Created on March 17, 2025 | Updated on March 17, 2025

Ecommerce Link Building: Everything You Need to Know

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SEO Articles

Ecommerce Link Building: Everything You Need to Know

Link building is as old as time. Yet, no matter how old it is, questions about link building never seem to fade. In fact, it seems to be just as tough as decades ago (or even tougher).

On top of this, it’s even more nuanced when it comes to eCommerce link building.

If you are running an eCommerce business, you’ve probably tried your hands at this SEO tactic a couple of times (or not, no pressure). It’s still one of the most effective ways to rake in organic traffic and get those sales numbers up.

So, in this guide, we’ll break down what building links for eCommerce stores look like. Besides, we’ll share our expert tips for how to get the most benefit from it.

Contents

Ecommerce link building explained
Benefits you can expect from it (backed by stats)
8 effective link building strategies for eCommerce brands

#1 Create unique quality content
#2 Guest posting still works
#3 Invest in more linkable assets
#4 Run a uniquely creative PR campaign or more
#5 Niche edits
#6 Build an affiliate program
#7 Unlinked brand mentions
#8 Look around: What are your competitors doing?

Conclusion

Ecommerce link building explained

Link building for eCommerce websites is the process of trying to get quality websites to link to your online store. How it works is that each page that links to you is basically telling its audience (and search engines) that your e-store is cool.

That means you are going to get people from each site who will go on to check out what you are offering. But it doesn’t stop there.

The more credible sites send backlinks to you, the more search engines start to believe you must be worth all that attention. So, they reward you with better ranking positions and higher domain authority.

How does it look in real life?

You know, all those web pages that write tutorials and how-tos. Normally, they would always mention the tools, ingredients, etc. they’re using. Apart from just mentioning them, these sites link to the online store where their readers can buy them.

Essentially, this is how link building for eCommerce sites works.

Here is one perfect example. Below, you can see JoyFoodSunshine’s blog about chocolate chip cookie recipe. Each hyperlink in the equipment section leads to a corresponding Amazon product page.

linkable share

Source: JoyFoodSunshine

This means that readers who want to make this recipe at home can easily click on any item they need. The backlink, in turn, takes them to the page of an online store (Amazon in this case) where they can purchase that exact equipment.

Amazon has 1.8 billion backlinks from 2 million websites. And the majority of them are dofollow too! (more on that later).

backlink profile

Source: Ahrefs

Imagine if you had two million other websites sending backlinks to your eCommerce store. That’s a lot of traffic! That’s exactly why Amazon's domain rating is as high as 96.

Of course, Amazon is a giant corporation — we all understand that. They employ many pricey and complicated enterprise SEO tactics. Still, it doesn’t mean that you can’t use some of their strategies, even if you’re a small business.

You don’t need almost two billion backlinks to see the results. In fact, the scale isn’t the most important thing. Do what you can, and it will pay off. Even if you get just 0.01% of all the linking domains Amazon has, there’s no way Google won’t take notice of your site.

So, start by using at least a couple of the tactics we’ll mention in this guide, and your online store will definitely grow.

Benefits you can expect from it (backed by stats)

Domain authority, more traffic — you have heard it all. Clearly, you are no stranger to the benefits of eCommerce SEO link building by now. But let’s look at the numbers this time:

The top-ranked pages are those with at least 3.8 more backlinks than the others.
Pages with 30-35 backlinks can pull as many as 10,500 monthly visits (of course, this depends on your niche and target keywords).
More backlinks usually mean more organic traffic. The #1 page on Google SERPs gets 39.8% of clicks, while the page in the second position gets 18.7%.

how google ranks

Source: FirstPageSage

Over 96% of web pages don’t get to see any traffic from Google. One of the main reasons why this happens is because they do not have backlinks.

These numbers are just snatching the surface. Don’t forget that each backlink campaign means that you get to collaborate with other people and/or brands, which is good for any business. This means more visibility for you, which translates into more social proof that helps your credibility.

And if there's one thing we know, it's the fact that social proof can affect purchase behaviors. No wonder many marketers agree that link-building is worth the investment (and all the trouble).

8 effective link building strategies for eCommerce brands

Ready to jump on board and start building your own e-commerce backlinks? Here are some tested and trusted hacks we use ourselves:

#1 Create unique quality content

You probably won’t be surprised to see quality content as the first tip on our list. Sure, AI has changed the way people create content. But relatable, helpful, and original content is pretty much at the heart of all SEO tactics. That includes eCommerce link building strategies. But why is it so important?

Your target audience sees you as a more credible and relatable brand.
Search engines trust you more and give your pages higher rankings in search results.
Other sites view you as a good page, making it easier to gain backlinks.

As you see, quality content gives you some benefits in every possible “dimension.” Besides, did you know that websites that blog get more traffic than those that don’t?

You can have tons of products and landing pages, but all of them are meant for sales. At the same time, a company blog is a way of giving out some valuable information for free. If done right, this can show that you actually care about your clients.

So, it’s a good idea to start blogging if you are not doing that already. It allows you to target a lot more keywords than you would with just product descriptions. And we all know the more keywords you target, the higher your chances of appearing in the search results.

Besides, this offers you more opportunities to market your product in a natural way by giving people the answers they need.

How do you know what to blog about? That’s easy — keyword research will help you find all the stuff people are searching for online. For example, if you sell loc hair products, you might notice people asking questions like this:

add backlinks

Source: Google

You can find all these search queries manually by googling different things related to the products you’re selling. If you’re using this approach, the People Also Ask (PAA) section will be really helpful.

#2 Guest posting still works

Guest posting is a very effective link building tactic for eCommerce that can get many eyes on your website. But for this work in the best way possible, you want to be picky about the websites you submit guest posts to.

We know, since you are hunting links, that sounds counterintuitive so let’s break it down.

Links from unrelated websites with low traffic and low domain authority won’t really help. Get tons of them, and your site could look like a spammy backlink farm. This can attract a penalty from Google.

So, you want to only reach out to relevant sites in your niche. Besides, these are the pages that are likely to have an audience that will have similar interests to yours. There are probably many blogs that fit this criteria, so you want to narrow down on those with steady, high traffic.

Before sending out your outreach emails, do your research about each page. This will come in handy when you want to personalize all those outreach emails to each webmaster.

outreach email

Source: LiveAgent

After all, the more you know about them, the easier it is to find a middle ground or shared interests where you can broach your idea from. Your email should focus on the benefits of your guest posts to their blog and their readers.

There’s no point using half of the pitch to talk about how great of a writer you are. Instead, include links to your previous articles, guides, and guest posts. If you have one, add your LinkedIn or X profile as well. This will give webmasters clear proof that you’re worth the trouble.

In case they say “yes,” you want to ensure that you make the most of the opportunity. If you do a great job, you can also use this publication as proof in your next outreach. So, do your research and approach the guest post with the mindset of doing justice to it.

#3 Invest in more linkable assets

It’s hard to talk about link building strategies for eCommerce without mentioning linkable assets. This tactic works for both online stores and regular blogs. After all, if there are two things people love, it’s useful information and easily digestible format.

One of the ways to go about this is to create a useful tool that’s related to your niche. It could be anything. Think clothing size converters, mortgage calculators, AI skin diagnostics, etc.

It just has to be related to the products you’re selling and be helpful for your customers. If it’s successful, you can also optimize that page for SEO, and this tool can promote your e-store as a result.

Here is how a website focused on keto products created a Keto calculator.

linkable assets

Source: Perfect Keto

You don’t even have to create it from scratch. Here is how a UK clothing brand uses a ready-made solution from TrueFit.

linkable assets example

Source: JD Williams

And there are some types of similar “pre-made” options like this in any niche. It doesn’t have to be a calculator either — any widget would do.

You can link to these in your blogs, promote them on other sites, and ask other pages with broken tools to link to your solution, etc.

If creating a widget sounds too complicated (or expensive), you can always craft infographics. They could be about anything — relevant facts, useful tips, or even product comparisons.

Source: Asilda Store

Alternatively, you can create case studies, conduct surveys, and do all kinds of original research. There are also helpful comprehensive guides that can become an instant hit. All these can be incredible link building resources for your site.

For example, this new case study from Semrush compares popular brands in SearchGPT vs. two main search engines.

linkable statistics

Source: Semrush

This already has 33 backlinks, even though it is just a few months old. That might not sound like a lot, but in the world of link building, that’s not bad at all. Besides, most (if not all) of these backlinks are organic, meaning that they didn’t do anything to gain those.

backlink profile example

Source: Ahrefs

Of course, Semrush isn’t an e-store, but who said that you couldn’t do something similar if you’re an e-commerce site? In fact, you might have access to much more interesting stats. If you do, the only thing that’s left is to put it all together and design it.

You don’t have to do this yourself either (especially if you don’t have an in-house graphic designer). Instead, hire a freelancer who can do this professionally in a couple of hours.

The goal is simple. Many people will appreciate new interesting information and will want to reference it in their own content. As much as possible, you want to be the one that offers them that info. This way, you’ll improve your credibility and start showing up as a trusted leader.

#4 Run a uniquely creative PR campaign or more

Some eCommerce link building tactics can cost a bit more than others. Running a PR campaign is not usually cheap, but the payoffs can be worth every penny.

Think about the Dove’s Hard Knock Life ad. Like all Dove’s campaigns, it tugs at the heart while highlighting social issues.

dove campaign

Source: YouTube

The 30-second clip was aired during the 2024 Super Bowl LVIII. The message was simple yet clear — build up the confidence of the girl child. This was done by showing that low body image is one of the leading causes why girls quit sports. A fact that may come as a surprise to some.

This is not the first time Dove’s campaign has focused on socially relevant issues for their digital PR. The Reverse Selfie campaign is another one that shows the damage social media can cause to young girls’ self-esteem.

Source: YouTube

As with all good campaigns, the reactions were mostly positive across the board. This proves that people resonate with the messages.

Unsurprising, the video of the Hard Knock Life campaign has 386 backlinks. At the same time, the Reverse Selfie campaign video currently has 250 backlinks. Besides, it’ll have tons of other mentions that will link to Dove’s website, social media accounts, and other pages.

backlinks youtube

Source: Ahrefs

Both (and all of Dove’s campaigns, really) have been mentioned in top blogs and media sites. You can learn a lot from them and get similar results. While Dove is a very well-known brand, you can repeat their success if the idea behind your campaign is powerful enough.

Plus, keep in mind that your campaigns must be relevant to your audience. They can reflect your customers’ realities in a way that shows you care and want to help without being salesy.

Got new product lines that use only recycled materials because you want to save the planet? A PR campaign is a good way to make some noise about it. Made a huge donation to some charity organization? Do the same thing.

Yet, focus on a story more than on the fact of how great you are. It’s probably a golden rule of any truly meaningful PR campaign.

In fact, you can be pretty abstract in your ads (i.e., don’t even mention your product as such).

If we go back to the Dove case, they make deodorants and other body care products. But they don’t usually focus on this in their campaigns. Still, they make a great impression on their audience, increase sales, and command a lot of customer loyalty.

So, relevant, cleverly thought-out PR campaigns can get you pretty high-quality backlinks. This will likely lead to lots of traffic, too. But it hardly ends there.

If you get mentioned in media sites with lots of readers, that’s a whole new level of brand awareness. This is exactly how you can grow your social proof rating.

What is the best part about this method of link building for eCommerce websites? Any referral traffic you get is going to be from people who are keen on interacting with you. This is usually the type of audience that won’t only buy your products but will also become a loyal customer.

#5 Niche edits

Niche edits (aka link insertions), as far as link building for eCommerce sites goes, do not require a lot of effort. Yet, they are still effective. You just have to do it right.

The whole idea is to get your link included on an already published page. For this to work, you don’t need to write an entirely new post — a paragraph or two would do just fine.

This starts with finding sites that are good enough — relevant, high-traffic, and medium to high domain authority. It sounds like a song at this point. But that’s just because those factors are so important when picking pages for your backlinks.

You can repeat the same process you would normally take for your guest posting. This includes website research and selection and then the process of personalized outreach and follow-ups (if needed).

Still, if compared to guest blogging, using niche edits is still a much simpler method of link building for websites.

Many quality sites agree to link insertions much easier because they have more control over the content. Besides, you don’t really have to spend hours and days writing a quality guest blog.

Just keep in mind that because you’re not actually submitting anything new, you’ll have to either pay for niche edits or get them through a mutual link exchange. Of course, you can find other conditions, but that’s just the industry average.

If you find a great page and they agree to add your link to their content, make sure you choose a relevant blog post that already ranks well and has good traffic. Plus, as much as possible, you want your link somewhere in the body of the article and not in the header or footer of the page.

From your side, when you insert your link, make sure that the paragraphs you submit also fit naturally into the larger body of content.

Consider the example below. You can see quite a few external backlinks, yet each one makes sense in the context of the post and paragraph. The natural anchor text is also a big part of this.

Source: UnicornPlatform

This also works well for website roundups. When you find one for your niche, you just have to reach out and ask them to add you.

Does this sound like something you’d like to skip? You can always find link building services for eCommerce websites to take care of things for you.

#6 Build an affiliate program

Affiliate marketing is huge, and the ROI proves it. This is also why a lot of big eCommerce businesses swear by it.

Return on ad

Source: Backlinko

But how do you use it for your backlink strategy for eCommerce sites?

It starts by finding the right people to partner with. You know, the people who will help push your products to their own customers/subscribers — for a small commission, of course. These are usually influencers and other content creators in your niche with a decent following.

Once you build an affiliate program on your site, you need to try to attract them. Be clear about the payment terms and make yours attractive. The more profitable your program is, the more affiliates you get. That’s how this link building eCommerce tactic works.

You’ll end up with bloggers and social media influencers who are happy to share their experiences with your products. Each time they make a post about any of your offerings, they will also link to the product pages. This is so their readers/viewers can grab one.

Source: YouTube

For channels or blogs with hundreds of thousands of followers, this can quickly translate into huge sales. Why? Because people tend to trust relatable influencers more than they do some unknown face or celebrity.

So, this method is more of an advanced eCommerce link building technique. Also, it works great when you are trying to market to several countries.

One more thing, though — usually, these links are nofollow which means they do not affect your SEO directly. Even then, people are learning about your brand and checking you out. This way, you end up with tons of quality backlinks that send qualified leads your way.

After all, pretty much any popular brand has its affiliate/referral program for a reason. If you try this strategy, you’ll see that its benefits might go far beyond SEO.

Source: Nike

#7 Unlinked brand mentions

What’s the difference between this…

Source: X

… and this?

Source: X

They both mentioned the same brand, but only one of them linked to it. Let’s see why this matters. Remember what we said earlier about making linkable assets? Turns out that if you are big enough or write really good content, something happens.

It’s only a time before people start mentioning you or your assets without crediting you. Yeah, it sucks sometimes. But you can leverage this, too.

You can reach out to them and ask them to link to your site. Most times, the webmaster will be happy to do this.

Of course, this is one of those link building eCommerce website tactics that works if you are popular. Clearly, if you’re a small, relatively unknown brand, you might struggle to get any mention (whether unlinked or not). But no worries, you’ll get there eventually.

When you do, how do you know if anyone is mentioning you?

You can decide to wait until you stumble on the occasional unlinked brand mentions. But it makes more sense to use a special tool that monitors the web and alerts you to any of those.

When it comes to X mentions like the above, you can skip these in most cases. Yet, when it’s a link to your site we’re talking about, go for it and reach out to the website editor.

This tactic can also be useful to see what people are saying about your brand. Are those mentions positive or negative?

#8 Look around: What are your competitors doing?

When it comes to link building for small eCommerce sites, you have to be a little bit more creative. Small businesses usually do not have the budget to run sustained digital PR campaigns or invest too much into buying backlinks.

They also can’t afford to pay influencers and might not have the resources to create quality linkable assets most of the time. So, what can you do in such cases?

Well, you can snag some links from the other brands in your niche who can afford to do those things. It’s as simple as using an SEO tool to check the backlink profile of your competitors. Then, when you see who links to them, you can send them an email asking for backlinks.

Who knows, maybe those prospects will accept a guest blog or a link insertion from you as well.

Of course, you have to offer something in exchange for the links. That’s just how it works with link building for websites. So, make sure your content is even better and more updated than your competitors wrote.

backlinks competitive analysis

Source: X

Conclusion

We have looked through some of the most effective link building tactics for eCommerce brands out there. Naturally, some of these are easier to do than others. So, there’s no reason to try to jump into all the techniques at once.

Start with what feels simpler, then work your way up from there. No matter which ones you decide to go with, the most important thing is to keep your eye on the goal. Provide value and put your customers first. Do this, and it’ll be easy to become an attractive magnet for links.

Adsy Team

Adsy SEO & Marketing Team

Adsy has been providing quality guest posting services for over a decade. Adsy is made up of a professional team of SEO specialists, marketers, writers, and IT staff.