In this article, you will find
What are Pillow Links?
Pillow link building helps you work around Penguin Update 4.0, introduced in 2016, created to detect unnatural patterns associated with backlinks.
Before this update, all Google cared about was how many backlinks your web pages had. This became a problem because links that aimed to alter the PageRank algorithm and boost web pages became rampant. There were web pages that were dedicated solely to spamming backlinks. This wasn’t very helpful to users, so Google sought to address it.
Nowadays, we use pillow links. These links help you diversify your target page link profile, so it looks more natural to Google. A natural backlink profile is made up of different links that come from different sources. Pillow link building strategy allows you to mimic this by having different kinds of links from different sources.
As the new algorithm is focused on detecting unnatural patterns, it’s important that not all of your links come from one source. Even if this one source is high-quality guest posts and high DR sites, it’s still suspicious that all of your links are coming from these sources.
Pillow links are supplemental to the backlinks that we’re used to building. They support these high-quality backlinks by making sure Google doesn’t become suspicious of your web page. Pillow link building balance out the really good links with high-quality websites and a few nofollow links. You can outsource pillow link building if you have no experience with it yet.
This is why they’re called “pillow links“: they provide a cushion to your backlink profile and set the foundation for your more powerful links.
Pillow links are usually nofollow links that don’t contain a target keyword. Nofollow links are links that don’t pass any link juice to their target website. Link juice is the term used in SEO to refer to the value or equity passed from one-page site to another.
You might ask: why are nofollow links a good idea for your link building strategy?
Just like pillow links, nofollow links help stabilize your backlink profile by diversifying the backlinks that lead to your web pages. Additionally, despite not being able to pass link juice to your website, it’s good for attracting traffic and building authority. They are the safest tags that you can have that will still point users back to your website.
6 Types of Pillow Links That are Worth Building
Nofollow Links
Nofollow links are links that don’t pass on link juice to the webpage they go to. This type of pillow link building can be made with different strategies.
You can get it from citations or from directories. These are a collection of links that can direct you to people, organizations, websites, webpages, and many more.
Because of the large number of links in a single webpage, these links are usually automatically nofollow links. This helps directories steer clear of Google’s penalties. What tends to happen is that Google may see directories as a strategy to boost PageRank of other web pages, kind of like a link farm.
You can also use guest posts to get nofollow links. A common strategy is to negotiate with guest post writers or website owners that you’ll be placing two links in the guest post; one would be your target keyword, and another would be a nofollow link.
Blog Comments
The reason why a lot of SEO professionals don’t practice this anymore is that spammers have dominated this playing field. There are lots of spammers who comment on irrelevant and unhelpful links on blogs. As a result, blog owners are wary of links in comments.
But you can utilize this for pillow link building! Look for blogs that are relevant to the web page that you’re trying to build pillow links for and comment on them with helpful information. You’ll get higher chances of getting your link out there if you still offer value and information along with your link.
Pillow link building helps attract a significant amount of traffic to your web pages while helping you diversify your backlink profile. This action is relatively easy to do and quite inexpensive to work on. You can also target high-profile blogs and get backlinks from there.
Guest Posting
Of course, guest posting won’t go out of style, even if we’re talking about pillow link building. The strategy for getting pillow links through guest posting is to have one dofollow link and one nofollow link. You can communicate this negotiation about having 2 links in advance when you’re writing a guest post for someone.
Image Links
Links can also come from images, not just texts. These can often be implemented through:
- Call to Action buttons (“Buy now!”, “Click Here!”, and “Download Here!”)
- Advertisements (banner ads)
- Infographics
The type of links you add to images will vary depending on what niche you’re in or what platform you’re putting these images in. For example, if you’re in the e-commerce industry, it’s quite common to have links attached to “Buy Now!” call-to-action buttons. These links will help users go directly to product pages so they can easily purchase what they want.
Another example would be when you’re in the nonprofit industry. It would be normal to have links attached to call-to-action images like “Download Now!” for resources and “Donate Now!” for donations.
It’s important to take into consideration the percentage of links coming from images depending on your niche. To do this, research the percentage of image links coming from your competitor websites. You can use SEO tools like Ahrefs to conduct backlink analysis.
Social Profiles Links
These are backlinks that come from any social media platform. Some of the most famous ones where you can get lots of them are the following:
- Tumblr
- YouTube
Statistics have shown that there are 4.59 billion social media users worldwide in 2022. Leveraging social media platforms for pillow backlinks, getting two for the price of one. You get to raise brand awareness and diversify your backlink profile.
Additionally, content posted on social media with your backlinks is easily shareable. Users only need to click the share button, and your link gets exposed to even more users online. It’s comparatively easier to curate blog posts that contain your pillow links.
It is important to note though, that you’ll need hundreds of these links for them to make a significant impact on your web page. Prioritizing publishing high-quality content will help you get hundreds of these links through shares.
Local Citation
A local citation is any form of mention of partial or complete information about a local business. This information is usually Name, Address, and Phone number or what we call NAP data. These citations can be found anywhere online, such as local business directories, websites, social media platforms, etc.
Local citations are great for homepage pillowing. They offer branded and naked URL links and an awesome mixture of both dofollow and nofollow links. It’s a natural way to diversify your backlink profile.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Is it expensive to buy pillow links?
Usually, pillow links are not expensive. When you’re guest posting, you can even get them for free by pre-arranging them with people. Usually, blog owners or webmasters don’t mind because it’s a nofollow link.
2. Will my backlink profile be safe if I have pillow links?
Pillow links are one of the safest links that you can buy. They’re usually nofollow so it doesn’t really significantly affect your backlink profile aside from diversifying it. If you’re outsourcing pillow link building, though, make sure you’re working with people who are both knowledgeable and trustworthy.
3. Is it okay to only use one kind of pillow link?
Pillow links are supposed to help you diversify your backlink profile so it’s better if you use different kinds as well. The wider the range of pillow links you have, the better.
In Conclusion
Pillow link building strategy help you diversify your backlink profile. It helps you balance your high-quality backlinks with other kinds of backlinks so Google doesn’t become suspicious of your web pages.
