What is broken link building and is it worth doing?
Broken link building is a process primarily focused on quality content and a desire to inform readers of this content. Whilst it sounds appealing, broken link building can be tricky as it depends heavily on multiple variables that are uncontrolled.
Broken link building is built on finding ‘broken links’ that you pick up on websites, and reaching out to writers to try and achieve a backlink. A ‘broken link’ occurs where a site intends on linking to your website, however, the link does not go through or does not exist. This technique is used by SEO agencies to gain more backlinks through a relatively simple job. There are numerous reasons broken links can occur:
The linked web page was removed (404 error).
The website linked to does not exist any longer.
There is a firewall of some sort blocking the destination website.
The site’s URL was amended.
How do you find broken links to repair?
Obtaining broken links from non-competitors:
Make a list of non-competitive websites you would like to have a link from – ones with high domain authority or ranking.
Use a dead link checker to search if any of these websites link out to any 404 errors.
Make a list of the ones that do and find their webmaster’s content information. Pitch to them content you own that would be appropriate to replace the broken link.
Obtaining links that were linked to competitors:
List 5 websites you want your site to overtake in search rankings.
Analyse backlink tools to find broken links that link back to these websites.
Extract these and pitch to webmasters your own content that would be.
