Linkable Assets: The Ultimate Guide to Earning Backlinks

Most content online never earns a single link. That's not always because it's bad. It's because nobody designed it to be cited.

Ahrefs looked at about 14 billion pages and found that 96.55% of them get no traffic from Google (December 2023). The same study found that pages with more referring domains get more traffic, and that it's almost impossible to rank on the first page for competitive keywords without backlinks. Links aren't the whole story, but they separate the pages that get found from the ones that don't.

A linkable asset is how you stack the odds in your favor.

What is a linkable asset?

You'll also hear "link magnet" or "linkbait", though the second one has a poor reputation.

What separates it from an ordinary blog post is that it gives other writers something they need: a number they can quote, a tool they can point readers to, a definition they can cite, or a resource that saves them time. If a journalist or blogger can drop your page into their own article and make it better, you've made a linkable asset.

Why linkable assets work

Writers and editors are always looking for credible things to cite. Linking to a useful source is the easy option. Once a page gets cited, more people find it, some of them cite it too, and the links keep coming. That's the compounding effect people talk about, and it's why one good asset can outperform dozens of ordinary posts.

Types of linkable assets

Original research and data. If you publish numbers nobody else has, you become the source, and everyone who quotes the numbers should link to you. Backlinko analyzed 11.8 million Google search results to study what correlates with first-page rankings, and the study is now cited all over the SEO world. The HTTP Archive's Web Almanac is another example: it publishes a huge set of web data every couple of years and gets cited constantly. You don't need that scale. A survey of 200 customers in a small niche can work just as well if nobody has asked those questions before.

Free tools and calculators. A mortgage calculator, a price estimator or a checker for something your audience does every week. People link to tools and come back to use them. They cost more to build than an article, and they're worth it if the tool solves a real, repeated problem.

Definitive guides. A guide can be an asset if it becomes the page people send others to when they need to understand a topic. It has to be more complete, clearer and more current than what's already out there. Length alone doesn't do it.

Case studies. A proper case study with real numbers gives writers something to cite as evidence. Ours is a good example: a home decor brand grew monthly organic traffic from 11.4k to 477.5k while its Domain Rating went from 33 to 71, and the page shows how.

Expert roundups. You ask a group of experts one good question and publish the answers. The contributors often share the piece and link to it. It works best when the question is specific and the experts are genuinely relevant.

Templates and checklists. Ready-to-use resources such as a content calendar, a project plan or an audit checklist save people time. They're easy to link to and easy to keep updated.

Coined terms and frameworks. If you name a technique and it catches on, people cite the origin. Brian Dean's Skyscraper Technique is the classic example. He published it on Backlinko in 2013, and the method itself is a nice small case study: find content that already earns links, make something better, then reach out to the right people. His own write-up says he sent 160 emails and landed 17 links, an 11% success rate. That's one person's result, not a benchmark, but it's a useful reminder that even a strong asset needs outreach.

Infographics and video. These can earn embeds and links when they explain something hard clearly. They're rarely the best first choice, because they're easy to copy and often add less than a solid written page.

1. 1Choose the ideaScore each idea from one to five on four questions
2. 2Build itResearch first, then give it one job
3. 3Get it in front of peoplePublishing is only the start

How to choose the right idea

When you have several ideas, score each from one to five on four questions. We call it RODE.

• Readers. Who needs this, and when? A blogger writing a list post, a journalist on deadline, a buyer comparing options?
• Opportunity. What's missing in the search results right now? Thin statistics pages, outdated benchmarks, clunky tools, paywalled references and regional gaps are all openings.
• Differentiation. What would make yours the page people cite? New data, a faster tool, a clearer definition, better design, regular updates?
• Effort. Can you build it well and keep it up to date? If it needs monthly updates, do you have the people and the process?

Pick the top one or two.

How to build it

Research first. Find the questions your audience asks, using keyword tools and the "People also ask" box. Look at the pages that already earn links for your topic and see who links to them and why. Ask whether you can make something more complete, more current or easier to use. Look for gaps: outdated studies, unclear explanations, topics nobody has simplified.

Give it one job. A calculator page shouldn't turn into a 4,000-word essay. Put the outcome at the top so visitors get value in seconds.

Show your working. Explain how you got the data, cite your sources, and add a visible "updated" date you actually maintain. Make the citable parts easy to copy. Think like a journalist in a hurry.

Make it easy to read. Clear headings, short paragraphs, good visuals, a fast page that works on a phone.

Keep the URL stable. Links to a page that moves or disappears are wasted.

How to get it in front of people

Publishing is the start. A great asset won't earn links if nobody knows it exists, and this is the step most people skip.

1. Know who it's for. Who benefits from it? Who writes about this topic? What problem does it solve?

2. Build a prospect list. Look for bloggers and publishers in your niche, journalists who cover the topic, and curators of resource pages. Your competitors' backlinks show who has linked to similar content before. Expert-quote requests are another route, and we cover them on our page about expert quote link building.

3. Write messages people answer. Mention something specific from their work. Keep it short. Explain what's in it for their readers. End with an easy yes, such as "Would it be useful for your readers?". Generic emails get ignored. Our guide to reaching out to bloggers has more on this.

4. Think relationships, not one-off links. Follow people, share their work, and get to know them before you ask. It makes the next request easier.

5. Follow up once. People are busy. A short, friendly reminder after a few days is fine. If there's still no answer, move on.

6. Track what happens. Note who replied, which subject lines and messages worked, and which assets performed best. Use that to improve your next round.

If you'd rather not run outreach yourself, that's what blogger outreach services are for.

Why most linkable assets fail

• Building in a vacuum. Nobody asked for it. Check that there's demand before you invest.
• Making a "me too" version. If it doesn't offer a new angle or a clearly better experience, there's no reason to link to it.
• Neglecting design. Great information in a poor package won't get shared.
• Publishing and hoping. Promotion is half the job.
• Letting it go stale. Old data and broken tools lose links over time.

Pros and cons of linkable assets

Is a linkable asset worth it?

A real linkable asset is a long-term investment, not a quick tactic. Build one when you're serious about earning authority and you can commit to creating, promoting and maintaining it. Skip it if you need quick wins or have no budget to promote it afterwards.

Your linkable asset to-do list

1. Look at your competitors' most-linked pages and note what sets them apart.
2. Pick one idea and score it with RODE.
3. Draft an outreach list of at least 20 relevant writers and publishers.
4. Set a publishing date and keep to it.
5. Promote it, track the results and update it regularly.

If you'd like help with the outreach side, we run manual outreach where you choose the sites and approve the content. See how it works.

Sources

Checked on 30 September 2026.

• Ahrefs: 96.55% of content gets no traffic from Google (December 2023)
• Backlinko: We analyzed 11.8 million Google search results (updated April 2025)
• Backlinko: The Skyscraper Technique (published April 2013)
• HTTP Archive: Web Almanac
• Magfellow case study: Home decor brand