Article directories
- Web 2.0s and business listings
- Low-traffic aggregators and content farms
- Doorway pages, blog comments, and guest posting opportunities also abound across Tier 3. Automation and outsourcing can help activate hundreds of links from such properties every month.
Avoiding Pitfalls
Be careful, as…
- Overoptimizing anchor text links triggers penalties
- Too many site-wide links appear manipulative
- Irrelevant niche sites should be avoided
So keep anchor text varied, build links slowly, use partial automation, and stay targeted. Tier 3 only augments higher tiers rather than replacing them outright. Keep expectations realistic about the actual value provided.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
One of the greatest oversights involves aggressively pursuing links without a “natural” distribution approach. Google’s algorithms can readily identify tactics like targeting a concentrated group of terms for anchor text optimization. Overoptimized anchor text can create an extremely visibly footprint.
Avoid setting excessively ambitious targets for volume of links per month. Mass-building efforts often trip quality checks and raise red flags. Not to mention overburdening site architecture with an avalanche of inbound links. BUILD links slowly, persistently, and focusing more on relevance than rapid gains.
Also steer clear of low-quality networks and link schemes. So-called “link farms” typically encompass junk domains only meant to forward artificial equity. Although link networks may show fast results, the risk posed by future algorithm updates makes them useless as cornerstones of any SEO.
Automation tools lend a helpful hand when carrying out systematic outreach campaigns. But careful quality checks are essential to ensure marketers aren’t spamming websites. Personalizing all tier 1 pitches builds sustainable link partnerships rooted in added value for both parties. Rote emails from auto-populated lists harm credibility.
One of the trickiest landmines comes from risks outside your control, namely the sites choosing to publish your links. A toxic backlink from a manipulative site that gets penalized could negatively impact website reputation overall. Again underlining why relationships and relevance come before quantidade across tiers.
A thoughtful, conservative pacing that embraces the long-game in cultivating a diversified backlink profile is always preferential over rapid success through questionable tactics. Stay vigilant against common shortcuts that could undermine months of hitting the grindstone.
Conclusion
Executing an optimized multi-tiered link building campaign is foundational to competitive search performance. Earning backlinks remains among the highest-impact SEO activities for elevating website authority and keyword rankings.
By categorizing link prospects according to their influence and segmentation within an industry, brands can take a structured approach to outreach. Prioritizing sites with significant referral traffic and engagement builds links that move needles.
Securing placements on just a handful of widely-read blogs over the course of a year could drive more conversions than hundreds of links from marginal sites. The quality over quantity principle applies to balancing link velocity with long-term growth.
Patience and persistence set great link builders apart. Not every website will recognize the mutual value of partnerships right away. But by persistently nurturing relationships with personalized pitches, the most reputable sites often reciprocate with feature placements.
Ongoing link building and monitoring should be core pillars within an organization’s SEO strategy if increased organic visibility is the goal. The sweat equity pays off over time as new links compound over existing equity to lift pages higher in SERPs.
Education and staying atop the latest algorithm updates are mandatory as with any Google-driven initiative. Google cracks down on manipulative tactics while rewarding organic user signals. Ultimately, search visibility hinges upon the totality of trust-flows via links.
We invite readers to share their tiered link-building efforts and lessons learned below in the comments. Subscribe to our newsletter for future posts and strategy inspiration around leveraging links for measurable wins across competitive keywords.
