This Craft CMS SEO link-building technique is incredibly effective and, in non-competitive niches, may be the only one you need.
It’s all about looking into competitor links.
Back in the day, Google allowed you to do this for free with the link:domain.com command; these days, that feature is pretty much useless.
For best results, use a tool like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Majestic SEO; Majestic SEO is the most affordable.
It’s best to do this methodically and set a target. Say you will review my top 15 Google competitors and their backlink profiles. Depending on the link power and number of backlinks, this might even take a few days' work.
I use Ahrefs, and you can use the Keywords Explorer tool to get a list of your competitors.
Then it’s just a case of clicking on the blue link in the corresponding “backlinks” table column.
Ahrefs has a very useful feature
Next, you want to do a bit of filtering, and Ahrefs has a very useful feature for this called “Best links.” This does what it says on the tin: it filters results to only the best links. You can also use the “non-spammy links” to great effect. Without this feature, you would have to order the columns by DR, and this doesn’t always give accurate results. If you have access to Ahrefs, use this “best links” feature; it’s incredibly effective.
The next step is to click the target URL on the right and investigate the site.
You want to find out if it’s possible to get a link from that site linking to your competitor's site to your site.
Big warning here, you are NOT going to be able to get most of the links listed here. If you got 1 in 3, you would be doing very well indeed, but that said, it would be very unusual for you to look through 20 links and not find an opportunity. This takes a little work, but your competition is unlikely to do as thoroughly as you. You work harder than your competition, right?
Link type 1: Directories
In almost every niche, there are category-related listings. Don't be put off by directories; high-quality ones can boost your link profile effectively. Some of these sites may be paid, but after evaluating quality based on DR, how high the site ranks in Google, and whether there are many spammy links in their directories, these links can work wonders.
Link type 2: Paid links
Opportunities may even be paid links, but as long as they are not spammy, you can proceed based on your budget. You want to avoid sites that link out to random sites in non-related articles. Google will see these links as non-relevant and likely discount these links.
Link type 3: Editorial links
Some of these link opportunities will be editorial links, so you will need to reach out to the site to ask for a link, too.
You can use a tool such as Hunter.io to get the relevant contacts for the site you are looking to get a link from.
You have to be in the mindset of, “they linked to my competitor, then there's no reason why they wouldn't link to me.”
Sure, your competitor may have some great content that attracts high-quality links, but you will realise what you have to do in terms of content to compete with them. This may be an eye-opening moment, but a lot of SEO in 2026 revolves around content. You won't be able to challenge your competitors without good content.
Link type 4: Guest posts
Guest posts are an effective way of garnering links to your website. As with all of these links I have talked about, though, quality comes into it. You just want a guest post from any site that accepts guest posts. You want a site that is 1. trusted and well-known, and 2. relevant to your category.
Impossible links
There may be some links that are almost impossible to obtain, such as links from partner sites, websites with which they have close relationships, or clients of theirs. That’s ok; you move on. Not all links are attainable, but many are, and this technique will help you rise in the search engines.
Good luck.
If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out on Twitter/X.
Written by John Macpherson