Choosing a link building agency is difficult because the same service label covers very different businesses. One agency may research a story and pitch journalists. Another may buy posts from a reseller. A third may own the sites it recommends. The proposal can look similar until you ask how the links are actually created.
The evidence to request
- Recent live coverage. Open the articles, read the surrounding copy and confirm the client or source appears naturally.
- A method explanation. Ask what happened before publication: research, pitch, editorial questions and approval.
- Reporting examples. You should see the live URL, publication, target page, link attribute and campaign context.
- Publisher relationship disclosure. Ask whether the agency owns, rents, pays or resells any sites in the proposal.
- Current client references. Where confidentiality permits, speak to a client about communication and delivery rather than relying only on selected screenshots.
Seven questions for the sales call
- Why would this publication cover us? A credible answer starts with the story and audience, not the domain score.
- What counts as delivered? Define whether a mention without a link, a nofollow link, syndicated copies or a noindexed page count.
- What can you control? Honest agencies distinguish preferred anchors and targets from publisher-controlled outcomes.
- How do you assess quality? Expect relevance, readership, editorial context and link history alongside DA or DR.
- What is the delivery window? The proposal should state when the campaign batch is expected and what happens if a publisher delays.
- What happens after publication? Ask whether links are rented, how changes are monitored and how publisher removals are handled.
- How can we leave? Check renewal, cancellation, notice and ownership of completed work.
Red flags
- Guaranteed rankings or traffic increases.
- Guaranteed dofollow links from named national publications.
- Hundreds of links delivered immediately with no campaign or content work.
- Exact-match commercial anchors repeated across placements.
- A hidden publisher list that appears only after payment.
- High DA or DR presented as the only quality test.
- Sites covering unrelated topics and publishing a constant stream of paid contributions.
Google's spam policies identify buying or selling links for ranking purposes, excessive exchanges, automated link creation and optimised links in paid or large-scale guest-post campaigns as examples of link spam. A sales promise that depends on those methods is not made safer by calling the work “outreach”.
How to compare monthly proposals
| Proposal item | Useful wording | Wording to question |
|---|---|---|
| Method | Named campaign formats and journalist outreach | “Access to thousands of sites” |
| Quality | Authority range plus relevance and readership checks | A DA or DR number alone |
| Delivery | Defined campaign batch and target window | “As many links as possible” |
| Control | Preferred target and anchor, subject to editorial policy | Guaranteed dofollow and exact anchor |
| Reporting | Live URLs and attributes visible as they land | A monthly domain spreadsheet only |
| Terms | Clear renewal and cancellation date | Unclear notice or automatic long extension |
Our answers
SEO Backlinks uses editorial digital PR rather than a publisher inventory. Our plans are £2,500, £4,500 and £8,000 per month, with campaign batches of five, ten and twenty placements. The publication range is DA 40–95, each batch targets completion within 45 days, reporting is live, and there is no fixed-term lock-in.
We do not guarantee rankings, named publications, dofollow attributes or permanent third-party hosting. Placements are not rented and are intended to remain live, but the publisher retains control of its site and editorial policy.
Sources
- Google Search Central, link-spam policies — official policy page, reviewed 12 July 2026.
- Google Search Central, qualifying outbound links — official guidance, reviewed 12 July 2026.
Book a call if you want to compare our process with another proposal, or see the monthly packages first.
FAQs
What should I ask a link building agency first?
Ask for recent live examples, how each link was earned, what counts as a completed placement and whether the agency owns, rents or resells any of the publisher sites.
Should I sign a long contract?
Only if a longer commitment gives you a clear commercial benefit and the exit terms are fair. A month-to-month plan is easier to assess because you can review the work before committing further. SEO Backlinks has no fixed-term lock-in.
Can an agency guarantee Forbes, BBC or another named publication?
A genuine editorial agency cannot control a journalist's final decision. A promise of a named masthead may indicate sponsored inventory, contributor access or another arrangement that is different from earned coverage.
How quickly should links be delivered?
The answer depends on the campaign format. Reactive commentary can move quickly; original research takes longer. SEO Backlinks targets completion of each agreed campaign batch within 45 days after the brief and required inputs are approved.