I’m sure you know this already:
Nothing builds links better than killer content.
But it takes more than a great blog post to attract links and mentions.
You see:
To earn backlinks from your content you need to target the very people who could link to it – writers and other content creators.
And the best way to attract their attention is by publishing reference materials they could use.
But if you’re wondering what posts to publish to achieve it, you’re in luck. Here are 8 content types that are simply guaranteed to get your content noticed and generate links.
1. Mammoth Posts
Fact:
You can see these 2000+ words long blog posts everywhere these days.
They were made popular by such people as Neil Patel or Brian Dean. They’re also the main content type many marketers focus their content efforts today.
And for a reason.
For one, these posts attract audience and social shares like crazy. Here are few screenshots to prove it:
But they attract links like crazy too.
And the reason for that is simple.
Because these posts are overflowing with advice, resources and examples, they practically scream authority at your face. In other words, linking to them will always put a writer in a favorable light in their audience’s eyes.
Simply.
2. Roundups
Creating roundups is considered the best strategy to raise awareness of your site, attract relevant traffic and associate your brand with the right people.
Just take a look at social shares this roundup has achieved:
But it’s also one of the blog post types people will eagerly link to.
Why?
For one, because roundups are intriguing. Gathering opinions and advice from a number of experts on a very specific topic will always generate interest.
Two, they’re also an easy content type to link to. You can include them in content roundups, emails and content recommendations knowing that they will always provide good insights to your audience.
3. Collection of Stats
Speaking as a writer I can guarantee you that collecting stats and research findings on a specific topic is the best strategy to drive tons of links to your content.
Why?
Because we writers are lazy.
We know that including data and stats will add authority to whatever content we work on. But we just don’t want to spend too much time looking for it.
So if you provide an up to date research and statistics on a very particular topic, you can count on many writers and bloggers citing it directly in their content.
However, this strategy needs time to bear fruit. For one, your content must rank high for specific keywords, i.e. “[topic] + research”, “[topic] + stats” or “[topic] + statistics”.
Here’s a great example of stats based post any writer would use when seeking reference:
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4. Proprietary Research
Similarly, publishing results from internal experiments or research will not only increase your authority but will provide reference other content creators will use and link to.
5. Interviews
Interviews work on a similar premise as roundups. They target a reader’s natural curiosity about an expert’s opinion on a specific topic.
But they also make up for a great resource material for bloggers and content creators.
You see:
Quotes and direct reference provide the best arguments you can use to back up any claims you make in the copy.
And so we writers often research interviews and talks with experts to find valuable nuggets of information to use in content and then link to the original source.
TIP: To increase the chances for an interview to get picked up and linked to, focus on a very specific topic. Ideally it should be something relevant to the current situation in the industry. At SERPs for instance we conducted interviews with well-known link builders to find out how hard it is to be a link builder after all the Google updates that were happening at the time.
6. Ultimate Guides
This goes without saying:
A solid ultimate guide is the most comprehensive source of background information on a topic a writer could ask for.
Imagine that instead of having to browse through tens of articles on a topic and try to make sense of it, you could learn everything you need to write your content in one place.
Great, isn’t it?
And then, if you use any of the information you’ve found in such guide, you’ll most likely to reference it as the source, building links to that piece in the process.
7. Case Studies
Case studies are the best reference asset when you’re trying to prove that a particular strategy or idea works.
Being able to provide evidence that what you’re writing about has worked for others is invaluable.
And that’s the reason why writers seek out case studies to include in their content.
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8. Opinion Posts
Opinion posts focus on providing readers with reasons for taking a specific action or making a decision and include supporting information to help them do it.
But what really makes them an important link building asset is that they are typically based on personal experiences.
However, I admit:
Opinion posts don’t make for the most popular content type.
One reason is that not everyone actually has an opinion on a particular topic. Fear of having your ideas ridiculed in public is another.
But if you want to introduce your personality and give others ideas they might include in their posts, there might be no better content type to use.
You see:
Posting reference and stats is one thing. But joining or at least reiterating an existing discussion on a topic is what makes the content to truly stand out.
And thus we writers often seek out opinions to share in our content. And link to them too, of course.
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To reiterate…
If you want your content to attract links, focus on people who are the most likely to do it – writers and content creators.
Provide them with information and data they seek, one that would help enrich their content and in return, they’ll surely reference it as a source.
It’s that simple.
Last updated by at August 5, 2015.