Backlinks, or links from other websites to yours, are like votes of trust for search engines. They help improve your store’s SEO, drive organic traffic, and build credibility with customers. Here’s how to get started:

  • Focus on quality: Links from relevant, trusted websites are more effective than spammy or irrelevant ones.
  • Partner with influencers: Collaborate with creators who can share your products and link to your store.
  • Create link-worthy content: Publish guides, data-driven reports, or free tools that others want to reference.
  • Use tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush: Analyze competitors’ backlinks and find opportunities for your store.
  • Reach out strategically: Personalize emails, suggest your content as a resource, and build relationships.

Building backlinks takes time, but the payoff is worth it: better rankings, more traffic, and increased sales for your Shopify store. Let’s dive into the details.

Shopify

Backlinks, also known as inbound links, are like digital votes of confidence. They direct users to your website and signal to search engines that your site is trustworthy and worth ranking higher in search results. Google uses backlinks as part of its ranking system, relying on concepts like PageRank and link equity to determine how much value a link passes along. In simple terms, pages with strong backlinks tend to perform better because search engines see them as reliable and authoritative. These links can boost your site’s visibility, authority, and even referral traffic.

Not all backlinks are created equal. Search engines evaluate the quality of backlinks to determine the credibility of a website. This is especially important because algorithms like Google’s Penguin actively penalize manipulative link-building practices and devalue poor-quality links.

High-quality backlinks come from reputable, relevant websites and provide more "link juice", which can significantly improve your rankings. Here’s a simple analogy: a high-quality backlink is like a glowing recommendation from a top-tier expert, while a low-quality one is more like a casual mention from someone with little authority.

High-Quality Backlinks Low-Quality Backlinks
From trusted, relevant websites From spammy or irrelevant sources
Use natural anchor text in meaningful content Rely on over-optimized or unnatural anchor text
Found in main content areas Buried in footers, sidebars, or comment sections
Typically dofollow, passing authority Often nofollow or linked to penalized domains

To ensure your backlinks are effective, focus on relevant anchor text and proper placement within the main content. Tools like Ahrefs can help you assess the quality of a backlink profile by analyzing metrics like domain rating. Keep in mind that backlinks from spammy sites or those using nofollow tags are less valuable and can even harm your rankings.

The bottom line? High-quality backlinks are a must for improving your site’s SEO, while low-quality ones can do more harm than good.

Backlinks are especially important for consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands competing in the crowded U.S. market. For these brands, high-quality backlinks do more than just improve search engine rankings – they also signal authority and trustworthiness to potential customers. In a competitive space, these "votes of confidence" from trusted sources can make all the difference.

The numbers speak for themselves: 85% of SEO experts believe link-building is a crucial factor in establishing authority, and 69% of marketers report seeing positive results from their efforts. According to a study by Backlinko, the top-ranking page on Google has, on average, 3.8 times more backlinks than the pages in positions two through ten.

For CPG brands, the benefits of quality backlinks go beyond SEO. They help increase domain authority, making it easier to rank for keywords, and drive direct referral traffic to your site. For example, Promodo helped Aris Pack improve its rankings for commercial search queries by building credible backlinks that boosted domain authority and trust. Similarly, a U.S.-based 3D construction brand saw improved search engine rankings after using strategies like guest posting, forum contributions, and reviews to strengthen its backlink profile.

"Higher quality backlinks signal search engines about the overall credibility of your website, making backlinks a cornerstone of effective SEO strategies." – Shopify

A strong backlink profile not only enhances your store’s visibility but also positions your brand as a trusted authority in your niche. When potential customers see your products linked on reputable sites – whether it’s an industry blog, a review platform, or an influencer’s page – they’re more likely to view your brand as credible and worth their attention.

Partnering with influencers is one of the most effective ways to generate backlinks that feel genuine and credible. When influencers feature your products in their content, they often include links to your site in blog posts, video descriptions, or social media profiles. These links carry more weight because they come from trusted voices with loyal, engaged audiences.

In fact, businesses typically earn an average of $6.50 for every $1 spent on influencer marketing, with the top 13% seeing an ROI of $20 or more. For consumer goods brands, this strategy is especially impactful – 56% of millennials and 58% of Gen Z have purchased items based on influencer recommendations. Let’s dive into how to find and partner with the right influencers to maximize results.

How to Find the Right Influencers

The first step in finding the right influencers is understanding your target audience and where they spend their time online. Instead of focusing on follower counts, look for influencers whose audience aligns with your ideal customers.

Start by researching hashtags on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. Use keywords related to your products to identify creators who are already active in your niche. For example, if your business sells organic skincare, search for hashtags like #cleanskincare, #organicbeauty, or #skincareroutine. Pay attention to creators who consistently produce high-quality content that matches your brand’s style.

Tools like Shopify Collabs can also streamline the process of finding and managing influencer relationships.

When evaluating potential partners, prioritize engagement rates over sheer follower numbers. A micro-influencer with 50,000 highly engaged followers can often outperform a larger account with 500,000 less active followers. Look for influencers who regularly interact with their audience through comments, likes, and shares.

"A lot of people will make the mistake where they’ll spend money or send products to just about any influencer, anybody that has a lot of followers. It’s not the best strategy, and also a waste of time and money." – Akram Abdallah, Co-founder of Nominal

Before reaching out, review the influencer’s audience demographics. Even if their metrics look impressive, the partnership won’t yield results unless their audience matches your target market in terms of location, age, and interests. Most influencers are happy to share this data when asked.

Creating Win-Win Partnerships

The most successful influencer partnerships are built on mutual value. These collaborations should feel natural and genuine, avoiding anything that seems overly promotional or forced.

One effective way to start is by gifting products. For example, Healthish co-founders Emily Chong and Nathan Chan built their water bottle brand by sending free products to fitness vloggers and fashion influencers. They didn’t push for posts – if the influencers enjoyed the product, they shared it organically. This approach not only builds relationships but also helps identify influencers who connect with your brand.

Set clear expectations from the beginning. Whether you’re looking for blog posts, social media content, or video features, let influencers know that backlinks in blog posts or video descriptions are appreciated. This clarity ensures the partnership stays focused.

Offer flexible compensation options, such as flat fees or commission-based payments, to suit different influencers’ preferences. And remember to include proper #ad or #sponsored disclosures to comply with FTC guidelines. This transparency protects both parties and builds trust with audiences.

When reaching out, personalize your messages. Reference specific posts or explain why you think their audience would love your products. Avoid sending generic, mass messages, as they’re less likely to spark meaningful conversations.

"At the beginning, you can pick people in the different niches and see what actually works for you and then decide to go down that path." – Emily Chong, Healthish founder

Focus on building long-term relationships rather than treating influencers as one-off collaborators. As Griffin Thall, CEO of Pura Vida, explains, forming genuine connections can lead to more impactful partnerships:

"I can personally say that I’ve met 90% of our influencers in person and have either gotten food with them, been traveling with them, or done something where it’s not just about a photo or a handshake."

Pros and Cons of Influencer Collaborations

Different types of influencer collaborations come with their own advantages and challenges. Understanding these can help you choose the right approach for your business.

Collaboration Type Pros Cons
Product Gifting Low cost, authentic content, builds relationships No guaranteed posts, limited control over messaging
Sponsored Posts Guaranteed content, clear deliverables, measurable ROI Higher cost, potential for less authenticity
Affiliate Partnerships Performance-based pricing, long-term motivation Requires tracking systems, ongoing management
Brand Ambassadorships Consistent exposure, deeper relationships, genuine advocacy Higher investment, longer commitment required

Product gifting is an excellent way to test new partnerships and build authentic connections. For example, Nominal jewelry grew into a seven-figure business by gifting free jewelry to influencers and asking for permission to repost organic content.

Sponsored posts provide more control over the content and guarantee deliverables, making them ideal for campaigns with specific goals and timelines. Just ensure the influencers’ audiences align with your product to keep the content feeling authentic.

Affiliate partnerships align incentives by rewarding influencers for actual sales. This encourages them to create content that drives conversions. Tools like Shopify Collabs can simplify managing these relationships by handling tracking and payments.

Brand ambassadorships offer the deepest level of collaboration, providing consistent exposure and authentic advocacy. However, they require significant time and financial investment to build strong relationships.

Many successful brands use a combination of these approaches. Start with product gifting to identify promising influencers, then deepen relationships with those who generate strong results. This strategy allows you to build a diverse network of influencer partnerships while keeping costs manageable.

Creating Content That Earns Backlinks

Crafting high-quality content is a cornerstone of organic link-building. While partnerships and influencer strategies play their part, creating content that serves as a trusted resource is what truly sets the stage for earning backlinks.

When your content solves problems, offers fresh insights, or provides resources that are hard to find elsewhere, it naturally attracts backlinks. Other websites will want to reference and link to it, boosting your Shopify store’s credibility with both search engines and potential customers.

Here’s a compelling stat: 40.7% of SEO professionals report that content marketing delivers the best passive link-building results. This means the content you create today can keep earning backlinks for months – or even years – to come.

Content Formats That Attract Backlinks

Certain types of content are more likely to generate backlinks than others. Here are some proven formats:

  • Long-form guides and in-depth resources: These become industry staples. Instead of explaining a topic themselves, people prefer linking to a comprehensive guide that already does the job.
  • Data-driven content: Journalists and bloggers are always on the hunt for fresh stats to support their stories. Publishing surveys or reports can make your content a go-to reference.

    "Create and publish surveys, then analyze the findings and share with your audience. It doesn’t have to be a massive report, either. Ask five to 10 questions and create a mini report with the findings. Low effort, high impact!" – Mike Brown, Director of Communications at Breeze

  • Free tools and calculators: These are backlink powerhouses. For instance, Bankrate‘s mortgage calculator has snagged 57,000 backlinks from 330,000 websites, including big names like Wikipedia and The New York Times. Similarly, CoSchedule‘s Headline Analyzer boasts 35,000 backlinks from nearly 8,000 websites, including HuffPost and USA Today.
  • List posts and infographics: These tend to perform exceptionally well. A study of over 220,000 articles revealed that list posts are the most shareable.
  • Interactive content: Quizzes can work wonders. For example, Jones Road’s “What’s your shade?” quiz earned 50+ backlinks from over 30 websites, including Byrdie and Katie Couric Media.

For Shopify store owners, here are some content ideas to consider:

  • Ultimate buying guides tailored to your product category
  • Industry reports featuring original data
  • Free templates or checklists related to your niche
  • Interactive tools that help customers make decisions
  • Case studies showcasing customer success stories

While these formats are powerful, don’t forget that promotion is key to unlocking their full backlink potential.

Making Content for U.S. Audiences

If your target audience is in the U.S., tailoring your content to their preferences is crucial. Here’s how to connect effectively:

  • Be direct and actionable: U.S. readers value content that gets straight to the point. Skip unnecessary fluff and focus on practical advice.
  • Use American English and references: Incorporate U.S.-specific measurements, brands, and cultural touchpoints to make your content relatable.
  • Optimize for mobile: Americans increasingly consume content on their phones. Use short paragraphs, bullet points, and plenty of white space to improve readability.
  • Offer clear, step-by-step advice: Theoretical discussions don’t resonate as well. Instead, provide actionable tips with measurable outcomes, such as timelines or dollar amounts.
  • Write conversationally: Adopt a friendly tone, as if you’re speaking directly to a friend. This approach builds trust and keeps readers engaged.
  • Consider regional differences: Preferences can vary widely across the U.S. If your product has regional appeal, create location-specific content to address these differences.

How to Promote Your Content

Creating valuable content is just the beginning. To ensure it earns backlinks, you need a solid promotion strategy. Here are some effective tactics:

  • Targeted email campaigns: Share your content directly with your audience.
  • Platform-specific social media posts: Tailor your content for each platform – short videos for Facebook, quote graphics for Instagram, and concise threads for Twitter.
  • Outreach to contributors and mentions: If you’ve quoted an expert or mentioned a brand, let them know. They’re often happy to share content that highlights them.
  • Community engagement: Participate in niche forums and social media groups. Share your content naturally when it adds value to the conversation, but avoid being overly promotional.
  • Broken link building: Find broken links on relevant websites and suggest your content as a replacement. This helps website owners while earning you quality backlinks.

It’s worth noting that 94% of online content gets zero links. This underscores the importance of consistent promotion across multiple channels. The most successful content creators dedicate as much time to promotion as they do to creation.

"The best content doesn’t win. The best-promoted content wins." – Andy Crestodina, Content Guru

Finally, use analytics tools to track performance. Identify which channels drive the most traffic and backlinks, and focus your efforts on those that deliver the best results.

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For Shopify stores, tools like Ahrefs and SEMrush can take your backlink strategy from guesswork to precision. While influencer collaborations and high-quality content are great for generating backlinks, these tools help you discover where your competitors are earning theirs. This insight can turn your content into a magnet for traffic.

Instead of blindly reaching out to websites, these tools allow you to identify the sites linking to your competitors, figure out what types of content attract the most backlinks, and uncover opportunities you might otherwise overlook.

Ahrefs starts at $99 per month, and SEMrush begins at $129 per month. While the cost may seem steep, the return comes in the form of high-quality backlinks and long-term SEO gains.

Ahrefs specializes in backlink analysis, making it ideal for SEO professionals. SEMrush, on the other hand, provides broader SEO insights, which are especially useful for marketers working across multiple channels.

Once you’ve got the tools, the next step is to dive into your competitors’ backlink profiles.

Analyzing your competitors’ backlink profiles can reveal valuable linking opportunities. By understanding where they’re getting their links, you can identify sites that might also be interested in linking to your Shopify store.

Start by pinpointing your true competitors – not just businesses selling similar products but those ranking for the same keywords you’re targeting. Pages that rank at the top tend to have 3.8 times more backlinks than those ranking lower. Focusing on these top-ranking competitors will give you the most actionable insights.

Ahrefs is the preferred tool for 64% of SEO professionals when it comes to link data. By entering a competitor’s URL into Ahrefs, you’ll gain access to their backlink profile, including referring domains, anchor text trends, and the pages earning the most links.

"If you’re looking to build more backlinks to your website, checking how your competitors built and earned their backlinks is a good starting point." – Joshua Hardwick, Head of Content @ Ahrefs

SEMrush’s Backlink Gap tool lets you compare up to five competitors at once. This makes it easier to identify common linking opportunities that several of your competitors are already leveraging.

When analyzing competitor backlinks, focus on key metrics like Domain Rating, referring domains, and content relevance. For example, 69% of SEOs trust Domain Rating as a reliable metric. Additionally, top-ranking pages often gain 5%-14.5% more do-follow backlinks each month, so it’s worth identifying which of their pages are growing the fastest.

Here are some core metrics to consider:

Metric Why It Matters Industry Insight
Domain Authority/Rating Measures the overall strength of a site 69% of SEOs trust Domain Rating
Referring Domains Indicates diversity of linking sources A broad range of domains signals a stronger profile
Content Relevance Shows how relevant the links are 84.6% of experts prioritize relevance
Link Position Affects link strength Links within content outperform footer links

Use these insights to filter and prioritize your outreach targets.

Choosing the Best Outreach Targets

Not all backlink opportunities are created equal. A relevant, high-quality link will often outperform one from a larger but unrelated site.

Focus on domains with a Domain Authority or Domain Rating of 50 or higher, newly added backlinks, and pages relevant to your industry. These filters help you zero in on opportunities that are both realistic and impactful.

SEMrush updates its Backlink Analytics tool every 15 minutes, allowing you to spot fresh linking opportunities before your competitors do. This real-time data is invaluable for staying ahead in the backlink game.

Evaluate potential targets based on content relevance, link placement, traffic potential, and audience fit. A link from a site that sends engaged visitors to your store is far more valuable than one that generates little traffic.

Look for websites that frequently link to businesses in your niche. These sites have already shown a willingness to link to commercial content, making them more likely to respond positively to your outreach efforts.

After identifying your targets, the next step is to monitor your progress.

Tracking your backlink progress is essential for understanding what’s working and refining your strategy. Both Ahrefs and SEMrush offer features to monitor your backlink profile over time.

Set up regular tracking to keep tabs on new backlinks, lost links, and changes in referring domains. Ahrefs’ Link Intersect report is particularly useful for spotting new opportunities as they arise.

To stay organized, create a simple tracking spreadsheet. Include columns for the target website, contact information, outreach date, response status, and link status. Use the U.S. date format (MM/DD/YYYY) for consistency. Track metrics like response rates and conversion rates as percentages.

Keep an eye on your competitors’ backlink progress as well. If they’re gaining links faster than you, analyze their recent backlinks to identify new opportunities or strategies you might be missing. SEMrush’s Backlink Gap tool makes this comparison straightforward.

Quality matters more than quantity when it comes to backlinks. A few well-placed, relevant links will outperform dozens of low-quality ones. Use tools like Ahrefs and SEMrush to filter for high-authority domains and ensure your backlink profile supports your Shopify store’s growth.

Regular tracking also helps you address issues like negative SEO attacks or toxic backlinks. For example, in one case study, Promodo helped the Apple Parts website recover from poor-quality backlinks, acquiring 137 outreach links and 154 crowd links to repair its profile. This shows how proactive monitoring can safeguard your site’s rankings and reputation.

Once you’ve identified your target sites using the right tools, it’s time to shift your focus to outreach. The key to success lies in personalization, a clear value exchange, and consistent follow-ups.

Writing Effective Outreach Emails

Did you know that personalized emails can boost reply rates by 33%? This makes tailoring your outreach an absolute must.

Start by researching your recipient’s audience, content style, and recent posts. This helps you identify how your content can genuinely benefit their readers. Use their name, reference specific posts, and keep your email concise – aim for 80 to 100 words. Be clear about your offer. Instead of just asking for a link, explain what you’re bringing to the table. Maybe it’s a well-crafted guest post, a reciprocal link, or content that fills a gap on their site. Since response rates can range from 1% to 20%, presenting a strong value proposition is crucial.

To improve credibility, send your email from a professional domain-based account rather than a generic one. Avoid cookie-cutter email templates and instead, create something unique that stands out. Follow up strategically – one or two follow-ups spaced a few days apart are often enough. Engaging with their content on social media before reaching out can also make your email feel more genuine.

Once you’ve mastered outreach emails, consider expanding your strategy with techniques like broken link building.

Broken link building is a win-win strategy: you help website owners fix broken links while earning backlinks for your site. It’s effective because broken links hurt user experience and SEO.

"Broken link building is an effective and ethical link-building strategy that involves finding broken or dead links on other websites and suggesting your own content as a replacement. This tactic benefits both you and the website owner – helping them fix broken links while earning you valuable backlinks in return."

To get started, use tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or the Check My Links Chrome extension to find broken links in your niche. Focus on resource pages, directories, or blogs that often link to external content. Once you spot a broken link, create or identify content that matches – or surpasses – the quality of the original resource.

Reach out to the website owner, pointing out the broken link and suggesting your content as a replacement. Make the process easy for them by providing the exact anchor text and HTML code they can use. You can also suggest specific pages where your link would fit naturally. If you don’t hear back, a polite follow-up after a few days can make all the difference.

Here’s an example: In 2023, LinkPitch helped a legal client by finding broken links in legal dictionaries. They created updated, detailed definitions and reached out to sites linking to outdated pages. Even without targeting high-priority pages, the client saw a noticeable boost in organic traffic.

Once you’ve secured backlinks through this method, focus on keeping those relationships strong.

Getting backlinks isn’t just about a single transaction – it’s about building relationships that can lead to future opportunities like guest posts or collaborations.

Stay connected with your backlink partners after the initial link is secured. Engage with their content by sharing it on social media or leaving thoughtful comments on their posts. This keeps you on their radar and reinforces the value of your relationship.

Keep a spreadsheet to track contact details, interactions, and follow-up dates (use the MM/DD/YYYY format for consistency). Offer ongoing value by sharing relevant insights, introducing them to useful contacts, or providing feedback on their new content.

Regularly monitor your backlinks to ensure they remain active. If a link is removed or altered, send a friendly reminder to address the issue.

When appropriate, reciprocate by linking to their valuable content in your own posts. This mutual support strengthens your connection and encourages further collaboration.

Adjust your communication style based on past interactions – some partners may prefer formal exchanges, while others respond better to a casual tone. Building these long-term relationships doesn’t just boost your SEO; it can also lead to new customers, referrals, and other opportunities that contribute to your Shopify store’s growth.

Creating a strong backlink profile for your Shopify store isn’t a one-time task – it’s an ongoing process that demands consistent effort and a clear strategy. On average, the top result on Google has nearly four times as many backlinks as those ranked between the second and tenth positions.

When it comes to backlinks, quality always trumps quantity. Focus on securing links from authoritative websites that are relevant to your niche. This not only strengthens your SEO but also helps you avoid penalties associated with low-quality or spammy links.

To recap, growing your backlink profile sustainably means committing to steady, deliberate efforts. Set aside a few hours each week to craft valuable content, connect with potential partners, and keep an eye on your backlinks using tools like Google Search Console, Ahrefs, or SEMrush.

Start small – choose one or two strategies that align with your resources and skills. As you begin to see progress, expand your efforts. Building high-quality backlinks is a long-term investment in your Shopify store’s organic growth and in establishing your brand as a trusted name within your niche.

FAQs

To make sure the backlinks to your Shopify store boost your SEO without causing issues, aim for links from reputable, high-authority websites that align with your niche. Steer clear of links from spammy, irrelevant, or low-quality sites, as these can actually hurt your rankings.

When assessing backlinks, pay attention to factors like the domain authority of the linking site, how closely it relates to your industry, and whether the link feels naturally integrated into the content. Tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush can help you audit your backlink profile and identify any harmful links. A well-thought-out backlink strategy can strengthen your SEO efforts and drive more organic traffic to your store.

What are the best ways to create content that attracts backlinks to my Shopify store?

To draw backlinks naturally to your Shopify store, the key lies in crafting content that stands out and sparks interest within your niche. Think along the lines of detailed blog posts, practical how-to guides, or eye-catching infographics – content that people find so useful or engaging, they can’t help but share or reference it. On top of that, teaming up with influencers, contributing guest posts to relevant blogs, and actively participating in online communities can further amplify your backlink opportunities.

It’s also essential to make sure your content is relevant and genuinely helpful to your target audience and peers in your field. When what you create offers real value, others are more inclined to link back to it. This not only enhances your store’s SEO but also solidifies its reputation, driving more organic traffic and improving your search rankings.

When it comes to finding backlink opportunities for your Shopify store, tools like Ahrefs and SEMrush are game-changers. They let you dive into your competitors’ backlink profiles, showing you which high-quality websites are linking to them. This makes it easier to target similar sites and build connections that can boost your SEO.

These tools also provide detailed insights, such as anchor text, link quality, and even potential toxic links that could hurt your strategy. With this information, you can fine-tune your approach, focus on meaningful connections, and ultimately drive more organic traffic to your store.

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