New Ontolo Tool: V2 Link Building Query Generator for Faster Link Prospecting

Posted on September 23rd, 2010
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Alrighty link builders. We just launched V2 of our Link Building Query Generator. It's free - but members only - so you have to sign up to access it. If you prefer NOT to sign up, you can still use our public V1 of the tool... But here's why you should sign up:

Why Sign Up for the New Link Building Query Generator Tool?

  • Add up to 15 keywords: Up from 1... now you can generate more queries much more quickly.
  • Export queries: Now it's even easier to task your link building team with enormous spreadsheets full of queries!
  • 300+ new queries: We're well over 600 queries now... and growing!
  • Content research queries: These new queries will help you spec out linkable content!
  • Added "Campaign Type" segmentation: You can select from Submission, Content Promotion, Sponsorship and more!

But What Does it Look Like?

Wow you're asking great questions... So here's a screen cap of the keyword entry portion of the tool... this is where you add up to 15 different keywords.

Once you've added your keywords, it's time to check some prospect type boxes so that the tool knows what exactly you're looking for. We've grouped our queries into Asset Types, Opportunity Types, and Campaign Types. Here's the screen shot for reference, and then we'll dig in a bit on definitions.

Do You Have Any Quick Tips for Getting Started?

You're obviously raring to go! Probably you will come back and read the definitions and examples later, but we certainly salute your desire to get going. Here are some quick tips and best practices for using this tool.

6 Quick Tips for Getting Started

  • Quickly review 7 Crucial Keyword Types for Link Prospect Querying to get your brain going.
  • Use singulars of your keywords - some of our queries use the * operator which will cover plurals if needed.
  • Have a linkable asset in mind - though the tool is useful at the campaign design stage, it's only useful if you have linkable content.
  • Be open to "discovering" linkable asset types, campaign types and opportunity types that you hadn't considered before.
  • Set the results to show 100.
  • After you run a query, your keywords remain in the fields, but all the boxes return to unchecked status.

What are the 3 Link Prospect Types?

We've grouped link queries along three basic prospect types - this is to better help you find exactly what kinds of queries you need. All 600 prospects fall into each type, meaning we've assigned each single query to 3 different types.

Here's how we define these prospect types:

  • Asset Type: What kind of linkable asset - content, cash, talent, etc - are you using to attract links? For many, this makes an excellent starting point for generating a query list. You can also use these queries to gauge opportunity depth in your keyword space!
  • Opportunity Type: This type is for link builders with a firm idea of the page or site type they're looking for.
  • Campaign Type: For link building team managers, the Campaign Type gives you the broadest set of queries that you can then pass along to your team. The "Submission" campaign type for example contains only queries that are submission-based and generally require very little engagement. The "Community Participation" campaign type is the bucket for all commenting-related and forum participation queries.

But... How Do I Use This Tool for Link Building?

For us, link prospecting with queries occurs throughout a campaign. We use them initially to gauge the depth of opportunity in a given market. For example, in a space with very few blogs, there are probably not many guest blogging opportunities. Queries therefore can help you to choose a direction and evaluate what kinds of resources you're going to need. And of course we use queries extensively at the prospecting stage, which typically occurs once we've finalized a piece of content or other linkable asset and we're ready to begin promoting it.

Example Use 1: Content Promotion

Let's walk through this though, assuming you've written an ultimate guide to sea kayaking. It's a single page of content that's around 3,000 words. It's more thorough, more engaging and more useful than anything else on the web, or off. And now you need some link prospects who you can contact and request some links.

Here's how I'd use the new link query generator for this:

  1. Head over to the V2 Link Building Query Generator
  2. Enter the following keywords: kayaking, kayak, "sea kayaking" and "sea kayak"
  3. Click the following Asset Type: "Content for Outreach"
  4. Click the big blue button that says "Generate Link Building Queries"
  5. Click each result or simply download all of them into a spreadsheet.

Alternately, at step 3 you could click on the Campaign Type "Content Promotion" or Opportunity Type "Editorial Citation."

Example Use 2: Your CEO/Designers/Scientists are Super Smart

Let's take our kayaking example again... We'll assume the CEO of our kayaking design company is an engineer who also happens to be a world-class kayaker. The link strategist knows that the CEO is a linkable asset, in that people who write regularly in the kayaking space would potentially want to interview her.

Here's how I'd use the new link query generator for this:

  1. Head over to the V2 Link Building Query Generator
  2. Enter the following keywords: kayaking, kayak, [name of competing company], [name of other kayaking superstar]
  3. Click the following Asset Type: "Subject Matter Expert"
  4. Click the big blue button that says "Generate Link Building Queries"
  5. Click each result or simply download all of them into a spreadsheet.

What Other Link Building Query Resources Can You Suggest?

We've written, researched and learned a great deal about using queries to find link building prospects. Not only that, there are a number of other free tools in the market that you can use. Here is our list of tools and resources.

Link Building Query Generating Tools

Link Building Query Resources


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Ontolo makes Link Building Tools for SEOs. We research relevant & valuable link prospects about topics and link types that you define for your campaigns.
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