Graphs that climb—that’s what everyone wants, right? High-quality links certainly help make that happen, but links do more than just drive up rankings. What else can links contribute to a site or brand? What metrics can be tracked to truly show the value of your work?

As an SEO specialist, I approach everything with search at the core. Digital PR often sparks debates in the world of SEO: which came first, digital PR or SEO? For me, it’s always been SEO. Everything I do centres on creating compelling stories that don’t just improve rankings but also attract direct traffic, drive conversions, boost engagement, and build brand authority. In other words, I’m here to get results that make competitors envious.

Links deliver value in two primary ways:

• Directly: When someone clicks on a link and converts or makes a purchase.
• Indirectly: Through the SEO benefits that result from improved rankings and visibility, which then bring more traffic that eventually converts.

This isn’t about soft metrics that no one can measure. I’m talking about metrics that CEOs and decision-makers actually care about—numbers that make both the agency and the client more money.

Organic Rankings: The Indirect Impact of Links

Organic rankings are an indirect metric, often challenging to influence directly because links alone don’t determine SEO success. The most incredible links in the world won’t help if a site is held back by technical issues, poor content, or other limitations beyond our control. Some expect immediate results when a link goes live, but that’s rarely the case. It generally takes around three months for a site to benefit fully from link-building, although it can sometimes be quicker, especially with live algorithm updates.

When a site is in strong shape, and the goal is to build links, we can clearly map the value of a link campaign. One campaign I worked on in 2017 showed a dramatic increase in visibility after launch, illustrating how impactful a well-executed link strategy can be.

The Direct Value of Links

Take, for instance, a campaign I recently worked on for a global client. Over the last seven months, we secured 198 media placements, with 183 of those placements linking back to the site. That’s a high link-to-coverage ratio, and the average domain authority (DA) of these sites was around 71. The best part? These links generated 181,000 direct referrals. No paid ads, no search traffic—just pure organic clicks from high-quality media placements.

Social Engagement and Shares

The articles we secured links in also drove social engagement, with a total of 108,900 shares across platforms like Facebook and Twitter. This social buzz created a ripple effect, leading over 600,000 additional visitors to the site. Beyond SEO, social engagement adds another layer of brand exposure, allowing content to reach wider audiences.

Conversions

Perhaps the most significant metric: is conversions. The links drove direct conversions worth approximately £120,000. This is purely from direct links, not counting indirect referrals or brand lift from increased rankings. When links drive revenue, they’re delivering genuine value that goes far beyond traditional SEO.

Search Demand

To top it off, this activity doubled the search volume for our target keywords. By building visibility and demand, we created enough interest that more people started searching for our client’s products. Next time someone questions the value of digital PR as an SEO tactic, this is what they need to see.

PR Metrics That Matter

The days of old-school link building, where the sole focus was on “link juice” from DA 30+ sites with keyword-specific anchor text, are over. Once, all we cared about was getting links to boost rankings, even if it meant paying for them. But digital PR has redefined the game. The days of counting DA alone are long gone; now, it’s about meaningful, measurable value.

In digital PR, we don’t just look at traditional metrics like DA, DR, or Trust Flow (though we don’t ignore them). A valuable link is one that generates engagement, whether through social shares, direct traffic, or actual conversions.

Building a Strategic Seeding List

Data-driven insight is key to creating a smart outreach strategy. By tracking every link built—its DA, clicks, conversions, and social shares—we can see which publications provide the most value. For one client, a single publication generated over 6,000 referrals, 115 conversions, and 80,000 social shares, making it a standout resource. Insights like this enable us to refine our seeding lists and ensure future outreach targets the most impactful sites.

Choosing the Right Sites for Maximum Impact

Some sites with lower DA scores can still deliver impressive results. For example, a link from a new, lower-DA publication recently brought in 800 visits in a day. Each industry is different, and we understand which sites drive the most valuable traffic in areas like finance, fashion, and lifestyle, allowing us to be strategic in our outreach.

Beyond DA: Think Big with Your Link Strategy

It’s time to stop viewing DA as the only measure of link value. A link strategy should look beyond DA to consider engagement, brand exposure, and broader digital PR goals. With the right approach, your clients will have results to brag about.

Digital PR is more than just link building. It’s about thinking strategically, digging into data, and building a wider value proposition that traditional SEO alone can’t provide. If you’re ready to take your link strategy to the next level, it’s worth investing in a comprehensive approach that goes beyond numbers to deliver real results.