Your competitor: 30,000 backlinks, ranking #1
You: 200 backlinks, ranking page 7
Here’s EXACTLY how you’re going to outrank them.
(The exact process we used for 10s of clients) 🧵
1/ Most people see their competitor's backlink count and quit immediately.
"They have 30k backlinks, I can never catch up!"
Wrong.
Your competitor doesn't actually have 30k backlinks.
They have maybe 200 REAL ones.
Let me show you the math 👇
"They have 30k backlinks, I can never catch up!"
Wrong.
Your competitor doesn't actually have 30k backlinks.
They have maybe 200 REAL ones.
Let me show you the math 👇
2/ Step 1: Find Your Real Competitor
Not the biggest brand in your space.
Find competitors who:
- Rank for YOUR target keywords
- Have similar domain age
- Operate in your niche
- Actually compete for the same traffic
Pick your top 3 direct competitors.
Not the biggest brand in your space.
Find competitors who:
- Rank for YOUR target keywords
- Have similar domain age
- Operate in your niche
- Actually compete for the same traffic
Pick your top 3 direct competitors.
3/ Step 2: Run the Backlink Audit
Plug competitor #1 into Ahrefs or Semrush.
Go to Backlink Analytics.
Before you freak out at the number you see...
Apply these filters 👇
Plug competitor #1 into Ahrefs or Semrush.
Go to Backlink Analytics.
Before you freak out at the number you see...
Apply these filters 👇
4/ The Essential Filters:
✓ Dofollow links only
✓ Active links only
✓ One link per referring domain
Why?
Nofollow = no SEO value
Dead links = don't count
Multiple links from same domain = minimal extra value
Watch the number DROP dramatically.
✓ Dofollow links only
✓ Active links only
✓ One link per referring domain
Why?
Nofollow = no SEO value
Dead links = don't count
Multiple links from same domain = minimal extra value
Watch the number DROP dramatically.
5/ Real Example:
Competitor shows: 30,000 backlinks
After filters: 1,394 backlinks
That's a 97% reduction.
Feeling better already?
But we're not done yet...
Competitor shows: 30,000 backlinks
After filters: 1,394 backlinks
That's a 97% reduction.
Feeling better already?
But we're not done yet...
6/ Step 3: Export to CSV
Download all remaining backlinks.
Now comes the manual work (or hire a VA for $5/hour).
Time to eliminate the garbage 👇
Download all remaining backlinks.
Now comes the manual work (or hire a VA for $5/hour).
Time to eliminate the garbage 👇
7/ Remove These Junk Links:
❌ Scraper sites (auto-generated garbage)
❌ Low-quality directories
❌ Links from search engines
❌ Backlink farms
❌ Foreign spam domains
❌ Sites with zero traffic
❌ Completely irrelevant niches
This is where the REAL number emerges.
❌ Scraper sites (auto-generated garbage)
❌ Low-quality directories
❌ Links from search engines
❌ Backlink farms
❌ Foreign spam domains
❌ Sites with zero traffic
❌ Completely irrelevant niches
This is where the REAL number emerges.
8/ The Final Number:
After removing all junk - you get ONLY 124 REAL backlinks
See what just happened?
Your "impossible" competitor suddenly has just 124 quality links.
Now we can work with that.
After removing all junk - you get ONLY 124 REAL backlinks
See what just happened?
Your "impossible" competitor suddenly has just 124 quality links.
Now we can work with that.
9/ Step 4: Audit YOUR Backlinks
Run your own domain through the same process:
1. Apply the same filters
2. Export to CSV
3. Remove junk links manually
4. Count your REAL backlinks
Let's say you end up with 50 quality links.
Run your own domain through the same process:
1. Apply the same filters
2. Export to CSV
3. Remove junk links manually
4. Count your REAL backlinks
Let's say you end up with 50 quality links.
10/ Step 5: Calculate the Gap
Competitor: 124 real backlinks
You: 50 real backlinks
Gap: 74 backlinks
This is your target.
Now let's figure out your timeline 👇
Competitor: 124 real backlinks
You: 50 real backlinks
Gap: 74 backlinks
This is your target.
Now let's figure out your timeline 👇
11/ Step 6: Set Your Timeline
Option A - Aggressive (6 months):
74 ÷ 6 = 12-13 links per month
Option B - Moderate (12 months):
74 ÷ 12 = 6-7 links per month
Option C - Conservative (18 months):
74 ÷ 18 = 4-5 links per month
Pick what's realistic for your budget/time.
Option A - Aggressive (6 months):
74 ÷ 6 = 12-13 links per month
Option B - Moderate (12 months):
74 ÷ 12 = 6-7 links per month
Option C - Conservative (18 months):
74 ÷ 18 = 4-5 links per month
Pick what's realistic for your budget/time.
12/ My Recommendation:
Aim for 8-10 quality backlinks per month.
This is:
- Achievable without spending $10k/month
- Fast enough to see results
- Sustainable long-term
- Won't trigger any red flags
Here's how to actually hit this target 👇
Aim for 8-10 quality backlinks per month.
This is:
- Achievable without spending $10k/month
- Fast enough to see results
- Sustainable long-term
- Won't trigger any red flags
Here's how to actually hit this target 👇
13/ The Link-Building Breakdown:
To get 8-10 links per month, do this:
- 3-4 guest posts
- 2-3 HARO/journalist features
- 2-3 resource page mentions
- 1-2 broken link replacements
This diversifies your link profile.
And it's 100% doable.
To get 8-10 links per month, do this:
- 3-4 guest posts
- 2-3 HARO/journalist features
- 2-3 resource page mentions
- 1-2 broken link replacements
This diversifies your link profile.
And it's 100% doable.
14/ Guest posting strategy example:
Find 50 blogs in your niche.
Send THIS pitch:
Find 50 blogs in your niche.
Send THIS pitch:
"Hey {Name},
Saw [competitor] is ranking #1 for [keyword], but you’re not targeting it just yet.
I’d love to help! I’ll write a 2,500 word, Surfer-optimized blog for the keyword, all I’m asking for is a single link back to my site.
⏭️
Saw [competitor] is ranking #1 for [keyword], but you’re not targeting it just yet.
I’d love to help! I’ll write a 2,500 word, Surfer-optimized blog for the keyword, all I’m asking for is a single link back to my site.
⏭️
Does that sound like a fair deal?
You can check out some of my samples here: [link]
- Nick"
You can check out some of my samples here: [link]
- Nick"
15/ Track Everything:
Create a Google Sheet with:
- Date acquired
- Source domain
- Link type
- DR of linking site
- Target page
- Anchor text
- Status (active/dead)
This helps you stay on target and spot patterns.
Create a Google Sheet with:
- Date acquired
- Source domain
- Link type
- DR of linking site
- Target page
- Anchor text
- Status (active/dead)
This helps you stay on target and spot patterns.
16/ The Math Gets Better:
Here's the secret:
While you're building 8-10 links per month...
Your competitor is probably building 2-3 (if any).
So you're not just catching up.
You're actually PASSING them.
Math works in your favor.
Here's the secret:
While you're building 8-10 links per month...
Your competitor is probably building 2-3 (if any).
So you're not just catching up.
You're actually PASSING them.
Math works in your favor.
17/ Common Mistakes to Avoid:
❌ Buying cheap bulk links
❌ Only building to homepage
❌ Ignoring link relevance
❌ Using exact match anchors too much
❌ Getting links too fast (looks unnatural)
❌ Not tracking what you build
Quality > Quantity. Always.
❌ Buying cheap bulk links
❌ Only building to homepage
❌ Ignoring link relevance
❌ Using exact match anchors too much
❌ Getting links too fast (looks unnatural)
❌ Not tracking what you build
Quality > Quantity. Always.
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