Editorial Link
Editorial links are natural backlinks that websites earn by creating high-quality, relevant, and valuable content. These links occur when other sites voluntarily link to your content because they find it informative or useful.
They are considered more authoritative than self-created or paid links since search engines view them as unbiased endorsements of your site’s quality.
Importance in SEO
- Boosts organic ranking signals through third-party validation
- Increases website authority and credibility
- Enhances visibility and drives referral traffic
- Strengthens topical relevance and contextual associations
Example
A popular food blog publishes an article comparing different types of olive oil, including their origins, health benefits, and uses.
This comprehensive guide catches the attention of a renowned cooking magazine, which then decides to link to the food blog’s article within one of its articles discussing Mediterranean recipes.
As a result, the food blog receives an editorial link from the magazine, improving its domain authority and boosting its rankings in search engine results pages (SERPs).
Best Practices
Do
- Create engaging, shareable content
- Prioritize value and relevance over keyword density
- Focus on building relationships with industry influencers
- Utilize social media platforms to distribute content
- Monitor brand mentions and request attribution if needed
Don’t
- Purchase or solicit artificial links
- Engage in spammy guest posting practices
- Participate in reciprocal link schemes
- Overuse exact match anchor texts
- Ignore broken or outdated links pointing toward your site