Link Building Services: What You Should Really Be Getting

The world of link building services is wide and diverse. In this landscape, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and hard to know what to truly expect when you hire a link building agency. Too many companies sell backlink packages as if they were shortcuts to rankings, ignoring what really matters: strategy, quality, tangible results, and yes, quantity too.

A professional SEO link building service does much more than place links on generic websites. It analyzes your backlink profile, identifies real, competitor-based opportunities that can turn into strategic advantages, builds a coherent anchor text strategy, and selects only relevant, high-quality publishers. And after publication? It monitors, adjusts, and improves. Every single month.

In this article, we’ll walk you through everything a real link building service must include, showing you exactly how our process works. No vague promises, just what works, based on experience and real-world results. At Menford, a specialist Link Building Agency, we’ve built our entire service on these principles, and we apply them to every client we work with.

What Are Link Building Services

Link building services are specialized SEO services focused on acquiring backlinks (external links) from other websites that point to yours. But not all links are created equal. Only high-quality backlinks from authoritative, niche-relevant sites can truly move the needle for your organic performance.

An agency offering premium link building services doesn’t just “get you links” or “place guest posts.” It audits your site, identifies linkable assets, selects publishers that align with your niche, and negotiates editorial placements with tailored content. All of this is part of a custom link building strategy tied to your SEO goals.

When done right, the service delivers real benefits: more organic traffic, stronger domain authority, and increased visibility for your strategic keywords.

If you’re searching for affordable link building services, consider more than just price. What’s included matters more. Weak strategies or irrelevant backlinks can hurt more than help. On the other hand, effective link building can help you reach conversions, visibility, and long-term growth.

What Does Link Building Work For?

Why invest in link building? Because it’s still one of the most important ranking factors in Google’s algorithm. Each authoritative backlink is like a vote of confidence that boosts your site’s credibility in the eyes of search engines.
A strong link building service improves:

• SEO rankings, by increasing your domain authority
• Organic traffic, by attracting relevant users from aligned publishers
• Brand awareness, through editorial mentions on websites your audience already knows and trusts

But there’s more. Strategic backlinks drive traffic to specific landing pages, services, or content hubs, making anchor text and site selection absolutely critical.

Finally, natural, contextual links deliver long-term value. They withstand algorithm updates and reinforce your brand’s reputation. That’s why more and more SEO Managers and CMOs turn to data-driven agencies like ours.

Before the First Link: What a Good Link Building Service Should Check

Every solid SEO link building campaign starts with analysis. Before placing a single link, a professional agency must fully understand your site’s structure, key landing pages, and competitive landscape.

This is what separates professional services from improvised ones. Without this step, any strategy will be misaligned. The goal is to map out your current backlink profile and benchmark it against your competitors.

A reliable service doesn’t rely on generic templates: we adapt every strategy to your website’s architecture and your goals. We analyze anchor text usage, your top-linked pages, content performance, and anything that helps us tailor a backlink strategy that works for your brand.

This analytical phase is the decision-making engine behind everything that follows. It’s the only way to build a strategy that places backlinks where they’re needed most, with the right keywords, and from the right publishers.

Key Elements to Analyze in Your Backlink Profile

A professional service begins with an advanced backlink profile audit. Here’s what we evaluate:

• Domain Rating Overview: Evaluate your site’s authority across various SEO metrics.
• Keyword Analysis: Identify keywords you already rank for and those with untapped potential
• Page Analysis: See which pages get links and traffic (and which don’t)
• Referring Domains: Examine the type, quantity, and link quality (DR, DA, PA)
• Content Formats: What formats attract links: guides, data articles, blog posts?
• Link Distribution: How many links point to your homepage vs. internal pages?
• Anchor Text Analysis: Assess the diversity and balance of anchor texts
• Topical Relevance Between Sites & Pages: Is the referring site thematically aligned with yours? Do the source and target page share semantic alignment?
• Link Velocity: How quickly are you gaining or losing links over time?

This groundwork reveals your strengths, weaknesses, gaps, and over-optimizations, laying the foundation for a winning SEO strategy.

Competitor Link Analysis: What Matters Most

Knowing your competitors is critical to climbing the SERPs. But you need to know that your SEO competitors aren’t always the same as your business competitors:

• Business Competitors are those offering similar products/services
• SEO Competitors are those outranking you in search results, even if they’re in a different vertical

At Menford, we run a full competitor link analysis, covering:

• SEO + Business Competitors: Identify the actual players dominating the SERP and why
• Audit Replication: Apply the same backlink profile audit to each competitor
• Backlink Gap Analysis: Discover who links to them but not to you
• Broken Backlink Opportunities: Reclaimable links from competitor pages that no longer exist
• Linkable Assets: Spot the content that naturally attracts backlinks, and help you create better versions
• Keyword Opportunities: Find keywords they rank for that you’ve missed

This approach uncovers powerful Skyscraper content, underutilized assets, and new guest posting opportunities. It’s never automated—each industry requires a custom analysis.

The Core of the Service: The Link Building Strategy

Once the data is in, the strategy begins. A solid link building strategy transforms raw insights into action. Here’s what a link building agency like Menford includes in the strategic roadmap:

• Number of Monthly Links: Define quantity based on goals and budget
• Link Distribution Strategy: Balance between homepage and internal page links
• Anchor Text Strategy: Smart mix of branded, partial match, exact match, and long-tail variations
• Skyscraper Opportunities: Find and outperform outdated or underwhelming competitor content
• Linkable Assets: Discover the pages on your site likely to attract natural backlinks
• Publisher Selection: Criteria include site selection relevance, organic traffic, and trust metrics

The strategy must be documented and transparent. Whether you run a blog, local business, or global e-commerce store, the fundamentals remain: precision, scalability, and link quality.

Key Points to Agree On with the SEO Agency

A successful collaboration starts with aligned expectations. Before launching, clarify with your agency:

• Which SEO tools will they use? Just one or multiple? At Menford, we leverage a combination of tools to get the full picture: Google Search Console, Ahrefs, Majestic, and Semrush, among others. This multi-tool approach also defines our Full Service SEO, which goes beyond link building and includes audits, technical SEO, and content strategy.
• How are publishers selected and vetted?
• Are metrics like domain authority, traffic, and niche relevance considered?
• Will you approve sites before publication?
• What are the turnaround times for each guest posting?

We tailor site selection to each campaign. No recycled lists. You receive a curated publisher shortlist based on relevance, quality, and performance.

We also believe in transparency. Our campaign agreements clearly define the link quality, content expectations, schedule, and communication flow. This clarity helps avoid surprises and fosters trust—crucial in any high-value SEO initiative.

You should know, however, that tracking down the publisher sites best suited to your business and procuring links is definitely an important step, but the benefit can be lost if you do not produce quality content.

Should SEO Copywriting Be Included in a Link Building Service?

Absolutely. Without strong content, even the best backlink strategy falls short. That’s why including a professional SEO copywriting service within your link building service is essential.

The article where your backlink appears directly influences link quality, reader engagement, and how long the link stays live. A generic article with weak relevance won’t attract attention or trust. A well-written, optimized, and contextually relevant piece? That’s what search engines reward.

We offer the option to include SEO Copywriting Service in every link building campaign. Our content team creates tailored articles for guest posting on authority sites aligned with your niche. These articles are not only SEO-friendly but also written to match the tone and standards of the target publisher, ensuring editorial approval and maximum impact.

Including copywriting ensures consistency between strategy and execution, aligning anchor texts, landing pages, and messaging into one cohesive system. If your current provider sees content as a side note, it might be time to rethink your link building strategy.

Publishing: How to Check If You’re Receiving a Good Link Building Service

Once the strategy is in place, it’s time to verify if the agency can truly execute it. The publishing phase is critical: delays, poor-quality sites, or vanishing links can undermine the entire campaign.

A professional link building service ensures backlinks are published in just a few days. For example, we guarantee publication within 2 business days and maintain clear communication throughout the entire process. You’ll always preview the links before they go live.

The right link building agency is responsive, proactive, and transparent. It warns you of potential issues, provides real-time updates, and never disappears without notice. No delays. No silence.

Above all, there must be consistency between strategy and execution. This includes site selection, link placement, content quality, and distribution. Any disconnect here is a red flag—and often the difference between short-term SEO spikes and long-term gains.

What Should Be Included After Publication

Getting the backlink is just the beginning. It might sound strange, but the real work begins after the link goes live. A trustworthy agency doesn’t disappear once links are published.

It provides consistent reporting that includes every backlink built, the anchor text used, the destination page, and its current indexation status.

More importantly, it offers strategic follow-up:

• What are your competitors doing this month? Have new backlink opportunities emerged?

Without this kind of feedback loop, even a well-executed campaign risks stagnating over time.

Link Building Report

An effective monthly link building service provides a report that is clear, actionable, and easy to digest. With Menford, forget about tables with URLs. We deliver strategic insights:

• Updated SEO metrics for each publisher (traffic, trust score, domain rating)
• Details about any lost or replaced backlinks
• Next-step recommendations for the following month
• Ongoing analysis of your performance vs. your competitor backlink gap

This approach allows your strategy to evolve with the market, helping you make data-driven decisions, not ones based on assumptions.

What Metrics Matter (and Which Are Just Fluff?)

We’ve talked about SEO metrics, but what are the ones to really pay attention to for your link building strategy and in selecting publisher sites? One thing matters most: don’t get distracted by vanity metrics. A large number of backlinks means little without relevance and authority.

So what actually matters?

• Organic traffic of the linking site
• Niche relevance and topical alignment with your content
• Link quality: is it editorial, naturally placed in a real context—or randomly inserted?
• Keyword ranking movement after the link is published
• Balance between follow vs. nofollow links

Avoid inflated reports filled with guest posts on generic directories, comment sections, or private blog networks (PBNs). Google today rewards authority sites with authentic, editorial content—and so should you.

How Much Should Link Building Cost?

Here’s the truth: there’s no one-size-fits-all price. Every link building campaign is different: goals, industry competitiveness, backlink strategy, type of content, and the number of links needed.

A professional service will clearly explain:

• What’s included
• How long the campaign will last
• What results you can reasonably expect (based on your SEO strategy)
• No hidden costs

We operate with modular and transparent pricing, with no hidden fees, based on the thematic relevance of publisher sites. Be wary of providers offering “100 links for €100”: Google is stricter than ever, and toxic links bring penalties, not progress.

Not Ready Yet? Here’s a Smart Way to Test

If you’re considering investing in link building services but want to test quality and process first, Menford offers a smart, low-risk way to begin.

Start with a small package fully managed by our team. You’ll experience the same strategic precision, publishing speed, content quality, and real SEO impact as our full-service clients.

Here’s what you’ll see for yourself:

• Link publishing speed and reliability
• Article quality and tailored site selection
• Immediate effects on traffic and search rankings

Curious to see what smart link building really looks like?

This is your chance to evaluate our method—on your terms. Start small. See real results.

Fill out the form below and we’ll show you exactly where to start.