Stories from your own data
Your business data, anonymised and aggregated, holds stories the press cares about: demand trends, prices, customer behaviour. We analyse it, turn it into a study and pitch it to journalists.
Link building & digital PR
Links that are earned, not bought
Digital PR, linkable assets, stories built on your own data, expert commentary and industry partnerships. We build authority with methods that respect Google’s guidelines and keep working when the algorithm changes.
“A good link is one that would make sense even if Google didn’t exist: a publication, an association or a peer recommending you because you add something for their readers.”
The test we apply to every opportunity
Why links matter
Authority for Google, credibility for AI assistants
Links remain one of the main ways Google discovers pages and estimates their importance. But they don’t all count equally: an editorial link from a relevant publication in your sector is worth more than hundreds of links from irrelevant directories, and bought or artificial links can end in a manual action.
Brand mentions in reputable sources also have an effect beyond rankings: they’re part of the information AI assistants use to form a view of which companies are authorities on a topic. A brand cited in the press, by associations and in specialist publications is more likely to appear in their answers.
That’s why we approach link building as digital PR: creating genuine reasons for others to talk about you and link to your website.
Tactics
How we earn links and mentions
Linkable assets
Reference guides, calculators, templates, glossaries or tools that others want to cite because they solve a problem. A good asset attracts links for years.
Expert commentary
We position your specialists as sources for journalists who need a qualified opinion on a current issue in your sector.
Local and industry partnerships
Professional associations, chambers of commerce, events, sponsorships with real value, universities, suppliers and partners you already work with.
Broken link building
We find links to resources that no longer exist on relevant sites and offer your equivalent content as a replacement, and reclaim links to your own site lost through URL changes.
Unlinked mentions
We find articles that already mention your brand, products or data without linking, and politely ask the author to add the link.
Red lines
What we do and what we refuse to do
Google’s guidelines treat any attempt to manipulate rankings through artificial links as link spam. These are our rules.
| Practice | Our position |
|---|---|
| Private blog networks (PBNs) | No. Sites built only to link out are link spam and a risk to your domain. |
| Buying links that pass authority | No. If a link is paid for (sponsored article, advertising, commercial deal), it must carry rel="sponsored" or nofollow, as Google requires. |
| Properly labelled sponsored content | Yes, when it brings real visibility or traffic from your audience, is labelled as advertising and the link carries rel="sponsored". |
| Large-scale link exchanges | No. Excessive link exchanges are on the list of prohibited practices. |
| Guest posts at scale with exact-match anchors | No. We do contribute expert content to relevant publications where it has genuine editorial value. |
| Directories and profiles | Only directories with real value for your sector or area, the kind customers actually use. |
| Digital PR, proprietary data, linkable assets | Yes. This is the core of our work. |
Process
How we build your website’s authority
001
Link profile audit
We analyse who links to you today, with which anchors, to which pages and from what kinds of sites, and compare it with the competitors outranking you. We find broken links to your site, artificial patterns left over from previous work and obvious opportunities.
We also check Search Console for any link-related manual action.
Activities
Outputs
- Link profile audit
- Link gap against competitors
002
Strategy and assets
We decide which pages need authority (usually service, category or pillar pages) and which stories, data or resources from your company can earn it. We design one or more linkable assets and an outreach plan.
If you have proprietary data, this is where we turn it into a publishable story, always aggregated and respecting your customers’ privacy.
Activities
Outputs
- Quarterly link building plan
- Linkable assets
003
Outreach and relationships
We contact journalists, editors and industry sites individually, with pitches that make sense for their audience. We respond to requests for expert sources and activate local and industry partnerships.
We track every contact and every link earned.
Activities
Outputs
- Log of contacts and results
004
Measurement and maintenance
Every month we report the links and mentions earned, their relevance and their effect on the visibility of target pages. We monitor lost links and reclaim what we can.
Every quarter we review which tactics work best in your sector and adjust the plan.
Activities
Outputs
- Links and mentions report
- Next quarter’s plan
Disavow
Disavowing links: only when it’s justified
Google’s disavow tool exists for a specific case: you have artificial or paid links you can’t remove that have led (or could lead) to a manual action. Google has said repeatedly that most sites don’t need it and that it already ignores much low-quality linking on its own.
So we don’t sell “toxic link clean-ups” as a routine service. If the audit uncovers a real problem, such as a history of bought links or a manual action, we document the affected links, try to get them removed first and only then prepare a narrowly scoped disavow file. Disavowing good links by mistake can cost you authority.
- Manual review of every domain, not automated lists
- Direct removal before disavowing
- Documented reconsideration request if there’s a manual action
FAQ
Link building: common questions
How many links will you get each month?
We don’t promise a fixed number of links, because editorial links are earned, not manufactured. What we do agree on is the work plan: assets, campaigns and outreach per quarter. Be wary of anyone guaranteeing exact quantities: it usually means bought links.
What’s the difference between link building and digital PR?
Traditional link building focuses on acquiring links, sometimes with unsustainable tactics. Digital PR aims for coverage and mentions in the media with genuinely interesting stories, and links follow as a result. We take the second approach, complemented by technical tactics such as broken link building and unlinked mentions.
Are nofollow links worth anything?
Google treats nofollow, sponsored and ugc as hints, not strict directives. Beyond rankings, a link or mention in a relevant publication brings traffic, brand visibility and credibility, including with AI assistants.
Do you need data from my company?
For data-led stories, yes, and it’s one of the most effective tactics. We always work with aggregated, anonymised data, with no personal customer information, and nothing is published without your approval.
A previous agency bought links. What should I do?
First, audit the extent. If there’s no manual action and the links are low quality, Google is probably already ignoring them. If there is a manual action or the pattern is obvious, we try to get them removed, disavow what can’t be removed and, if needed, prepare a reconsideration request.
How long before it makes a difference?
Links take time to be discovered and evaluated, and their effect builds up over time. The sensible approach is to assess the work quarter by quarter, looking at the visibility of target pages and the quality of the mentions earned.
Related
Related services
Content marketing
SEO-led content marketing: strategy, topic clusters, briefs, expert writing with E-E-A-T, content refreshes and pruning, and measurement tied to business goals.
Entity SEO
Entity SEO: Knowledge Graph, knowledge panels, Organization schema and sameAs, consistent NAP and topical authority so Google and AI recognise your brand.
Generative Engine Optimization
Generative Engine Optimization: we help ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity and Google's AI Overviews find, understand and cite your website as a source.
Want to know where your link profile stands?
We audit who links to you, compare it with your competitors and propose an authority plan with no shortcuts.