link-building-plan

name	link-building-plan
description	Designs link building strategies with outreach templates, target site lists, and content-based link earning tactics. Use when you need to improve domain authority.
allowed-tools	Read Write Glob
metadata	{"author":"matthewhitcham","version":"1.0"}

Link Building Plan

When to Use This Skill

Use this skill when you need to:

• Build a link building strategy to improve domain authority and rankings
• Create outreach email templates for link acquisition
• Identify link building tactics appropriate for your niche and resources
• Plan content assets designed specifically to attract backlinks

DO NOT use this skill for internal linking strategy (use site-architecture-plan), social media link sharing, or paid link schemes. This is for earning legitimate, editorial backlinks.

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Core Principle

LINK BUILDING IS RELATIONSHIP BUILDING — THE BEST LINKS COME FROM CREATING CONTENT WORTH LINKING TO AND REACHING OUT TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE WITH GENUINE VALUE.

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Phase 1: Brief

Required Inputs

Input	What to Ask	Default
Website	"What is your domain?"	No default — must be provided
Niche/industry	"What industry are you in?"	No default — must be provided
Current backlink profile	"Do you know your current number of referring domains or DA?"	Low / unknown
Content assets	"What notable content do you have? (guides, tools, research, data)"	Limited content
Budget	"Do you have budget for content creation or tools?"	Minimal — bootstrapping
Time commitment	"How many hours per week can you dedicate to link building?"	2-3 hours/week

GATE: Confirm before building the strategy.

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Phase 2: Strategy Design

Link Building Tactics (Prioritized)

Tier 1: Highest ROI for Solopreneurs

1. Guest Posting — write articles for relevant blogs with a link back
2. Resource Page Link Building — find pages that list resources and get yours added
3. Broken Link Building — find broken links on relevant sites, offer your content as replacement
4. HARO/Connectively — respond to journalist queries with expert quotes

Tier 2: Content-Based Link Earning

5. Original Research/Data — surveys, analysis, or unique data that others cite
6. Comprehensive Guides — definitive resources that become the go-to reference
7. Free Tools/Calculators — interactive resources that earn links naturally
8. Infographics — visual content that others embed with attribution

Tier 3: Relationship-Based

9. Podcast Guesting — appear on podcasts for show notes links
10. Expert Roundups — participate in or create expert roundup posts
11. Strategic Partnerships — co-create content with complementary businesses

Target Site Identification

## Link Target Criteria

- Domain Authority/Rating: 20+ (realistic targets)
- Relevance: Same niche or closely related
- Traffic: Active site with real readership
- Link patterns: Already links to similar content
- Contact: Editor or author email findable

## Target Categories
| Category | Example Sites | Tactic |
|----------|--------------|--------|
| Industry blogs | [sites] | Guest post |
| Resource pages | [sites] | Resource outreach |
| News/media | [sites] | HARO, data stories |
| Complementary businesses | [sites] | Co-marketing |

GATE: Approve the strategy and target criteria before writing outreach.

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Phase 3: Write Outreach Templates

Guest Post Pitch

Subject: Content idea for [Site Name]

Hi [Name],

I've been reading [Site Name] for a while — really enjoyed your recent piece on [specific article].

I'd love to contribute a guest post on [proposed topic]. It would cover:
- [Key point 1]
- [Key point 2]
- [Key point 3]

I recently wrote [link to published work] on a related topic, so you can see my writing style.

Would this be a good fit for your readers?

[Your name]

Broken Link Outreach

Subject: Quick heads-up — broken link on [page title]

Hi [Name],

I was reading your [page title] and noticed the link to [broken resource] appears to be down.

I actually have a similar resource that covers [topic]: [your URL]

Might be a good replacement if you're updating that page.

Either way, great resource — thanks for putting it together.

[Your name]

Resource Page Outreach

Subject: Resource suggestion for your [topic] page

Hi [Name],

I found your [resource page title] while researching [topic] — great collection.

I recently published [your content title] which covers [specific angle not on their list]. Thought it might be a good addition: [your URL]

Let me know if you think it fits.

[Your name]

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Phase 4: Polish

1. Monthly Link Building Schedule

Week 1: Prospect research — find 20 target sites
Week 2: Send outreach — 10-15 personalized emails
Week 3: Follow up on non-responses, pitch guest posts
Week 4: Create/publish link-worthy content, track results

2. Tracking System

• Outreach sent, responses received, links acquired
• New referring domains per month (track in Google Search Console or Ahrefs)
• Domain authority/rating trend over time
• Traffic from referral links

3. Link-Worthy Content Ideas

Generate 3-5 content concepts specifically designed to attract links in the user's niche.

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Anti-Patterns

• Buying links — paid links violate Google's guidelines and risk penalties. The short-term gain is not worth the long-term risk.
• Mass generic outreach — "Dear Webmaster" emails sent to 500 sites have near-zero success rates. Personalize every email.
• Irrelevant guest posts — writing about finance on a cooking blog for a link makes no sense and provides no value.
• Ignoring anchor text diversity — all links with the same exact-match anchor text looks manipulative. Use natural, varied anchor text.
• Expecting instant results — link building compounds over months and years. Expect to see ranking improvements in 3-6 months.

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Recovery

• No content to promote: Build one comprehensive guide or resource first, then use it as the foundation for all outreach.
• No responses to outreach: Review email personalization, subject lines, and whether targets are relevant. Follow up once, then move on.
• Very competitive niche: Focus on long-tail content that targets less competitive terms. Build authority gradually.
• Limited time: Focus exclusively on HARO/Connectively and podcast guesting. Both require minimal content creation.