Link building remains one of the most effective tactics for moving the needle on SEO rankings and driving organic growth. But how can link building agencies truly measure the impact of their campaigns and prove return on investment? This comes down to tracking the right key performance indicators (KPIs).
Monitoring and optimizing around the KPIs that connect link building activities to business results allows agencies to continually refine strategies and deliver compelling outcomes for their clients. Here are the most important link building KPIs and best practices for measurement.
Critical Link Building KPIs to Track
Domain and Page Authority of Earned Links
One of the first KPIs link builders will want to examine is the domain and page authority of the sites they are able to secure links from. Domain authority (DA) is a score developed by Moz that predicts how well a website will rank on search engines. The higher the DA, the more valuable the link. For example, a link from a site with DA 60 will be worth more than one with DA 30.
Shoot for DA 50+ when possible and track the average DA of earned links over the course of campaigns. Page authority (PA) can also be examined for links earned on specific pages.
Organic Link Click Through Rate
Optimizing anchor text and messaging for earned links can help drive click throughs and referral traffic from those links. Monitor click through rates specifically from organic link clicks. If a campaign results in 100 clicks from 10 links, that 10% CTR can inform future anchor text strategies.
Rankings Improvement
At the end of the day, the goal of link building is to boost organic rankings for target keywords. Tracking rankings improvement for key terms before and after campaigns provides tangible evidence of impact. Some tools can even isolate rankings lifts from specific referring domains.
Increase in Organic Traffic and Conversions
Higher organic rankings should naturally result in more traffic from search engines and subsequent conversions. Look at the growth in monthly organic users and goal completions from organic channels and correlate this lift to link building campaigns. This demonstrates how new links are actually paying off.
Indexation Rates
Simply securing links is just step one – they need to actually get indexed by Google to have an effect. Monitor the percentage of links that successfully get picked up in Google’s index within a month of outreach and adjust strategies as needed.
Link Equity Metrics
Moz and other SEO tools provide metrics like Domain Authority, Page Authority and MozRank to gauge the “link juice” passed through each link. Tracking the cumulative strength of all new links can determine if equity levels are rising over time.
Link Velocity
How quickly and consistently is your agency building high-value links? Link velocity measures the rate of link acquisition month-over-month or quarter-over-quarter. Maintaining strong velocity indicates there are solid processes for scaled link prospecting and outreach in place.
Link Diversity
Too many links from the same root domain or IP address can appear manipulative. Track link diversity by assessing the distribution of links across unique C Class IP blocks. Check that new links are continually earned from a wide range of sites.
Best Practices for Measuring Link Building Performance
Implement Call Tracking and UTM Codes
To accurately track actions from organic links, implement call tracking numbers and campaign-labeled UTM codes. This connects clicks and conversions to the exact link they came from.
Integrate Analytics Platforms
Bring link building data into marketing platforms like Google Analytics, Search Console and SEO tools. This allows for easy connection of links to overall site metrics.
Set Realistic Goals
Don’t pull KPIs out of thin air. Set targets based on clients’ industries, competition and benchmarks for quality link prospects. Goals should be aggressive but grounded in reality.
Regularly Review and Optimize
Don’t just measure KPIs at the end – monitor along the way. Review on a monthly or quarterly basis to uncover optimization opportunities as campaigns unfold.
Quality Over Quantity
Avoid simply chasing link volume. One high-quality link from an authoritative publisher can be more impactful than 100 low-value directory links. Keep priors focused on building quality.
The Bottom Line
Consistently tracking performance indicators like domain authority, rankings impact, and referral traffic generated from link building efforts allows agencies to truly demonstrate ROI. Monitoring key metrics ensures teams can course correct as needed and back up campaign value with hard data. When it comes to proving the value of link building, what gets measured certainly gets managed.
