How to earn backlinks with ‘link magnets’

Backlinks are an essential part of SEO because they strengthen your authority and increase your visibility in search engines. But not all backlinks are created equal. To earn quality links, you must create content that others actively want to share and refer to. This is called a link magnet: valuable, eye-catching content that attracts backlinks.

For a website like Ralfvanveen.com, link magnets are a powerful way to grow organically. If you create link magnets in the right way and deploy them properly, you will benefit greatly.

What is a link magnet?

A link magnet is content specifically designed to attract backlinks. This ranges from comprehensive guides and unique research to tools, templates and infographics. The main feature of a link magnet is that a link magnet provides value to other websites, making them want to link to it.

A comprehensive guide titled “The Ultimate SEO Strategies for 2025” inspires other marketers, bloggers and businesses to reference your content in their own articles.

Why do link magnets work?

Link magnets work because they meet the needs of other Web sites. They need to build authority. Webmasters want to link to reliable and well-researched content.

Content that offers unique insights, data or solutions adds value to their own audience. With link magnets, you also take advantage of people who like to share useful tools, lists or templates.

Types of link magnets that work

There are several types of link magnets that are effective for earning backlinks. Here are some examples I applied to Ralfvanveen.com:

Comprehensive guides and manuals

Comprehensive guides and manuals are an excellent way to cover a topic completely and in detail. These long articles often attract backlinks because they provide an all-in-one solution.

For example, a title such as “The Ultimate Guide to Technical SEO in 2025” can be a comprehensive resource for both marketers and developers. This makes it attractive for other websites to refer to because it provides complete and valuable content.

Original research and data analysis

Original research and data analysis have great appeal to other websites. Unique data and research act as reliable sources used to substantiate content elsewhere. An article such as “SEO Statistics: What we learned from 1,000 websites in 2024′ offers valuable insights and is often used as a reference, resulting in more links to your website.

Free tools and templates

Free tools and templates provide practical value to users. This type of content is often shared because of its immediate usefulness. An example like a “Free SEO checklist for better findability” gives visitors something useful and increases the likelihood that they will visit or share your site with others.

Infographics

Infographics are a powerful way to summarize complex information in a visual way. This makes them easy to understand and share. An infographic with the topic “How does the Google search engine work in 10 steps?” attracts attention through visually appealing content that is not only quickly shared, but also often republished with a link to the source.

Controversial or opinion pieces

Controversial or opinion pieces provoke much discussion and interaction. Articles that contain strong opinions or challenge established views often attract the attention of a wide audience.

For example, a piece titled “Why traditional link building is dead (and what you should do instead)” can stimulate reactions and debate. This increases the likelihood that people will share your content or formulate their own point of view with reference to your work.

How do you create a successful link magnet?

Research your target audience

Know who you want to reach and what problems they have. Use tools such as Ahrefs or SEMrush to identify popular topics and frequently asked questions.

Focus on quality

A link magnet must be valuable and well-executed. Poorly written or superficial content does not attract backlinks.

Make it unique

What makes your content different? Add unique insights, data or a visual approach to stand out.

Optimize for SEO

Use relevant keywords in your title, meta descriptions and headers. Make sure the content is easily findable so more people discover it.

How do you promote your link magnet?

Promoting a link magnet requires active efforts to attract backlinks. Targeting relevant websites within your niche is an effective strategy for this. By sending emails to bloggers, businesses and influencers, you point them directly to the valuable content you have created.

Social media also offer powerful platforms, such as LinkedIn and Twitter, where you can share your content widely and increase visibility. Guest blogging is also a valuable way to promote your link magnet; by writing articles for other sites, you can subtly reference your own content.

Finally, online communities, such as specialized forums or groups on platforms like Reddit or Facebook, can be an excellent place to share your content with an audience interested in your topic.

Templates

How to earn backlinks with ‘link magnets’

ralfvanveen.com

Common mistakes

When creating link magnets, there are some common mistakes to avoid. An overly commercial approach can discourage others from linking to your content because it is blatantly obvious that it is meant to sell. Therefore, make sure you offer value first.

In addition, it is important to follow up when you approach Web sites. Often a second email can be a deciding factor in getting a backlink. Also, remember that even the best content needs active promotion. Without visibility, the value of your link magnet cannot be fully exploited.

Link magnets are an indispensable part of a successful link building strategy. By creating valuable, unique and well-promoted content, you can attract natural backlinks that contribute to the growth of your website. For ralfvanveen.com, this not only means more traffic, but also strengthening your position as an authority in SEO.

Senior SEO-specialist

Ralf van Veen

Senior SEO-specialist
Five stars
My clients give me a 5.0 on Google out of 78 reviews

I have been working for 12 years as an independent SEO specialist for companies (in the Netherlands and abroad) that want to rank higher in Google in a sustainable manner. During this period I have consulted A-brands, set up large-scale international SEO campaigns and coached global development teams in the field of search engine optimization.

With this broad experience within SEO, I have developed the SEO course and helped hundreds of companies with improved findability in Google in a sustainable and transparent way. For this you can consult my portfolio, references and collaborations.

This article was originally published on 22 January 2025. The last update of this article was on 23 January 2025. The content of this page was written and approved by Ralf van Veen. Learn more about the creation of my articles in my editorial guidelines.