Curated links or niche edits have become a widespread and popular link-building strategy for thousands of SEO experts. But what makes them so popular, and are curated links good for SEO?
These are just some questions we will strive to answer in this article. By the end, you will learn:
- What curated links are
- Do they help drive organic traffic and boost SEO performance
- What factors impact the effectiveness of curated links
Let’s dive into it.
Are Curated Links Good for SEO?
There is no definitive answer as to whether or not curated links are good for SEO. Well-implemented curated links can help boost search engine rankings. This depends on several factors:
- The quality of your content
- The domain authority where the backlink is placed
- How the curated link is placed (the strategy used)
These factors determine whether curated links are effective for boosting SEO performance and in what way.
Elevate your website’s SEO game to new heights with the power of curated links, and experience the remarkable impact our SEO services can have on driving organic traffic and skyrocketing your search engine rankings.
Each factor is implemented separately or as part of a combined link-building strategy.
Defining the Term “Curated Links”
As the name suggests, curated links are quality links inserted in existing content. The content in which these links are placed is located on another website with high domain authority and relevance.
These links are “curated”, meaning that they are placed in carefully analyzed and chosen content. The content is closely related and relevant to your niche. This is done so the link can transfer the most link juice back to your site.
You may also come across the term “niche edits” in practice. This is an alternative name for curated backlinks, so you should know they are identical.
Curated link building differs, however, from content curation and guest post links. We will discuss these differences in the following sections.
Difference between curated links and content curation
Content curation and curated links may sound similar, but they are two completely different SEO strategies.
The process of content curation involves finding and analyzing multiple existing pieces of content closely related to your niche. These pieces of content are then compiled into one, which you then share on social media feeds, forums, etc.
The curated content provides meaning when you add your own views and thoughts to the subject. This approach involves creating new content (adding your thoughts and opinions), which is not true with curated links.
Difference between curated links and guest posts
Curated links also differ from guest posts, even though their end goal is to drive organic traffic and boost SEO.
Guest posting involves creating and placing entirely new content on another website, with a backlink back to your site.
This increases brand exposure in front of new audiences, driving more organic traffic to your site. Guest posts are also ideal for showcasing expertise within a niche or industry.
How SEO Benefits From Curated Links?
They transfer traffic from high-ranking pages
Curated links or niche edits placed on high-authority sites that rank well in the SERPs are bound to drive quality organic traffic.
According to a study by Ahrefs, inserting backlinks is probably one of the most important ways to boost SEO performance.
According to them, 90.63% of pages on the internet get no organic traffic from Google. A major cause for this is that they lack backlinks.
To support this claim, they state that 66.31% of these pages have no backlinks, while 26.29% have up to three referring domains (backlinks).
They further support this claim by providing graphical evidence, which states that the more backlinks a page has, the more organic traffic it will get from Google.
Source: ahrefs.com
From this case study, we can deduce that curated links inserted into websites and pages with high DA and DR will transfer much of their organic traffic back to your site. This will improve the overall SEO performance of your domain in the SERPs.
They are simple to implement
Unlike guest posts, curated links are easy to implement.
They are simply inserted into an already existing piece of content. You and website owners or webmasters don’t have to create new content for curated links.
There is something to be aware of, however, and that is the name and meaning of the anchor text. It is the clickable text appearing as the curated link.
Here’s what a curated link looks like:
Source: backlinko.com
The anchor text should:
- Target a specific keyword (possibly your brand)
- Be specific
- Be inserted naturally and not look like spam
They provide quick results
Besides being simple to implement, curated links also provide quick results in terms of increased traffic and SERPs visibility.
This is especially true if the curated link is “dofollow”, as this link type transfers link juice directly from the referring domain.
On the other hand, if the curated link is “nofollow”, it will not transfer link juice directly, but it will help promote your website or brand to a broader audience.
Here’s what both link types look like and how they work:
Source: mangools.com
The more link juice flowing back to your website from referring domains, the quicker the curated links will produce results.
They help expand your target audience
Since curated links are placed on websites within a similar niche or industry, they will also expand your content and promote your brand to a broader audience.
The key thing is that curated links target the right audience interested in knowing more about your brand and website.
This is also one of the benefits of using “nofollow” links. Even though they don’t drive link juice, they increase your site’s visibility and help drive organic traffic, similar to guest posts.
Factors That Impact the Effectiveness of Curated Links
The quality of your content
To acquire an effective curated link, you must provide quality content on your site.
Website owners are more willing to link to your content if it offers valuable and unique information in your niche.
The way to offer valuable content is by basing it on proof, case studies, and practical examples, which make people trust you and your expertise.
Everything starts with quality content, the primary factor in acquiring effective curated links.
Source: searchenginejournal.com
Curated links are most effective when placed on referring domains with high DA or DR ratings.
The higher the website authority, the more organic traffic it receives and the more traffic it can share through the curated links (if the link is dofollow).
Acquiring a curated link on a website with low DA or DR will probably be more time-consuming than effective.
Ultimately, the more high-authority referring domains you have pointing back at your site, the more organic traffic and SEO boost you will get from the curated links.
The strategy used to acquire the curated link
How much are curated links good for SEO also depends on the strategy used to acquire them.
There are three differentiated strategy types when it comes to acquiring curated links:
- The white hat
- The gray hat
- The black hat
White hat curated links are obtained using an “honest” and “manual” approach by outreaching out to website owners and webmasters directly and asking them to place a link on their site.
Gray hat curated links come close to violating Google’s Link Spam policy. This often includes buying links from marketing agencies or other vendors online.
Black hat curated links are placed on other websites using hacking methods and are completely against Google’s Link Spam Policies.
The type of link obtained through one of these strategies strongly dictates how effective it will be in practice.
For example, white hat curated links drive traffic and SEO boost that is stable and lasts in the long run.
On the other hand, black hat curated links may provide a short SEO boost that will eventually lead to severe penalties by Google or other search engines.
Conclusion
Backlinks are the cornerstone of every solid SEO link-building strategy. Without them, you can’t promote your brand or business online, which would be like being isolated from the rest of the internet.
Since curated links are types of backlinks, you should implement them into your SEO strategy and use several ways to obtain them. That way, you can grow your business and site traffic without constantly creating new content.
What do you think? Are curated links good for SEO, and why? What is your experience using these backlink types?
Let us know in the comments below.