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The Skyscraper Technique - How To Take Your Backlinks To New Heights

The Skyscraper Technique is a strategy you can use to get a lot of high-quality editorially-placed links while using other high-performing content assets to help you figure out your own strategy.

Oct 20, 202227 Shares752 ViewsWritten By: Alastair MartinReviewed By: James Smith
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  1. The Skyscraper Technique - What Is It?
  2. Why The Skyscraper Technique Works? Factors That Affect It
  3. What Is The Prevailing Opinion On Success Rates? Examples From The Best Marketers
  4. Using The Skyscraper Technique Checklist
  5. Resources For The Skyscraper Technique
  6. Learn How To Use The Skyscraper Technique To Improve Your Success Chances
  7. People Also Ask
  8. Conclusion

Backlinkscontinue to be one of Google's primary ranking factors, and this isn't likely to change very soon.

But it seems like Google and SEOs have open Twitter discussions about strategies that are regarded as deceptive or unnatural every other month.

This typically entails guest posting.

Google's Webmaster Guidelines make it clear that links should be earned and placed editorially.

This should be the main goal of any link-building campaign.

To get editorial links, you need a linkable asset, which means a piece of contentthat is better than anything else on the web.

Something that is so fantastic that other people will want to link to it.

The Skyscraper Techniqueis a strategy you can use to get a lot of high-quality editorially-placed links while using other high-performing content assets to help you figure out your own strategy.

My All-Time Favorite White Hat SEO Technique (59% More Organic Traffic)

The Skyscraper Technique - What Is It?

Brian Dean of Backlinko came up with the Skyscraper Technique. It is a way to turn content into high-quality backlinks.

This is how it goes: you begin by looking at current trends, hot subjects, and well-liked examples of recently published content in the subject areas that your company generally covers.

Then, you search for fresh and distinctive ways to produce content that conveys the same message but in a different way.

This could entail using a new, more interesting medium; updating the data; or using an improved design.

Reach out to the people who have already linked out to similar material whenever you've published a new, enhanced piece to get your article on their radar and possibly secure a link.

The most important step is to make something better than what is already out there.

The Skyscraper Technique gets its name from the idea that your goal should be to make the best online content about a certain subject.

In the end, it comes down to making the most important piece of information possible about a topic, one that stands out from the rest like a skyscraper stands out from the rest of a city.

Competitor insights are one of the most effective tools we have in SEOto provide us with a competitive edge.

And to do that, you need to look at data about your competitors to find their weak spots and suggest ways to improve.

Driving success with content shouldn't be a guessing game, and this method provides a road map for doing so.

But there are several things to take into account when employing The Skyscraper Technique:

  • Longer content doesn't always imply better material.
  • A piece of content can be improved in a variety of ways.
  • Few people are able to publish content and then build links and traffic on their own.
  • Your material won't be linked to if no one is aware of it.

Promotion is a crucial component of content marketing, and those who make the effort to spread their material strategically end up winning big.

Because it provides so much value and depth to a topic, it makes sense for folks on your outreach list to link to it.

This is what distinguishes the strategy from others and gives you something you can use to leverage for links.

Because you are improving upon something that has already been shown to create results and utilizing that understanding, the strategy works so well.

Wooden box with the word SEO
Wooden box with the word SEO

Why The Skyscraper Technique Works? Factors That Affect It

Demand Already Exists

I've already shown that there is a market need for content on the topic I'm thinking of writing about by looking for examples of content that has done well in the past.

From this point on, it's critical to consider why that specific piece of content was so successful.

Did it provide a solution to a reader's issue? Was it especially enjoyable?

Your Audience Is Ready To Listen

You'll have the chance to truly thrill the existing audience for that article if you can come up with something even greater than the original resource you found.

If the subject you choose is current, I advise creating a target list of companies, magazines, and bloggers who either shared the prior article or linked to it so you can get in touch right away.

There's A Great Possibility For Rating

The current resource has probably already been properly indexed by Google.

You have the chance to dethrone that older piece of content, outrank it, and bring in more traffic by developing something that is even better.

In particular, if you manage to acquire those high-quality backlinks by reaching out.

What Is The Prevailing Opinion On Success Rates? Examples From The Best Marketers

Okay, cool. The technique seems great in theory, but what are its real success rates in terms of generating links?

Brian Dean, who came up with the link-building strategy, has had a lot of success with his outreach.

He managed to send out 160 emails, with a success rate of 11%, translating to about 17 backlinks.

Even though it might not seem like much, this is a good number for a cold outreach plan, especially given that link-building conversion rates are often quite low.

In 2017, content marketer and full-stack developer Dale Cudmore used the strategy and saw a 6.5% success rate from sending around 232 emails.

This equaled 15 links.

Dale's experiment showed, however, that his content never made it to the top of keyword rankings after these 15 links were made.

According to Ahrefs, Dale would have needed approximately 66 backlinks in order for his material to rank for that term.

Success rates for different link builders vary greatly. As with anything else in SEO, there are many things that can affect whether or not a project is "successful."

A few things, though, are certain to help you improve your chances of success.

Influence Has A Big Impact

You can expect greater outcomes if you have clout and are regarded as a thought leader in the field. Simply observe Brian Dean or Neil Pattel.

He is one of the most well-known individuals in the SEOindustry and has a very popular blog. Just consider how much more likely you are to reply if Brian sends you an email.

Quality Content Is King

The higher the quality of your content is, the greater your chance of success.

So, make sure your content is better than the best that is already out there, and give them good reasons to link back to you.

Speak to the appropriate individuals.

Reaching out to any emails that Semrush or Hunter.io turn up is insufficient.

Actually, look for the person in charge of addressing requests related to editorial content on the contact or team pages of websites.

How to Find Link Prospects for Skyscraper Link Building [ToD 16]

Using The Skyscraper Technique Checklist

Conduct Research To Find Opportunities

Create Google Alerts for topics you want to cover; use BuzzSumo to find articles that have been shared the most with specific keyword phrases; and use Google's Keyword Planner or HubSpot's Keyword App to analyze opportunities based on search traffic.

  • Create a list of possible distributors.
  • First, consider your network.
  • Do you know any influencers, blogs, or brands who would actually find this content interesting?
  • Re-enter BuzzSumo and add the other websites and users who have created or shared content similar to yours.
  • They probably have a following that would be thrilled to learn about your fantastic new piece of content.

Produce More Useful Material

If you come across a blog post from a rival on a subject you'd love to explore, consider creating an infographic, video, or even a more comprehensive guide that could provide more value.

Think about the type of material that engages your audience the most, and begin by relying on your organization's strongest suit.

Market To Your Ideal Clientele

Before you reach out to other businesses and influencers, it's important to get some buzz going among your own audience to show social proof.

Share it with your email list, internal staff, and across all of your social mediaplatforms.

Speak To The Appropriate Individuals

It's time to start spreading the word and sharing your fantastic new piece of content with your list of targeted influencers, brands, and bloggers who share and publish related material now that you have some momentum building with it.

Make sure to show that you care about them, be very clear about what you want, and give them a sample of text they can copy and paste into your outreach letter.

Keep Up To Date

Your fantastic piece of content will become less useful with time.

Other people will write new articles about the subject, the industry will change, and new options will appear.

To keep the value you've worked so hard to build, you need to keep your content up-to-date so it's still useful to your audience.

Resources For The Skyscraper Technique

If you're thinking about giving it a try, here are a few items you'll need to start your Skyscraper link-building journey.

Semrush

Get yourself a backlink analysisand email outreach tool first. You're in luck if you have Semrush because they have everything you need. Here is what you must accomplish in Semrush:

Pick out a couple of the articles that are currently ranking highly for your desired phrase on Google.

Put each of those URLs into the Backlink Analytics tool individually.

Export the backlinks into a spreadsheet in Excel or CSV.

Enter those backlinks' list manually into Semrush's link-building tool.

Email Templates

The next step is to create a few email templates that support customizations such as site name, publisher name, and article link.

Our experience says that it's best to test a few different templates to see if one tends to get more answers than another.

Tablet with stylus with the google app
Tablet with stylus with the google app

Learn How To Use The Skyscraper Technique To Improve Your Success Chances

The Skyscraper Technique, like any other link-building tactic, is typically only a means to an end for most people.

To rank higher on Google and receive more traffic is the ultimate goal.

But unless your outreach is extremely successful, like we saw with Dale, that isn't a given.

Therefore, you need to set a goal for how many links you need before taking any action.

Copy And Paste Your URL

By visiting the Organic Keywords report, you can get an idea of the terms that drive the most traffic to the website.

Dedication

Finally, as you go out on this road, you'll need to be incredibly resilient and committed.

It's highly probable that your initial few runs won't yield any links.

You might even receive a few replies urging you to quit.

When we used this strategy with clients, the answer was to "never waste anyone's time again." Keep moving forward and keep your head up!

People Also Ask

What Is Skyscraping In SEO?

Making your website the biggest "skyscraper" on the internet is the goal of the Skyscraper Technique, an SEO research and content development framework.

You rise above the rest like a skyscraper and become the center of attention.

What Exactly Are Skyscraper Posts?

Skyscraper SEO was developed by Brian Dean of Backlinko.

After using this method to double the number of people who visited his website, Dean told his clients about it and used it successfully for them.

Making your website the biggest "skyscraper" on the internet is the goal of the Skyscraper Technique, an SEO research and content development framework.

You rise above the rest like a skyscraper and become the center of attention.

The goal of SEO skyscraper building is to make your website better than other sites on the same topic by being bigger, better, newer, more interesting, and more relevant.

Links lead back to a page on your website from other websites.

Because they reflect traffic flowing to your own website from another website, backlinks are also known as inbound links.

Your backlink profile's quantity and quality both play a role in how Google and Bing will rank you.

How Do You Execute The Skyscraper Method And Get Results?

Find relevant material with lots of backlinks as the first step.

Dale started by looking for an established resume writing guide with lots of links and some space for development.

Make something even better in step two.

Speak with the appropriate individuals.

Petronas tower Skyscrapers In Malaysia
Petronas tower Skyscrapers In Malaysia

Conclusion

The Skyscraper Technique is an effective method for gaining links, but only if you:

Reach out to enough individuals, develop a persuasive case, and produce outstanding content.

However, don't count on any one strategy to boost your ranks overnight.

That's improbable.

SEO success depends on many things, such as your industry, competitors, money, time, and resources, among other things.

Never rely on just one strategy; try out a few and see which ones perform best for your company.

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