Are you making directory sites? Whether you’re focused on local directory sites or national directory sites, you’re probably gonna need some backlinks to rank it.
Here’s the thing – if you’ve got a local directory site, then ranking it is going to be similar to local SEO.
And that’s on easy mode right now.
**And as always, Iām an affiliate marketer and this post contains affiliate links, meaning I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my link.
Best Backlinks For A Directory Site
Here’s a quick rundown of the best types of links for directory sites. And a more indepth breakdown is in the video below.
Local Citations
Just like a local business, these work well for a local directory site.
And they’re cheap…if you know where to buy them. Of course, you can also build these on your own for free.
The downside? They don’t easily index on their own, so you gotta use a paid indexer.
Local SEO Links or Local Guest Posts
Another type of link that’s primarily for local sites, but also works well for a local directory site.
You can also send these links to local pages on a national directory.
These links are also pretty cheap. My agency sells these at Local Links Cupid.
Or, do it for free by doing your own local outreach.
Awards Links
You’ve probably seen Jacky Chou talking about this as he’s doing an awards link building campaign for his directory site for Vancouver restaurants.
This works for both national and local directories, but tends to be easier with a local directory site.
You can do this for free since you just need to do cold email to get the links. Alternatively you can pay for something like Smartlead for cold email.
Sponsorships (Events Link Building)
This type of backlink is great for local directory sites, but can work for national directory sites.
Examples of the types of things you can sponsor are 5K runs, little league teams, beer festivals and food festivals. There loads of local events and teams you can sponsor, so get creative.
The downside? These can be expensive. I’ve never seen one for less than $100 but many times they are over $1,000.
Plus, you end up on pages with a lot of outbound links. If it’s a cheap enough link though, it’s still worth it.
Expert Quote Links (HARO)
These are great for both local directory sites and national directory sites.
They can be expensive, but my agency sells them at an affordable cost.
What’s great about these is that they can give you really strong backlink profile and often the higher cost means your competitors won’t replicate them.
The downside? They’re pretty much never on niche relevant or topically relevant sites.
Still powerful enough to be worth it though.
General Guest Posts and Niche Edits
These work for both local directory sites and national directory sites.
When I say “general” I just mean not local links. These are the types of links you buy at guest post marketplaces.
The downside? Can be higher cost and many marketplaces are selling links on sites that were hit by HCU.
Which Should You Build?
If you’ve got yourself a local directory site, then focus on the local links because Google loves to see those geo-relevant links pointing at local sites.
For a national directory site, focus on niche or topically relevant links + high powered links like HARO-style links.
Hey, I’m Shawna. I make a living working from my laptop in places like London, Sydney, Dubai, Rome, Oslo, Bangkok, Las Vegas, Barcelona, and Amsterdam. I share how I do some of that on this website.