8 Effective Ecommerce Link Building Strategies for 2024

By Jonas Gritėnas Updated on June 25, 2024

What Is eCommerce Link Building?

eCommerce link building refers to getting high-quality backlinks from other websites to your eCommerce website. These backlinks serve as “votes of trust” from credible sites in your niche.

A strong backlink profile is a key aspect of eCommerce SEO best practices. First, the backlinks provide credibility signals to your online store. These signals would let Google know that you have valuable content to offer.

Without proper strategies, eCommerce brands might find it difficult to attract links. eCommerce site owners need to navigate through these challenges:

• Content playbook: Link-worthy content usually comes in the form of educational articles. Typically, eCommerce websites don’t focus on this kind of content. Understandably, their focus is on product pages.
• Competitive landscape: It is difficult to compete with established brands. To acquire quality links, you need a strong differentiation strategy.

An effective link-building strategy could increase your visibility on Google search. Let’s delve deeper into these strategies in the following section.

8 Proven Link-Building Strategies for Ecommerce Sites

These effective link-building tactics are unmatched in today’s eCommerce landscape.

1. Create link-worthy eCommerce content

Each year, we’re seeing a significant increase in content marketing budgets.

Content is essential, both on social media sites and search engines. It’s also integral to a link-building strategy, especially for eCommerce sites.

Make sure that your product and category pages are a priority. However, diversifying into other forms of content is crucial in boosting domain authority. Increasing your domain authority could lead to more relevant backlinks.

Here are the types of content that perform well in building links:

• Comprehensive guides: People love content that provides immediate solutions. A “How-To” blog post is a great example of comprehensive content.
• Original research or surveys: Unique surveys relevant to your industry can attract brand mentions. Outdoor apparel brand Patagonia does this perfectly. They regularly produce original research about environmental responsibility.
• Visual content: Infographics and videos boost your reach and engagements. These are content forms that people easily consume.

A link-worthy content offers solutions. Research customer needs and write content around these pain points.

2. Leverage product reviews and influencer partnerships

Admit it — you check product reviews first before purchasing something. The same goes for your potential customers. They check reviews of your products or services before committing to a decision.

That’s why customer reviews have a big impact on your business. Positive reviews influence word-of-mouth marketing and organic traffic. As an eCommerce website owner, here’s how you can leverage product reviews:

• User reviews: Politely request customers to review your products. You can give freebies or discounts to customers who leave reviews,
• Review sites: Submit your products to review sites in your niche. This partnership might require payment, though. Reputable review blogs include TechRadar and Good Housekeeping.
• Influencer partnerships: Collaborate with influencers or bloggers in your niche. Even social media links can boost your link profile.
• Structured data: Optimize your eCommerce store’s structured data for rich results. This allows you to display review snippets on search results.

Of course, the caveat here is a good product or service. Work on your product, and the good reviews will surely come after.

3. Utilize digital PR for backlinks

There are numerous ways of doing a press release today. This isn’t just about a straightforward product announcement.

Digital PR utilizes natural ways to put your product out there. These PR strategies will get you links pointing to your eCommerce website. Take a look at these digital PR tactics:

• Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR): Highlight your eCommerce brand’s social initiatives. TOMS’ buy-one-donate-one initiative is a good example of digital PR.
• Expert roundups: Participate in expert interviews when there’s an opportunity. Thought leadership can earn you backlinks in the long run.
• Award nominations: There’s no shame in being proud of your achievements. Promote your awards on multiple platforms. When media outlets recognize your story, you can generate backlinks.

Digital PR is essential to link-building for eCommerce brands. These strategies make your link profile natural on Google’s algorithms.

4. Optimize your shop’s internal linking structure

You might be wondering as to why we’re discussing internal linking. Sure, it’s not a direct method to acquire eCommerce backlinks. But it’s a way for other sites to notice your relevant resource pages.

Here’s how eCommerce website owners can optimize their internal linking structure:

• Anchor texts: Your anchor texts should be relevant to the page you’re linking to. Don’t use generic anchor texts like “go to this page”. You should use content-specific texts like “most affordable 2-in-1 laptops”.
• Relevance: Only link to internal pages that are relevant to each other. This maintains a logical flow for your users to follow.
• Breadcrumbs: Use breadcrumbs to show users their specific location on the website. A URL like <www.shoes.com/runningshoes/mensrunningshoes> follows breadcrumbs.
• Top-performing pages: Add internal links to your top-performing pages. This can boost your current page’s authority.

Strategic internal linking can increase traffic and make it easier for search engines to crawl and index your website.

5. Explore advanced link-building tactics

Experienced webmasters can explore advanced link-building tactics. These strategies require expertise in using SEO tools and platforms.

Learning how to do these tactics is beneficial for your eCommerce brand. Here’s a quick overview of these advanced link-building methods:

• Broken link building: Craft better content to replace broken links. First, identify broken links on existing blog posts in your niche. Next, write more valuable content around the topic of the broken link. Then, reach out to the website and offer your new content.
• Competitor link acquisition: Running an SEO competitive analysis can increase your visibility. Analyzing competitors’ backlinks is crucial in this process. It allows you to see which websites link to your competitors. Then, you can reach out to those websites and offer better content.
• Help A Reporter Out (HARO): HARO is known as Connectively today. It’s a service where you can send pitches to journalists and bloggers. Just create a free account on their website. Then, answer journalists’ queries to attract brand mentions in their articles.

Use SEO tools like Ahrefs or Semrush to analyze backlinks on competitors’ sites. These tools do offer free trials or free limited versions. You can try them out first before committing to a paid subscription.

6. Build links through customer engagement

Customer engagement is still the best form of marketing.

It’s also an integral aspect of eCommerce link-building strategies. Engaging with your customers establishes a trustworthy presence. Even as simple as responding in comment sections can drive growth.

So, how does customer engagement influence link-building for eCommerce sites? Here are proven examples:

• Forums: Participate in online forums and discussions. Provide unbiased thoughts and statistics about certain topics. Positioning yourself as a thought leader can attract brand mentions.
• Social media: Don’t underestimate the influence of social media. Responding promptly to comments and messages shows excellent customer support. This can boost customers’ loyalty and trust in an eCommerce store.
• Contests and giveaways: Run contests and giveaways to attract more attention. To participate, people should share links to your website. This increases brand awareness across a diverse audience.
• User-generated content (UGC): Don’t limit content creation to yourself. Organize contests where participants can submit their content. LEGO Ideas is one example of a UGC campaign. This platform allows users to submit their creative LEGO concepts.

Getting in touch with your customers can foster brand loyalty. It’s also a proven way to build links down the road.

7. Guest posting on relevant blogs

Building a backlink profile almost always requires guest posting.

Guest posting is about contributing a blog post to another website in your niche. They’ll publish your content and link back to you as a backlink. Of course, other websites don’t easily allow guest posting.

If you’re pitching a guest post, you must offer something substantial. Here are several guest posting tips you must consider:

• Site hunting: First, identify relevant blogs within your niche. Blogs with a high domain rating present good link-building opportunities. You can also analyze which websites provide backlinks to your competitors.
• Personalized outreach: Do your research before reaching out to another site owner. Personalize your message by discussing their brand first. Then, highlight how you could engage with their target audience.
• Topical relevance: Even websites in your industry have specific coverages. Make sure that you cover their audience’s specific needs.
• SEO enhancement: Integrate relevant keywords to improve the article’s SEO performance. However, make sure that you do this naturally. Keyword stuffing can negatively affect readability.

Offering guest posts isn’t just about the backlinks. Focus on building relationships with relevant sites. Relationship-building presents benefits, as we’ll discuss in the next section.

8. Building relationships with industry leaders

There’s no shame in reaching out to industry leaders. If you have something valuable to offer, then it’s mutually beneficial. Business is business.

The key here is to be genuine in your approach. Don’t ask for backlinks right away. Demonstrate expertise by participating in their forums or discussions.

Then, you can think of avenues for collaboration. Here are a couple of ideas:

• Co-authorships: Propose co-authorships on relevant articles or research. You can publish these posts on both websites to earn mutual backlinks.
• Joint events: Propose joint webinars or other live events online. You can generate mutual backlinks from media coverages and sign-up pages.

Always remember that your referring domains must have high authority. You can find that among industry leaders in your niche. Building relationships with them is a growth driver.

Challenges and Considerations in Ecommerce Link Building

Building a backlink profile isn’t a breeze. That’s particularly true for eCommerce brands that focus on product pages. We’re not even talking about the fierce competition you’ll face.

There are ways for you to overcome these challenges, though. Here are several proven tips:

• Content diversification: Go beyond product pages. A blog section could improve your performance in Google Search. Offer buying guides, case studies, and white papers.
• Value-driven strategy: People search Google to find answers. Your content has to address these queries. Focus on providing value to customers and potential business partners.
• Link analysis: Don’t forget to check your internal and external links. You can also use tools like Moz Link Explorer to find unlinked mentions.

Budgeting can also be a challenge for small eCommerce brands. Address this challenge through customer engagement. Build customer relationships on free platforms like social media.

Measuring the Impact of Link Building

Link-building is not an overnight sensation.

That’s true for every niche, not just in the eCommerce industry. It’s not a straightforward path toward organic traffic or conversions. But it doesn’t mean that you’re doing it the wrong way.

So, how can you know if your strategy is effective or not? Here are several metrics to monitor:

• Referral traffic: Use Google Analytics to track referral traffic. See if there’s a long-term increase in referral traffic.
• Keyword rankings: Backlinks can influence the performance of your keywords. Use tools like Google Search Console to monitor keyword rankings.
• Mentions and shares: Monitor brand mentions and social media shares. This allows you to discover unlinked brand mentions.

Remember, link-building is a long-term SEO strategy. Try conducting regular eCommerce SEO audits to track your progress. You might even recover lost link-building opportunities in the process.

Working with a Link Building Agency

As a site owner, your link-building efforts can drive success. It’s not an easy proposition, though. You need continuous optimizations to keep up with evolving algorithms.

That’s why many eCommerce sites outsource their link-building strategies. This actually maximizes your ROI and other resources

For example, a link-building agency like Fortis Media has many connections within your industry. Their network allows them to connect your brand to industry leaders, opening up opportunities to get links to your own site.

Of course, having in-house experts is no problem. Just ensure that they always monitor trends in the link-building space.

Conclusion

Link-building goes beyond collecting backlinks. For eCommerce businesses, it’s also about forging relationships. Address customer needs and offer mutual value to industry leaders. Churn out content that provides immediate solutions to pain points. Focusing on these aspects will surely boost your link-building campaign.