What is outreach and how does it work?

According to Google Trends statistics, the word “outreach” received its first mentions on our Internet in the first quarter of 2013. And although a lot of time has already passed, webmasters and marketers have been able to really appreciate all its advantages only over the past few years.

In this article we will try to answer all the most popular questions about this topic.

What is outreach and how does it work?

Outreach (from English “outreach”) is one of the tools for developing the external profile of a website.

It is based on a direct agreement with the owners of various Internet resources to post the necessary content with a mention of the site, brand or event. Often, the main means are backlinks or banners, which are correctly integrated into the published material.

This method is actively used for SEO promotion or as one of the methods of vital advertising. In its essence, it is very similar to standard link building (from English “linkbuilding”), but its purpose is more focused on users than on search engine algorithms. We can say that outreach is at the intersection of crowd marketing and the above-mentioned classical method of link building, while using all the positive aspects of each direction.

It is worth noting that in some cases outreach may not have a commercial basis: some site owners exchange links for mutual benefit. The main task of an outreach project is to generate valuable backlinks to the client’s website. Such links increase organic rankings and attract the attention of new audiences. Often outreach has the secondary goals of expanding brand awareness and building trust.

Types of outreach

• To promote for money, a company will need a considerable budget. The likelihood of placement will be higher if the proposed price for the link is also high. This especially works for highly competitive niches.
• Conditionally free. In order for a link to be posted for free, you will need to offer resource owners truly useful and valuable content in return. Content formats can be completely different: checklists, product reviews, cases, guest posts.

Why is outreach needed?

Outreach is useful for businesses, consulting companies, marketing agencies and various types of websites. We distinguish 3 main purposes:

1. Additional traffic channel

With a competent selection of sites and a successful choice of content, there is a high probability of receiving a significant number of transitions to the promoted site. Backlinks are published on those resources where the brand’s target audience is located. This way they attract new potential customers.

2. Popularizing a brand, product or service and increasing trust in it

One of the most difficult assignments is growing a network presence. However, in regular practice, most specialists practically do not focus on this task, using more clumsy outreach tools to save time. When a company publishes links to personal research, opinion articles, or case studies on third-party sites, it strengthens the trust of its audience.

3. Increasing quality link weight

Backlinks were, are, and most likely will be one of the most significant factors when ranking sites in the Google search engine. But at the same time, auxiliary algorithms are changing, which make it possible to more accurately separate organic links from artificial ones. With a competent analysis of sites, an outreach marketer is able to select options that will satisfy the search engine’s requirements in all respects and will contribute to the growth of the site’s position. Placing links on reliable sites helps improve the resource’s ranking with search engines and raise it in search results.

Benefits of Using Outreach Marketing

• Accurately hitting the target audience;
• Quite fast result;
• The eternal nature of the links (a personal connection with the owner of the site adds confidence);
• Positive impact on domain rating and site trust;
• Process control;
• The ability to work with sites that are not on link exchanges.

Disadvantages of Outreach Marketing Methods

• Labor intensity of the process;
• Higher cost compared to classic link building;
• Financial risks when collaborating with previously unfamiliar website owners.

Strategy for obtaining links through outreach

Effective outreach involves a fundamental immersion in the topic and a detailed study of the target audience of the project. Otherwise, there is a chance that you will get the same purchase of links as on exchanges, but with a much greater investment of time and budgetary funds.

We operate according to the following scenario:

1. Competitor analysis

First of all, you should study how your main competitors work in this direction: what sites link to them (including their parameters), what type of links and content is used. Even the smallest details require attention. The information obtained can be used in the future.

Try analyze the most relevant competitors in parallel with the TOP ones. Contrary to popular belief, following the experience of only the most successful market representatives can lead to building an incorrect strategy. First of all, due to the significant difference in permissible advertising budgets.

2. Selection of sites

So how do you choose the right sites from a huge list of options?

In our practice, we use about 15 parameters, the main ones of which are:

• domain rating (DR)
• trust
• spammy
• presence on link exchanges
• ICS (in some cases)
• presence of an AGS filter previously (in some cases)
• Majestic Citation Flow
• Majestic Trust Flow

You will also get acquainted with the site itself. We are interested in what content is published on this web resource, what positions the resource has and for what queries it is shown in search results. Next, we conditionally compare it with the interests of the target audience of the advertised project and draw conclusions about the feasibility of the site.

3. Communication with owners

When the sites have been selected, you should find the contacts of the site’s representatives and send them your proposal. This stage can be completed within a few hours or take weeks. It all depends on the speed of work of the managers of the site you contacted and the difficulty of receiving feedback from the owner.

Here’s what a standard proposal submission scheme looks like:

Search for contacts on the site

↓

Submitting an offer

↓

Getting feedback

↓

Approval of publication

↓

Posting content

↓

Payment

* The last two points may be swapped depending on the owner’s conditions

4. Content preparation

Composing a competent text or preparing a high-quality banner is no less important a task than choosing a suitable platform. It is important to remember that we expect not only to generate additional link juice for promotion in search engines, but also to receive clicks to the site, and in some cases, to form a positive impression of the product or brand. Therefore, when creating a content assignment for outreach, it is important to comply with the following requirements:

• Focus on the target audience
• Fun
• Structured presentation of material

5. Material placement

If you are collaborating with a new person who has not yet proven himself, do not rush to order more than 1 article for the first time. Especially if we are talking about the owner of many sites in one person. We recommend conducting a test publication to protect yourself from the risks of losing a large portion of your budget if you contact scammers. It is important to remember about subsequent monitoring. At least during the first month after posting, it is necessary to monitor the safety of the content.

The main thing to consider when drawing up a strategy is the budget. Good sites tend to charge appropriate prices, but are also more likely to deliver results.

How to evaluate the results of outreach marketing?

Depending on the goals of the strategy, outreach results can be assessed in different ways. For example, if the main goal was to build trust in the brand, then it is almost impossible to give an accurate report on this metric. The traffic received and the improvement of domain parameters can be assessed more clearly:

Transitions from various sites

Dynamics of domain rating growth (ahrefs service)

Let’s sum it up

Outreach is an excellent tool for both developing the external profile of a website and its image component. Don’t be afraid to try your hand in this direction, but it’s better to trust the professionals. In any case, you need to understand: outreach marketing is aimed at the future. Correctly compare the required budget and the expected result when planning long-term strategies and then everything will work out for you!

Olha Tyshchenko

Editor

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