Website demographics: Know your audience & grow faster

 

Learn how to analyze website demographics to understand visitors, tailor content, and boost engagement with data-driven marketing strategies.

Most SEOs focus on keywords and backlinks when it comes to websites. But if you don’t know who’s actually landing on your website, you’ll miss chances to turn visitors into customers. Because when you don’t know audience demographics like their age, location, or interests, you can’t tailor your content, CTAs, or offers to match what they actually want.

That mismatch makes them more likely to leave without taking the desired action (e.g, buying, signing up, or booking a demo), which means you lose potential customers.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to use website demographics to shape smarter SEO strategies and make more aligned content. You’ll also see how to collect demographic data (both traditionally and in more advanced ways), what tools to use, how to use them, and how AI can help you maximize all your marketing efforts. 

What are website demographics?

Website demographics refer to the core characteristics of a website’s audience, such as: 

• Age
• Gender
• Location
• Language
• Interests 

Let’s imagine you run an ecommerce store that sells outdoor gear, and your website demographics demonstrate that your site is mainly attracting men aged 65+ from the U.S. 

Hikers in that range probably care more about comfort and joint support than, say, the newest high-tech body camera. So, when you know details like the average age of your site’s visitors, you can shape product pages and even blog posts that speak directly to that group.

That relevance would make your content more persuasive and increase the likelihood of turning visitors into customers.

How website demographics differ from other data types

Let’s see how website demographics differ from other data types:

Psychographics

While demographics give you a high-level overview of who your audience is, psychographics reveal why they behave the way they do. They provide insights into interests, attitudes, beliefs, and values (the deeper motivations and emotional triggers) that influence how your audience thinks and acts. 

Firmographics

In a B2B (business-to-business) context, firmographics are the equivalent of demographics but for companies. 

They include data like company size, industry, revenue, and location, which helps you understand the key characteristics of the businesses you’re targeting. 

Behavioral analytics

Behavioral analytics track what your audience does on your website, such as the pages they visit, how long they stay, what actions they take, and whether they convert (i.e., make a purchase or complete a desired action). 

You can use this insight to identify areas of friction such as a complicated checkout process or unclear product descriptions. 

How accurate demographic data makes SEO and conversion optimization easy

When you have accurate demographic data, you know exactly who’s visiting your website. Because it means that you’re not guessing. Instead, you’re looking at real numbers for age, gender, and location. 

That clarity helps you move past broad assumptions and focus on what your actual audience wants, while also ensuring your actual audience aligns with your target audience.

Impact on SEO 

If you see that most of your visitors are 65+ years old in the US who care about hiking, you don’t waste time on creating content for generic terms like “outdoor gear.” 

You go after searches that match their intent—keywords like “best hiking boots for US trails” or “reliable camping gear for families.” 

That’s how you show up where your audience is already looking.

Impact on conversion optimization

Conversion optimization means turning more of your visitors into customers. The way you do it is simple: give people what they’re most likely to want. And demographics make that possible. 

If your audience is aged 65+, you can highlight features that generally matter more to that group, like durable materials, comfort, or long-term value. 

This way, the more your website reflects what matters to them, the easier it is for them to “buy” from your store. 

Why website demographics matter for SEO

Let’s understand in more detail how website demographics can improve your SEO:

Keyword strategy 

Keyword strategy means identifying the search terms your audience uses so you can map your content around them. 

But if you don’t know your audience’s age, location, or even gender, how will you understand what they actually need or search for? 

You might target generic terms like “camping gear,” but Gen Z hikers care about “eco-friendly backpacks for long hikes.” 

See the gap? 

Your keywords don’t match their intent, so your pages won’t rank for what matters. Fewer of the right people ever find you.

That’s why knowing your audience matters. Because when you understand who’s on your website, you can align your content with the exact search terms they use and bring in visitors who are far more likely to buy.

Content localization

Content localization means adapting your language, tone, and examples to match the region and culture of your audience. Without it, even great content can feel irrelevant.

Because people in different regions have different interests and cultural preferences. 

For example, a US hiker might get excited about “weekend wilderness trips,” while a European adventurer might relate more to “alpine trekking escapes.”

If you ignore these differences, your content won’t connect with local audiences and visitors will leave when they don’t find products that respond to their particular interests. 

SERP competitiveness

SERP competitiveness means choosing search terms where you can realistically win visibility against competitors instead of showing up anywhere in search results. 

Without understanding your audience, you may compete for the wrong terms and lose visibility to the people who matter most.

Why?

Because search engines match pages to user intent.

If your keywords or content angle don’t align with what your audience wants, you won’t rank for the queries that drive real engagement and sales.

If most visitors are Gen Z hikers looking for sustainable gear, targeting generic terms like “camping gear” for your store website puts you in a crowded space with little chance to stand out. 

Instead, use audience-driven keywords like “eco-friendly backpacks for long hikes” to rank higher and attract the right visitors.

Tone and personalization

Your audience notices when you speak directly to them. So, use a tone that matches their style, values, and expectations. 

If your visitors are Gen Z hikers, you might use a casual, upbeat voice with phrases like “gear that’s built for adventure” and visuals full of modern design.

But if your main audience is parents shopping for family gear, you’d take a more practical tone, emphasizing trust, safety, and value in simple language.

Why?

Because when your messaging feels like it’s written for them, people are likely to show interest and may purchase what they need from your store. 

UX and engagement

UX (user experience) is about how easy and enjoyable your website is to use. And, engagement is how visitors interact with it like reading articles, exploring products, or completing purchases.

When you know your website demographics, you can shape the UX and content to fit audience preferences so they stay more engaged. 

For example, if most of your visitors are 65+ years old, you might use larger fonts and simpler navigation to make browsing smoother. 

This way, your website would appear as if it’s built for your actual audience. 

How to collect website demographic data

To use your website demographics, you first need to know where to get that information. There are both traditional and advanced ways to collect this information. 

Let’s take a look at how this data collection has traditionally been done first. 

Google Analytics 4 

Google Analytics 4, or GA4, is Google’s analytics platform that tracks your website demographics. It shows you details like country, language, age, gender, and even the interests of your audience. 

You can find this data under “Reports” > “User” > “Overview.”

These insights give you a clear picture of your audience so you don’t have to guess who’s coming to your website. 

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Dig deeper: Master GA4: Google Analytics 4 tips & tutorials

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Google Search Console

Google Search Console or GSC complements GA4 by showing where your traffic comes from and what your audience searches for. 

You can find these locations and query insights by accessing “Insights” from the left bar on the main page of GSC. 

This shows the queries that bring visitors to your website, which regions generate the most traffic, and how your content performs in search. 

If you notice that “eco-friendly backpacks” is a top query, that tells you what your audience values so you can plan your content accordingly.

Social platforms

Social platforms also provide demographic data you can use. Two of the most helpful are Facebook Insights and LinkedIn Analytics.

Facebook Insights: They show age, education, relationship status, gender, and other relevant details of your followers and ad audiences.

LinkedIn Analytics: They break down your audience by company size, job title, location, industry, and seniority. This could be helpful if you’re a B2B business or targeting professionals, but less relevant for consumer markets like outdoor gear.

You can find these details in two ways: 

1. Log in to LinkedIn. Then head over to “Me” (top bar) > “Manage” “Your Company Page.”
2. From there, go to “Analytics” > “Visitors” or “Followers” section of your LinkedIn page. 
3. Under any of your LinkedIn posts, click “View analytics.” Scroll to “Post viewer demographics” and click “Show all” to see complete details. 

Both tools give you a clear picture of who’s engaging with your brand on social media. Once you know this, you can align your website content with the people already interacting with your brand or content.

Semrush Traffic & Market Toolkit

You can also use Semrush’s Traffic & Market Toolkit to collect detailed audience insights of your own website. In fact, you can even see the same breakdowns for your competitors. 

Inside its “Audience Profile” report, you’ll find three key tools:

1. Demographics: Shows the age and gender distribution of your and your competitors’ audience.
2. Socioeconomics: Breaks down education level, income level, household size, and employment status.
3. Behavior: Highlights audience interests and online behavior patterns.

To find these, go to: “Traffic & Market” > “Audience Profile.” 

Together, these reports give you the most comprehensive view of both your and your competitors’ website demographics, so you know exactly who’s behind the traffic.

Visitor surveys

Sometimes the fastest way to get accurate information is to ask directly. You can prepare short survey forms and send them to your audience by email.

This way, you can ask about their specific interests or preferences—things analytics may not show 100% accurately. 

For instance, you can ask them about the types of adventures they like. Then, once you know, you can highlight specific products, such as lightweight tents or compact cooking kits, that are ideal for the types of adventures your audience prefers.

Advanced data layers

Advanced data layers are techniques that go beyond basic analytics to give you a richer understanding of your website visitors. 

Unlike traditional demographic reports, they help you to connect multiple sources of information to build a more complete picture of who your audience is and how they behave.

Let’s see what are they and how they can help you:

First-party data

This is data you collect directly from your users, such as their email addresses, names, order histories, shipping addresses, and product preferences. 

You can gather it through: 

• Newsletter signups
• Gated downloads (like ebooks)
• Purchases

Because it comes straight from your audience, it’s highly reliable and shows you exactly who’s taking action. 

Customer data platforms 

These are platforms that pull data from all your channels—your website, email, CRM, and social media—and combine it into single customer profiles. You can collect this data through tools like:

• Twilio Segment
• Tealium AudienceStream
• Treasure Data

Because CDPs bring everything together, you can clearly see how different demographic groups interact with your brand.

Privacy-compliant enrichment APIs

Privacy-compliant enrichment APIs connect to the customer data you already have, like an email address from a signup form or a purchase. The API then cross-references that identifier with its own databases and returns extra information, such as job title, company size, or industry.

Here’s how this is done:

1. A visitor signs up for your newsletter with their email.
2. You send that email to an enrichment API (like Pipl, Clearbit, or Zoominfo).
3. The API matches the email with publicly available or licensed data.
4. It sends back additional details that expand your demographic profile.

Because these tools follow GDPR and CCPA standards, you only get data that’s legally shareable and privacy-safe.

AI-powered demographic insights

Tools like GA4 and Semrush already give you solid demographic reports—like age ranges, locations, languages, and interests.

AI helps you take this further. 

By exporting that data and feeding it into AI models, you can spot patterns and even predict how different groups are likely to behave in the future.

So let’s look at some practical ways to do so.

Use AI to get deeper demographic insights

Understanding basic demographics like age ranges, locations, and device types is helpful, but shallow. With AI, you can go even further with detailed insights that can help you uncover new opportunities.

Let’s see how. 

1. Use probabilistic modeling with generative AI

Demographic reports are often incomplete because privacy rules and consent banners may hide a lot of details.

So what do you do?

You use probabilistic modeling.

That means grouping anonymous traffic with known user patterns to predict likely traits like age, location, or interests. Not exact profiles but reliable guesses.

You can do this using Generative AI:

1. Export behavioral data from GA4 or Semrush. 
2. Use tools like ChatGPT or Claude to cluster and interpret the results without coding.

This way, you can get usable audience segments, even when raw demographics are missing.

2. Cluster users by content consumption patterns

You don’t always need age or location to group your audience. Sometimes, all you need is their behavior: the pages they visit, the content they engage with, and how long they stay. For this, you can use clustering algorithms like K-means or DBSCAN. 

These algorithms group website visitors who behave in similar ways.

For example, people who always visit product review pages form one cluster. People who spend more time on sustainability content form another.

These hidden groups are called micro-segments.

To create them, export your behavior data into platforms like Google BigQuery ML, which already supports K-means. This lets you build micro-segments even when raw demographics are missing. 

Once you have them, you can shape SEO content to match what each group wants.

3. Surface hidden correlations with predictive analytics

Hidden correlations are the connections in your data that aren’t obvious at first glance. 

For example, you might not realize that visitors on mobile convert better in one age group, or that bounce rates are much higher for a certain location.

To understand this, you can use predictive analytics. 

Predictive analytics uses models (like logistic regression or decision trees) to find and explain those links between demographics and outcomes like conversions, bounce rates, or keyword clusters.

• Logistic regression is a model that predicts a yes/no outcome.
• A decision tree is a model that splits data into branches based on rules.

You can create and execute these models in BigQuery using SQL queries (short commands you run in a database to pull or analyze data).

Once you have the results, you can see exactly which traits drive performance. 

For example, the model might show that younger mobile visitors buy trail shoes more often, while older desktop users bounce faster on product pages. 

When you understand this, you can tailor content and offers to suit each group better.

Next-level LLM use cases

Large language models can take your raw demographic data and turn it into insights you’d normally spend weeks building manually.

So, here are a few ways you can use LLMs to get more value from your demographic data.

1. Build customer personas from raw analytics data

When you create buyer personas, you usually have to run workshops and surveys, and rely on a lot of guesswork.

It’s slow, and it often ends up more opinion-based than data-driven.

With AI, you can skip most of that. Instead of guessing, you feed your real analytics into a language model and let it build data-backed personas for you.

Here’s how:

1. Pull demographic reports from Semrush, GA4, or Search Console.
2. Feed the data into tools like ChatGPT with Code Interpreter or MonkeyLearn and prompt them to process your data.
3. The model will then generate buyer personas that include demographics, pain points, preferred content formats, and conversion triggers.

For your outdoor gear store, the model might show you a group of visitors who spend time on “durable kids’ tents,” click bundle offers, and read family camping guides. That instantly becomes a persona: 

“Family Campers who care most about durability, convenience, and all-in-one kits.”

The best part is that you don’t have to guess. 

You get personas grounded in data, which means your SEO and content planning start on a solid footing.

2. Query demographic data in plain English

When you dig into demographic reports, you likely spend a big chunk of your time exporting spreadsheets, applying filters, and clicking through endless charts. 

It’s clunky, and, if you’re not a data analyst, it can feel like a dead end.

But you don’t have to do that anymore. 

Here’s what you can do instead: 

1. Export your GA4 data into BigQuery. 
2. Connect BigQuery to Looker Studio so that you have your demographics and performance data in one place. 
3. Integrate ChatGPT with Looker Studio, using tools like Zapier or Onlizer. 

Once the setup is done, you can now ask for insights in natural language, like “Did married couples aged 65+ convert better on bundled camping kits compared to younger visitors buying single items?”

This can save you a lot of time and guesswork. 

Creative SEO applications of AI 

So far, we’ve focused on analysis. But AI can also help you to take action. 

Here’s what you can do using it: 

1. Test AI-assisted attribution models

AI-assisted attribution models use machine learning to figure out how much each step in a customer’s journey (the different touchpoints, like blog visits, product pages, or emails) contributes to a conversion (becoming a customer). 

This means, if someone finds your blog through Google, clicks a product page, and later buys after an email, the model might give 40% credit to the blog, 30% to the product page, and 30% to the email. It doesn’t provide 100% credit to only the last click (last-click attribution). 

This makes it clear which touchpoints deliver the most value. 

So, to test this AI-assisted attribution, you can use tools like Adobe Experience Platform, Wicked Reports, or Attribution.

Here’s how the whole process would look:

1. Connect traffic and conversion data to your desired attribution platform.
2. The AI model looks at historical journeys across all touchpoints.
3. It assigns weighted credit to each step in the journey.
4. You get a report showing which demographics and touchpoints deliver the most ROI. 

2. Run generative content tests with historical performance

You usually run A/B tests when you’re creating landing pages, running a promotion, or launching a new product. Why? Because you want to see which version performs better.

But manual A/B testing is slow: you write multiple variations, launch them, and then wait weeks for results.

AI can speed this up. Here’s how to do that:

1. First, pull your historical performance data from tools like Google Analytics or Similarweb. 
2. Next, feed that data into a generative AI model like ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini.
3. Finally, prompt AI to draft new content variations tailored to different demographics.

If you’re promoting hiking boots, you might test a Gen Z headline like “Eco-friendly hiking boots built for the future” against a Baby Boomer headline like “Reliable hiking boots that last season after season.” 

When you feed AI your historical data, it already knows which age groups make up most of your audience and how they’ve interacted with past content. Based on that, it can tell you which headline is more likely to win before you even launch the live test.

This way, you can skip low-probability ideas and launch stronger A/B tests from the start.

3. Optimize SERP features for different audience groups

Different demographics don’t only search differently, they also engage with different SERP features. Some want quick answers. Others prefer detailed guides.

AI can take your audience data (like age groups or interests) and can suggest the best content format to reach each audience group.

Here’s how you can do it:

1. Export your demographic data from GA4, Semrush, or social platforms.
2. Pull SERP intent data from Semrush (“SEO” > “Keyword Overview” > “SERP Analysis” > “SERP Features”) to see which formats (videos, FAQs, or AI overviews) show up most often for your target keywords.
3. Feed both datasets into an AI tool like GPT, Claude, or Gemini and prompt it to recommend the best format for each audience group.

For example, younger shoppers might be more likely to click on short videos on “how to pack for a weekend hike.” But parents may respond better to FAQ pages on “what to bring camping with kids.”

4. Forecast voice and image search behavior

Searching isn’t limited to text anymore. 

People now use voice assistants, visual search, and even discovery through platforms like Pinterest or TikTok. Different age groups lean into these channels in distinct ways.

AI search engines like Perplexity AI or Komo Search can help you spot these patterns:

• Prompt them to extract market data from the web 
• Ask questions to forecast which demographic groups are most likely to rely on voice search versus image search

For example, AI might tell you that Gen Z shoppers often ask for “best waterproof hiking boot under $150?” through their phone’s voice assistant, while parents use Google Lens to compare tents in-store.

Once you have these insights, you can optimize intelligently: Structure your buying guide so voice queries easily surface, and prepare product pages with strong visuals and schema to perform well in visual-heavy results.

By forecasting how each group prefers to search, you can adjust your content ahead of the curve so that when those behaviors scale, your pages are already prepared.

AI-driven predictive and real-time insights

The real power of AI is that it can forecast where your audience is headed and warn you the moment something changes unexpectedly.

1. Predict demographic shifts over time

Your audience today probably won’t look the same tomorrow, next week, or years down the road. That’s because new trends, seasonal changes, or even algorithm updates can shift who’s finding your website.

But you can get ahead of this with time-series forecasting models. These models analyze past traffic patterns and predict how your demographic mix is likely to evolve. 

In BigQuery ML, the ARIMA_PLUS (AutoRegressive Integrated Moving Average) model is built for this. It automatically detects seasonality and forecasts future changes in your audience composition.

Here’s how to do it:

1. Export your demographic and traffic data from GA4 into BigQuery.
2. Use ARIMA_PLUS in BigQuery ML to build a forecasting model.
3. Review the output to see which age groups, locations, or devices are expected to rise or fall over time.

For example, an outdoor gear store might see Gen Z interest spike every spring around sustainable sneakers, while parent traffic peaks in late summer for back-to-school backpacks. 

Once you know such details, you can easily keep your content aligned with where demand is moving.

2. Detect anomalies in real time

Not every traffic change shows up gradually. Sometimes it spikes overnight. But the good news is you don’t have to wait for weekly reports to catch it. 

Google Analytics 4 (GA4) has built-in machine learning models for anomaly detection, so you can spot unusual shifts in demographics the moment they happen.

Here’s how you can set it up:

• In GA4, go to “Home” > “Insights & Recommendations” > “View all insights.”
• Review the automated insights GA4 generates (like a sudden drop in conversions or a traffic spike).
• Create custom insights if you want more control. Here, you can choose your frequency (e.g. daily/weekly), audience segment (e.g. Gen Z users), and anomaly condition (e.g. “Sessions spiked”).
• Once active, GA4 flags anomalies automatically. 

If the data point is normal, you’ll only see the actual value. If it’s an anomaly, you’ll see a highlighted dot with details: the actual value, the expected value, and a note saying “Anomaly detected.”

Suppose your outdoor gear store suddenly gets a wave of Gen Z visitors after a TikTok about “eco-friendly hiking boots” goes viral. Real-time anomaly detection would flag that spike instantly. 

Once you know this, you can take the right action as soon as possible. For example, you could promote the trending product or launch more appealing offers for Gen Z on TikTok while the interest is still hot.

Creative “how-tos” for SEOs

When most marketers think about SEO, they tend to focus on keyword research and backlinks. 

But the real advantages for your brand can come when you apply practical tactics (or creative how-tos) that push you past the basics and help your brand connect with specific audiences. 

These methods go beyond chasing rankings. They help you deliver content that feels relevant and intentional.

Map keywords by demographic cohorts

Keyword mapping means assigning search terms to specific pages so each page has a clear role in your website’s structure. 

The usual approach is to tie search queries to search intent. 

But intent alone doesn’t specify how different groups actually search because people in distinct demographic cohorts (groups of users who share traits like age, gender, or location) may use very different language. 

For example:

• Gen Z shoppers may search for “sustainable sneakers” or “eco-friendly running shoes.”
• Parents often look for “durable kids’ running shoes.”
• Sneakerheads (Sneaker collectors) may search for “limited edition Nike sneakers” instead of “running shoes.”

So if you layer demographics onto your keyword map, you can anticipate those variations and plan content that speaks directly to them. 

You can use analytics platforms like GA4 or Semrush to identify segments by age or gender, or interest, and then map your keywords accordingly. 

In Semrush: 

1. Go to “SEO” > “Keyword Research” > “Keyword Overview”
2. Enter a seed keyword like “running shoes” or “sustainable sneakers”
3. Scroll to the “Keyword Variations” and “Questions” reports. These show how people phrase their searches

4. Export the list of phrases from the “Export to PDF” button
5. Now, head over to the “Traffic & Market” > “Audience Profile” > “Demographics.” Here, you’ll see breakdowns by demographics, including age, gender, and geo distribution
6. From the “Demographics” dashboard, note which age/gender/location dominates your website

7. Then, apply your own judgment to cross-reference your phrases with demographic insights:
   1. A keyword like “durable kids’ running shoes” likely maps to parents.
   2. “Limited edition sneaker” feels like sneakerheads.
   3. “Sustainable sneakers” is typically associated with Gen Z or younger adults.
8. Create a spreadsheet and assign a label like “Gen Z,” “Parents,” “Sports fans,” “Eco-conscious,” to each keyword.

Once you’ve got your segmented list, optimize the most relevant existing pages using the new phrases or create new supporting pages if you don’t already have them.

Content calendar segmentation to build editorial plans for multilingual audiences

A content calendar tells you when and how to publish content. But if you’re marketing to multiple languages or cultures, one calendar won’t be enough. 

Why? 

Because seasonality, culture, and language—all influence how people shop. 

For example, if you take a general approach, you might prepare one editorial plan for fall around “hiking gear” and push it across all markets. But that’s not what each audience actually needs.

So, here’s how it looks when you segment and build a separate editorial plan for each audience:

• In Canada, your October publishing plan focuses on winter jackets with blog posts and ads timed to the first cold snaps.
• In the US, September highlights performance gear like lightweight hiking boots in both product pages and buying guides.
• For Spanish-speaking parents, a May editorial plan includes native-language posts about durable kids’ tents and bundle kits for family camping.

This way, instead of one-size-fits-all, each editorial plan reflects the season, culture, and language of the audience it serves.

Schema markup for audience targeting

Schema markup tells search engines what your content is about. But it can also tell them who it’s for. You can do this with audience-related schema properties (like audienceType or geographicArea).

These properties make it easier for Google to understand who your products are meant for, so it shows them to the people most likely to buy.

For example, if your outdoor gear store is selling “durable kids’ sleeping bags,” you can specify that the audienceType is “parents.” 

Here’s how to do this:

1. Identify audience-driven products or content, such as kids’ backpacks, women’s hiking boots, or family-sized tents.
2. Choose the schema type that matches the page, such as Product, Event, or CreativeWork.
3. Add audience properties like audience, audienceType, suggestedAge, or gender.
4. Implement the markup in JSON-LD.

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Product",
  "name": "Durable Kids' Sleeping Bag",
  "audience": {
    "@type": "PeopleAudience",
    "audienceType": "Parents",
    "geographicArea": {
      "@type": "AdministrativeArea",
      "name": "United States"
    }
  }
}

5. Validate your markup using Google’s Rich Results Test or the Schema.org validator.

Once you add audience properties to the schema, it helps search engines understand who your product is for. That way, your outdoor gear shows up more often in front of the right shoppers.

Create geo-specific landing pages

A geo-specific landing page is a page built for a specific location. 

For example, instead of one broad “hiking boots” page, you could have “hiking boots in Denver,” “hiking boots in Toronto,” and “hiking boots in Sydney.” These pages reference local hiking areas and interests, which makes them feel more relevant to each audience.

Programmatic SEO is how you scale this approach.

Rather than building every page manually, you use templates and data to generate many variations automatically. You can use your demographic data to make these pages even better. 

That means you can create more specific pages, such as “durable kids’ hiking boots in Toronto for parents” or “lightweight women’s hiking boots in Denver for trail runners,” instead of just “hiking boots.”

You can use landing page builders like Landingi, Instapage, and Unbounce to build programmatic landing pages. 

Here’s a high-level overview of how to do this:

1. Build a template landing page in your landing page builder. Add placeholders for variables in brackets, like {city}, {product}, or {audience}.
2. Create a CSV file that lists all of the variations that you want. The first row can contain the variable names (e.g. {city}, {product}, {audience}). Each row below represents one landing page, such as “Toronto | hiking boots | Parents.”
3. Upload the CSV into the programmatic landing page tool. The system will automatically replace the placeholders with the data from each row, generating complete landing pages in bulk.
4. Preview the pages to make sure variables display correctly in text, buttons, images, and SEO fields.
5. Publish the batch so each row becomes a live URL (for example, /kids-hiking-boots/toronto/ or /womens-hiking-boots/denver/).
6. Add schema markup with audience and geo properties to reinforce targeting. 
7. Then track performance in Semrush or GA4 to see which combinations deliver the most conversions. 

Adapt CTAs and UX flows to personalize content offers

A call to action (CTA) is the prompt that guides a user to take the next step, like “Buy now,” “Sign up,” or “Explore more.” 

But a UX flow is the path a user follows to complete a task, such as browsing categories, adding items to the cart, filling out forms, or checking out. 

Instead of using the same generic CTAs and paths for everyone, you could shape them around the needs of different audience groups. This makes it easier for them to take action.

If your analytics show a strong base of people in the 65-to-75 age group, ergonomics and comfort may likely be their priorities. 

So, a CTA like “Shop ergonomic tents” addresses that concern directly, and the UX flow could bundle tents, sleeping bags, and mats so parents can add family gear with one click, rather than searching for items individually.

The point is that you’re not changing button labels only, you’re aligning the whole offer with what the data tells you about each group’s priorities. 

That alignment makes it far easier for every audience segment to take action.

Challenges and privacy considerations

Privacy rules like GDPR in Europe and CCPA in California restrict how much user-level data can be tracked without consent.

That’s a big reason Google moved from Universal Analytics (UA) to GA4. 

UA relied heavily on third-party cookies (small trackers dropped on a user’s browser to follow them across sites). But as browsers started blocking them, those cookies declined, which meant less visibility into who your visitors were and how they behaved across domains.

UA also used session tracking, where multiple actions (pageviews, clicks, purchases) were grouped into one “session.” When cookies disappeared, it became harder to stitch those actions together. That made reporting less reliable and remarketing (showing ads to the same user across sites) much harder.

GA4’s fix was to move to an event-based model (every action is its own event, tied directly to a user) and to rely on modeled data—statistical estimates that fill gaps when user-level tracking isn’t available.

Although you don’t get the exact, detailed view you had in UA, you do get a privacy-safe version of the story, with aggregate patterns.

So now the main challenge is balance. 

You do want to personalize experiences, but in a privacy-first way. So here are some ways to do so:

• First-party data: Collect emails and preferences directly from customers because users share them willingly. That’s why it’s both compliant and valuable.
• Aggregated insights: Use GA4’s modeled reports to understand trends at the group level instead of individual tracking.
• Contextual targeting: Personalize based on content or queries. For example, highlight eco-friendly products on a “sustainable hiking boots” page without needing user-level data.

Looking ahead, you should expect stricter privacy rules and heavier reliance on modeled datasets. If you adapt early by testing consent mode setups and strengthening first-party data collection, you will be best positioned for when the next wave of restrictions arrives.

Ready to leverage your website demographics?

Open GA4 or Semrush and export your website demographics report as a PDF. 

Then, ask yourself: Do my current content, keyword targeting, and CTAs actually match these audience groups?

This single step will help you understand mismatches so you can start fixing them as soon as possible.

Next, pick one high-value page—like a landing page or a top blog post—and adjust it to better align with your strongest audience group. 

For example, if most of your visitors are parents, update the CTA to “Shop durable kids’ tents” instead of a generic “Shop now.” That kind of change may increase conversions as it speaks directly to the main audience.

If you’re ready to go deeper, our Google Analytics 4 tips & tutorials guide will walk you through advanced ways to get even clearer insights

Link bait content: Earn backlinks and boost SEO naturally

 

Create content people can’t resist linking to. Learn what link bait is, why it works, and how to craft assets that attract backlinks and drive traffic.

Link bait content helps you earn backlinks organically by providing irresistible content that other websites then source and link to.

Not all link bait content needs to be sensationalized or controversial, as is often synonymous with the term “bait” in online content creation. You can create link bait content that aligns with your values and attracts high-quality backlinks without PR or outreach. 

Well-executed link bait content builds authority, helps your audience, and is shareable, so all of your marketing channels reap the benefits.

So, how do you create content that earns links naturally? In this guide, we’ll break down what link bait is, why it matters, the psychology behind it, and the most effective types (with real examples) so you can create a content strategy that serves your audience while passively earning backlinks and building your site’s authority.

What is link bait?

Link bait is content specifically created to attract natural backlinks. 

A natural backlink is earned when someone discovers your content (whether through a Google search, social media post, email, or anything else) and finds it insightful enough to link to. 

Journalists are a good example of people who naturally discover relevant content and link to it, because they research topics and look for statistics or real-world examples to support their content.

Link bait content is a legitimate backlink tactic that surpasses older link-building tactics. There’s no need to spend hours on aggressive outreach, pitching to every online publication in the pursuit of high numbers of backlinks.

Link bait is about passively attracting the right backlinks: those from highly authoritative, relevant sources. This approach is practical from a time perspective, and it has significant benefits related to building experience, expertise, authority, and trust (E-E-A-T), as well as the Helpful Content system.

Why?

Because highly authoritative backlinks from relevant sources signal to Google that your content is high quality and trustworthy.

Why link bait matters in SEO today

SEO today is more than keywords, rankings, and clicks from search engines like Google. 

It’s about:

• Brand visibility across marketing channels, appearing in places beyond search, and in the right context (with positive brand sentiments—not negative ones)
• Citations and rankings across the search landscape, including AI search like AI Mode, AI Overviews, or large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT
• Maintaining search engine rankings despite volatile search engine results pages (SERPs), which have changed significantly in the last few years with the rise of AI, AI overviews, and zero-click searches

Quality content and link bait content help you achieve all of the above.

When you earn backlinks from high-quality websites, you improve your foundational SEO through link equity. 

It’s well known that Google uses links to understand pages and their context. PageRank is one link analysis system that Google itself refers to as a “core ranking system.” This system assigns a score to a “document” based on criteria, including the scores of both other documents that link to it and those linked from it. It’s complex, and other criteria, such as the URL, host, domain, and author, have different weights.

Where linking and PageRank are concerned, all you really need to know is that your site is likely scored based on the links connecting to it, and the higher the value of the linked-from pages, the higher the score assigned to your page.

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Further reading: If you really want to get into the details of PageRank, read Google PageRank Explained for SEO Beginners.

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Higher numbers of high-quality links are likely to improve your page and site rankings in both traditional search engines and AI search. 

When a site has good rankings and high-quality content signals through backlinks, pages have a better chance of withstanding volatility in the search engine results pages (SERPs), which has become exceptionally important with the amount of changes made to the SERPs in the last year or so, such as the prominence of AI overviews and the introduction of Google’s AI Mode. 

Authoritative backlinks are also helpful for AI search and AI Overviews because you earn citations if you’re trusted. Even zero-click searches, which occur when AI fully answers a search query and makes a click to a website unnecessary, become beneficial to your brand because you’re still gaining visibility in the citations. And there is always a chance someone will click the citation to read more about what you’ve got to say.

Plus, no matter what happens to Google and search, earning citations and mentions from one prolific industry website to yours will always look good to your users. If trusted sources trust you, they should, too.

It’s all about brand visibility.

The more your brand appears across multiple channels, the better it will perform.

And visibility goes beyond search.

If a journalist picks up your content and you receive a citation, then your brand will be credited in authoritative pieces of content. You’ll gain visibility through PR, the link to your content will send referral traffic, and people will read your thought leadership articles (which are likely the type of content that qualifies as link bait).

Why does this matter?

Visibility in expert roundups is essential across the search landscape, including AI, and this AI SEO monitoring tool demonstrates that. See the screenshot below that shows the recommendation that a website needs to appear in high-ranking expert roundups that feed into Google AI answers.

The psychology behind successful link bait

Successful link bait taps into human psychology. It hinges on content resonating with people and inspiring action:

• Sharing content
• Citing it as a source
• Linking to it

But how do you inspire people to take action?

You have to give people something shareable in the first place.

For example:

• Novelty and uniqueness include thought leadership content that offers fresh perspectives or presents new data, often gathered through surveys or research. This content attracts links since the latest data is desirable for anyone writing content on the topics you researched. 
• Ego bait leverages influencer and expert mentions to amplify reach and build E-E-A-T signals. 
• Utility vs. entertainment balances useful, actionable content with viral potential.
• Emotional triggers can increase click-through rate (CTR) because emotions such as surprise, delight, curiosity, and excitement are highly effective link magnets.

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Pro tip: Unique data that you’ve sourced is invaluable for AI search because it increases the chances of your site earning a citation in AI overviews or AI search tools like ChatGPT or Gemini. 

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Types of link bait content with examples

Link bait content is most effective when it supports your business, its values, and its marketing efforts. Create the right type of link bait, and it can serve your business in many ways, not just backlinks.

To help you choose the right content, here are some types to consider, along with examples and explanations of why they work.

Unique data-driven studies

Original research, surveys, and industry benchmarks encourage links, but they also help your site rank well, position your brand as an expert, and gain mentions and citations in AI search.

This type of link bait content is highly effective.

Here’s an example of a new Semrush study that generates backlinks, all while providing topical, trending data to its audience:

The quality of links pointing to this article is undeniable. The Backlink Analysis report (pictured below) is filtered by websites with the highest authority score.

The websites linking to this study include:

• Exploding Topics
• Forbes
• Site Bulb
• B2B Vault
• Backlinko
• HubSpot

These websites are influential, industry-leading publications in the business, SEO, and marketing verticals, which will quickly build strong PageRank and E-E-A-T signals.

Why this data-driven study works:

This study is highly topical and addresses many important questions for its audience of digital marketers, particularly future-thinking SEO specialists who are mindful of AI’s role in SEO.

This screenshot from Google Trends demonstrates the trend and its high relevance.

How you can create data-driven study link bait content:

The greatest barrier to data-driven statistics is acquiring the data. Generally, you need a large audience for a good sample, and the data must be both relevant and topical. Semrush succeeded with this study because the information is highly sought after by their audience and will likely remain significant in the months—and even years—to come.

You need:

• Good data that your audiences are looking for. The subject needs to be topical.
• Infographics and supporting images, like the graphs in the AI and SEO study. These components can attract links as other websites use and cite them.
• A well-designed page encourages sharing. In the example above, social sharing links are available on the right sidebar.

Trend analysis

HubSpot is an excellent example of a brand that effectively utilizes trend analysis and reports. This method of creating link bait content is similar to data-driven studies, as convincingly identifying trends requires data to back up the claim.

While HubSpot always provides its own research, its trend analysis reports differ from the unique data-driven studies in the presentation. When you visit one of their trend pages, like AI trends for marketers, you’re invited to download the report, but some data is available on the landing page.

Here’s what the landing page looks like:

As seen on the page, there’s:

• A button in the hero to download the report
• Links to relevant sections, 
• A quote from HubSpot’s CMO, Kipp Bodnar, that summarizes what’s inside the report

All of these components encourage a download. Plus, the quote itself is enough to warrant a citation. For those who are looking for data but don’t want to download the report, they may still lift the quote and cite that.

The backlink analysis report below is a testament to this trend report working in HubSpot’s favor.

This report has links from:

• Google
• Forbes
• Terra
• Grammarly
• Shopify
• Cousera
• Semrush

These are all prolific websites in the digital marketing space.

Why this trend analysis works:

HubSpot is a go-to resource for trusted, authoritative content overall, and marketers highly anticipate their trends reports.

Through trend analysis and a commitment to covering various trends, including consumer trends, marketing trends, AI trends, social media trends, and more, HubSpot has established itself as a reliable source that its audiences can trust.

How you can create trend analysis content:

As with studies, the barrier to trend analysis is data gathering.

You need:

• Reliable data and large sample sizes
• Well-designed landing pages and reports that capture attention and provide a linkable asset
• Website authority for rankings, so people can find you when they search for this type of content
• Large audiences through other marketing channels, so you can share the report

Breaking news

Quickly reacting to news can favorably position your site to earn links.

It works because other writers are looking to cover topics as they break. The faster you write, publish, and index your piece, the faster people will find and link to you. This tactic isn’t new; it’s called “newsjacking,” and it’s been part of PR for years. PRs use newsjacking to leverage breaking news, gain visibility for brands, and build connections with audiences by offering a relevant and timely perspective.

Here’s an example on our site: 

Search Engine Land always covers breaking news. 

On May 6, Google released AI Max for Search. On May 12, Search Engine Land published an article covering the launch.

Here’s what the article looks like.

The screenshot below shows four of the most influential links.

The article has 146 total backlinks. Some links are from highly authoritative sources (Forbes), and others are from industry-leading publications (SEO Round Table) and industry experts (Claire Jarrett).

Most backlinks were quickly added in May or June, but this piece of newsjacking link bait content continues to benefit Search Engine Land, as the most authoritative link appeared months after the news broke.

To become a primary source for breaking news citations and links, you’d probably want to get something published within the first 24 hours. Every day that passes, more and more articles get published, especially if it’s big news. The more live articles, the less chance that yours will be found and cited.

There is a tradeoff to consider, however: the quicker you publish, the more you risk misrepresenting something and being exposed by a more thorough analysis. 

As things develop, your early insights might need refining, but you can always update.

Why this worked:

Search Engine Land is an authority in the digital marketing space. When news breaks in the industry, it’s beneficial for Search Engine Land to cover the topic, as doing so helps maintain its presence as a brand with high levels of E-E-A-T in its niche. This authoritative presence is important for Google’s systems and rankings, as well as AI visibility.

But more importantly, people turn to Search Engine Land for guidance.

As Search Engine Land maintains its position as an authoritative source, people will look to it for guidance during critical moments, such as the introduction of a new digital marketing feature.

The result?

Aside from links, Search Engine Land achieves high conversion rates with breaking news content because the brand’s authority encourages CTR; people click on brands they trust.

As Search Engine Land is an authoritative and trusted source, people are happy to share their articles or cite and link to them from their own pieces of content.

For smaller brands with less authority, breaking news link bait content can be highly effective for securing top ranks on Google, provided you get there before anyone else.

How you can create breaking news link bait content:

You don’t have to be as authoritative as Search Engine Land to create breaking news content. 

You need:

• A timely response to breaking news in your industry so you can publish an article at your earliest convenience, soon after the news has broken.
• An expert who can chime in with a perspective. At the end of the Search Engine Land example, there’s a “Why we care” section. In the early moments or days of something major happening, audiences are looking for succinct, easily summarized answers and reasons for why and how it’s important. 
• A well-designed, engaging page that keeps user attention. In this breaking news link bait example, there are infographics of the questions and answers originally shared by Google.

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Pro tip: In the early days of covering breaking news, you’ll benefit from having a pre-built audience to share it with. For example, if you’re in the digital marketing space, you might share your insights on LinkedIn and link to your article.

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Ego bait

Ego bait is content that includes expert or influencer insights and then benefits from the engagement of the expert’s audience.

For example, an invitation-only event that experts or influencers attend, write about, and link to.

Or better yet (and more evergreen), a long-form article that features industry experts.

Titles often include things like:

• According to experts…
• I spoke to X, and they said Y.

Here’s an example from Nushell:

The article pictured is titled, “What Is Marketing and What Can It Do for Your Business?” Within the article is a section that features 25 experts who contribute and share their perspectives on what marketing means to them.

The page has attracted some nice links, including one from Canva, a highly authoritative source.

Why ego bait content works:

Ego bait content relies on people included in your article sharing, citing, and linking to your content, or their audience finding the article and doing the same.

Everyone featured in the article is a person related to or working in your industry, so any links they send will be relevant.

With ego bait content, there’s a good chance your content will be shared across social media or via emails. Contributors have something to gain, such as the credibility or E-E-A-T signals of being featured, and they may want to share it. This, in turn, may increase visibility among relevant audiences, and they might also link to it.

How you can create ego bait content:

You need:

• A good hook that will draw in your audience. Ask yourself what topics people in your industry want experts to chime in on.
• Access to respected experts who your audience will listen to and respect.
• Influencers or experts with large audiences are beneficial because their reach and audience can amplify yours.
• Something to offer contributors, like credibility. For the best chances of ego bait content paying off, your contributors need to be so happy they’re featured that they want to share it with their audience.

Actionable content and lead magnets

A good, actionable piece of content with a lead magnet can do wonders for your passive link-building strategy.

It’s easy to do, and if you create content that is also well-optimized, even smaller businesses can find themselves earning links.

Here’s an example from 310 Creative, found for the keyword “marketing audit checklist.” The page ranks number three against some recognizable names in marketing, including Mailchimp and Smart Insights.

Although this actionable piece doesn’t have a lead magnet, it’s gaining links that it may have otherwise missed, top rankings in Google, and clicks.

A lead magnet could elevate this piece of content and its marketing benefits, especially if it were gated. 

To see an effective lead magnet, let’s go back to HubSpot’s Trends reports. To access the full trend report, you first have to give your email address. Thanks to the email exchange, HubSpot can send targeted email campaigns to recipients based on the topic of the report they downloaded.

HubSpot’s lead magnet functionality looks like this:

Why actionable content and lead magnets work:

Once you’ve created actionable content and a lead magnet, you have an asset that serves your business in many ways. Your content should rank, leading to visibility, and helpful content gets cited and linked to by others.

If your checklist is used and enjoyed by others, they might link to it. This is what happened to 310 Creative, which led to the example above. Other marketers used it and referenced it in content relevant to the topic of marketing audits.

How you can create actionable link bait content and lead magnets:

Creating this type of content is very accessible!

You need:

• Enough knowledge on a topic to create a useful guide and/or lead magnet
• SEO knowledge, as it enables you to optimize your content for better rankings and increased clicks
• A well-designed lead magnet, as it encourages people to use it and increases the desire to share it

Emotional triggers

Content that is emotionally triggering aims to evoke a strong emotional response in the reader. You can use challenge, surprise, delight, or controversy as link magnets.

Here’s an example from Search Engine Land. 

The title “The future of SEO is now” is a nod to SEO’s survival during a turbulent time amongst frequent “SEO is dead” (another emotionally triggering topic, and a controversial take) narratives.

This piece from Search Engine Land works because it elicits a variety of emotions:

• Surprise, delight, or relief for those worried about the future of SEO: In the title, Search Engine Land offers some reassurance that the future of SEO isn’t over; it’s just evolving in real time. Marketers who see the title might be inclined to click and discover more about what this means and how they can stay current.
• The controversial takes encourage click-throughs: The narrative around SEO is conflicting at the moment. There’s a camp of people who are adamant that ranking in AI tools is just SEO and nothing has changed, while others suggest that generative engine optimization (GEO) is the new SEO. If the future of SEO is now, as it says in the Search Engine Land article, then readers will want to know what Search Engine Land has to say about it.

Remember the notes about Search Engine Land in the “Breaking news” section above? Search Engine Land is an authority in the digital marketing space, and readers will be keen to read Search Engine Land’s take on this subject.

Why emotional trigger link bait works:

The current turbulence in the SEO industry might trigger conscientious SEOs. The trigger encourages a click.

An emotionally triggering article must resolve the triggered emotion. 

In the Search Engine Land example, they provide tactics and mindsets for modern-day SEO. These are resolutions to problems. For example, there’s a section dedicated to platform fluency and how to do SEO across different platforms.

Without the resolution, emotional link bait content can come across as negative.

But with a resolution, it’s helpful content that earns links.

How you can create emotional triggers in link bait content:

Before you can create a piece of content that triggers your reader, you need to know what triggers them so you can use that to your advantage. 

You need a:

• Problem or mistake that your audience wants to avoid
• Resolution to the problem that triggers an emotional response
• A well-designed blog that is helpful for scannability

Controversial or contrarian takes

Polarizing content draws attention from readers and may result in people reviewing your take, good or bad, and integrating it into their own content.

When they do, you should get a link.

Here’s an example from a B2C brand that uses contrarian takes to demonstrate that link bait isn’t just for B2B:

Zoe writes about calorie counting and low-calorie diets for weight loss on their blog. The title tag is “Why Calorie Counting Doesn’t Work,” and that’s what searchers will see on Google. The contrarian take will encourage a click.

The page generates links from a range of websites, including authoritative journals and health influencers such as gyms and personal trainers.

Why the contrarian take works:

Contrarian and controversial takes are a bit like emotional triggers. If the content triggers someone, they might click. Equally, someone in agreement with the take will be interested in reading more.

A contrarian take is link-attractive because it forces a conversation. Writers covering a topic often present contrasting viewpoints. If you give them a strong “against the grain” argument, you’re far more likely to be cited than if you play it safe with a middle-of-the-road summary that no one remembers.

How you can create controversial link bait content:

You need:

• A controversial opinion: Your controversial take must be authentic for you and aligned with your values. Avoid creating controversy for the sake of polarization.
• Data and reasoning behind the controversy: In the Zoe example, the experts present data and statistics to support their claims.

Quizzes and interactive experiences

Quizzes and interactive experiences gain links because they’re fun! And many of them will be evergreen.

Mailchimp’s games are a great example of interactive experience link bait content. It’s an engagement-focused asset, and it’s clearly successful, as evidenced by marketing publications linking to it.

Here’s what the landing page looks like:

For Mailchimp, this is more than just link bait.

Mailchimp uses this content as an opportunity to express brand values through language like: “Loading…Self Care” and “our small business customers spend every day working…they deserve a break.”

Themes of games run through Mailchimp’s work; they have game stations at their events.

Why quizzes and interactive experiences work:

A quiz or an interactive experience offers something of value to those engaging with it. Quizzes are often fun, or they promise to tell the user something about themselves, like a personality quiz. This is an immediate draw for many readers, as they want to discover what the quiz says about “them,” and then they show off their results and share the link in the process, which continues the cycle. 

Something that brings positive vibes deserves to be shared. For Mailchimp, it’s likely that email marketers enjoy this touch of care and share it with their marketing friends.

How you can create quizzes and interactive experiences as link bait content:

The barrier to creating quizzes and interactive experiences as link bait is relatively significant because you need a good experience. This means designer and developer time, which can be expensive.

You need:

• A quiz or engaging experience that resonates with your audience
• Designer and developer time to ensure the experience is done well, making it linkworthy

Definitive guides and frameworks

Evergreen, reference-worthy resources will always perform well as link bait content. Definitive guides generally perform well in search engines, such as Google, and in AI Overviews or large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT.

They’re comprehensive and incredibly helpful.

Here’s an example from Backlinko: 

This piece of evergreen link bait content is described as “the ultimate SEO tutorial.” It’s edited frequently, so it stays updated, and it dominates search results, ranking for 80 keywords.

Plus, the content has over 350 backlinks and over 1,200 shares to social media thanks to the convenient share module on the left.

Why definitive guides and frameworks work as link bait content

If you can help your audience as well as Brian Dean and Backlinko help the SEO industry, then you deserve a citation and a link.

The Backlinko example is beautifully designed, featuring infographics, with circles below the hero link that lead to relevant sections. Plus, there are annotated screenshots to guide users through every step.

How you can create evergreen guide and framework link bait content:

You need:

• A problem to solve: Think about a common issue that many people struggle with.
• Expertise to solve the problem: If you’re creating a definitive guide, it needs to be that: definitive. You must add more detail than any other ranking guide.
• The time and desire to keep the page up to date: Backlinko updates this page frequently to keep it fresh and relevant.
• A well-designed landing page: You can only capture the attention of readers and earn a backlink if the page is visually appealing.

Visual assets

One thing that all of these link bait content types have in common is the use of visual assets. There are two main reasons for this:

1. General UX and design: Visual assets make a page or an experience memorable and engaging!
2. The asset itself is shareable: If you summarize data visually, you’ve helped your reader. Visual assets are linkable resources.

Here’s a fun example:

This infographic, which displays baking times for various cake types, has over 900 backlinks.

Other examples of visual assets include interactive tools (such as quizzes or interactive experiences like Mailchimp’s games) and calculators.

Why these visual assets work:

When searching for statistics, infographics, or charts, people can use Google images, and when they find an image they like, they might link to it.

Charts from other pages are often embedded into articles. Here’s an example from the Search Engine Land blog:

Search Engine Land has cited and linked to HubSpot’s research and shared HubSpot’s branded infographic. This is a great example because Search Engine Land and HubSpot share a similar audience. HubSpot benefits greatly from its infographic getting featured in this article.

How you can create visual assets for use in link bait content:

Visual assets don’t have to be complicated. You can use a tool like Canva to create them if you want something simple, or if you prefer a more complex design, you can hire a designer.

You need:

• A reason to create a visual asset, such as an infographic summarizing data or sharing a workflow
• Designer time to create it

How to create effective link bait

There are some best practices when it comes to creating effective link bait campaigns:

• Conduct a competitor gap analysis to identify under-covered or emerging topics. You want to be the thought leader and go-to resource for this content to increase your chances of earning a link.
• Explore content ideation frameworks such as skyscraper techniques, pillars and clusters, or 10x content. With content frameworks, your link bait content can serve your content strategy in multiple ways. It can help with rankings or provide valuable, shareable assets for other forms of marketing, like email or social media.
• SEO layering means targeting linkable content with consideration for long-tail keyword optimization. We saw this work exceptionally well for many of the link bait examples above. Many of them were found because of their prominence in search and AI tools.
• Data sourcing strategies are a great way to create shareable content. Using Public data, proprietary insights, or API integrations, you can gather data, analyze and summarize it, and present it in a clear and digestible way with visuals like infographics.
• Co-authoring and collaborative content give you the benefits of ego bait while providing outstanding value to your readers, especially if your co-authors are genuine experts. Influential co-authors also bring built-in amplification.

Promotion strategies for link bait

Good link bait content works hard for your brand. It doesn’t just build backlinks.

It takes considerable effort to create effective link bait, so when you do, make sure it entices a share from your audience—and, importantly, make sure it’s shared across your owned marketing channels like email and social media.

Here are some ways you can share link bait content:

• Outreach workflows and pitches using a tiered approach, meaning you offer your content to the most influential journalists, influencers, or bloggers first. Repeat outreach workflows after the initial wave, especially for evergreen guides that can be updated and republished annually (or more frequently).
• Digital PR tactics are useful throughout link bait content creation. HARO pitches will help you reach influencers and experts who bring value (and ego bait) to your content. Press releases and social media amplification, such as a share on LinkedIn, help increase visibility.
• Paid amplification can quickly accelerate visibility. By running ads, sponsoring, or boosting posts on social media platforms, you can place your content directly in front of your target audience. LinkedIn advertising allows you to target specific companies or job titles.
• Community leverage means putting your content into relevant digital “hangouts.” This takes place on forums such as Reddit, aggregator sites like Hacker News, or niche industry forums on Slack. You choose your communities based on where your audiences are.

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Start creating link bait content

Now that you’ve read this comprehensive guide on link bait content, you’ll want to get started. 

Your next step: Identify the type of link bait content that’s right for you.

How?

Think about your business and marketing goals, then create the content that serves your business in multiple ways. 

For example, if you want to be a thought leader, then maybe evergreen articles or controversy are the right type of link bait for you. If you’re already creating content but don’t feel you’re getting the reach and amplification to make it worthwhile, consider using ego bait and co-creating content with experts. And don’t forget to promote it.

Here are some guides to help you as you start creating link bait content:

• Content marketing strategy: A practical guide: This article will help you create content that serves your overall strategy. Top tips for workflows and visibility are included.
• How to recognize quality backlinks: This piece will help you review your link bait content and ensure you’re getting the right type of links.
• What is link equity, and why does it still matter in an AI landscape? This is a great read if you need to persuade your team that links are still important.