Link building is a top SEO strategy for any business, but more so for casino companies. A quality backlink is basically someone else saying that a casino is good rather than the business blowing its own trumpet. This industry is quite a controversial one because of the potentially harmful nature of gambling, so having someone else vouch for your quality will certainly boost confidence in your brand and increase sales leads.
Casino link building can be quite challenging, given the massive competition in the industry. Droves of stakeholders and contributors are constantly joining the global gambling market, which is estimated to be worth around $150 billion by 2027. For this reason, link building is more important than ever for casino companies looking to stay on top of the competition.
We’ll deep dive into all you need to know about casino gambling link building, from the best ways for acquiring those links to the dos and don’ts for your casino link building strategies.
Intro to Casino Gambling and Link Building
Casino gambling link building refers to the process of acquiring inbound links from external websites to a casino or gambling-related website. It involves reaching out to webmasters, bloggers, and industry influencers to secure links that point back to the targeted casino site.
Like any link building effort, the benefits range from improving the site’s search engine rankings to increasing organic traffic and enhancing its online visibility within the competitive iGaming landscape.
Casinos have been using link building strategies for a long time. Have you ever launched a casino website to find a homepage with a ton of ‘click here’ links embedded? Or maybe you’ve received those spammy emails with the same call to action included one too many times? Unfortunately, these aren’t search engine-friendly, which is why these websites are notorious for unethical link building.
Casino Link Building – White Hat or Grey Hat?
Organic or referral backlinks (white hat) are the best kinds of links in the eyes of search engines, and these stem from high-authority websites that link back to your brand. While several of these ethical and sustainable practices are in use, other common casino link building practices tend to fall under the grey hat area.
Some of these tactics are given below:
- Link Swapping – Exchanging links with other websites or participating in link networks, where websites agree to link to each other.
- Paid Links – Paying a third-party site to link back to your website.
- Over-Optimisation – Excessive use of exact-match anchor text.
- Private Blog Networks (PBNs) – Utilising or setting up several private blogs for the purpose of linking back to your site.
Paid Links – The Most Popular Grey Hat Practice for Casino Link Building
Grey hat practices may carry risks, including penalties and damage to a website’s reputation. However, practices like paid links are one of the top ways major casino companies build a backlink profile. Casinos often pay for links because bloggers charge a premium to promote the gambling industry. Not many webmasters are willing to associate with what they consider a potentially harmful activity and those that do hardly do so for free. The stiff competition in the industry also means that you need a lot of link juice to increase your rankings.
How to Get Quality Casino Backlinks – Best Practices
While paid links and other grey hat practices cannot be removed from casino link building completely, it is essential to prioritise white hat techniques. These focus on high-quality, relevant, and natural link acquisition and are advisable for long-term success.
Create and Promote Engaging Content
Develop high-quality, informative content (articles, blog posts, infographics, and videos) related to gambling, casino games, strategies, or industry news. By offering valuable resources, you increase the chances of getting organic links to your content and increase those high-performing PR backlinks.
Outreach and Guest Posting
Reach out to relevant bloggers, web admins, and industry influencers to propose guest posting opportunities. Offer to contribute unique and informative content to their websites, including a link back to your site. Guest posting helps establish relationships, gain exposure to new audiences, and secure authoritative backlinks.
Collaborate through Partnerships and Sponsorships
Form partnerships with other businesses, industry organisations, or popular influencers. Building relationships with relevant and authoritative websites is necessary for present and future link building efforts. You can sponsor events or content and negotiate mutual backlink placements to increase your online visibility and authority.
Leverage Affiliate Programs
Implement an affiliate program where you provide promotional materials to affiliate websites. Affiliates promote your casino and earn commissions for referring players. This strategy can generate significant backlinks as affiliates often include unique affiliate links in their content.
Utilise Online Directories and Reviews
Submit your casino website to reputable online directories and review platforms. This not only provides a backlink but also exposes your brand to potential customers who are researching or comparing different gambling options.
Engage on Social Media
Actively participate on social media platforms to connect with users and industry influencers. Share engaging content, interact with your followers, and participate in discussions. This can attract attention and potentially lead to backlinks from interested parties.
Dos and Don’ts for Casino Link Building
Do:
- Take pointers from how the top-ranking competition build backlinks
- Carefully pick target websites to include in your campaign
- Go for high-quality websites with a high domain rating
- Create quality content that will promote organic traffic. This means content should be valuable for other websites and their audiences.
- Capitalise on the curiosity around this industry and provide guest posts that can answer some of the top queries; for example, write a listicle on safe casinos that have a UKGC licence or an eCOGRA certificate.
- Acquire links at a sensible pace to stay on the safe side of search engine algorithms.
- Use aliases or third-party email addresses when buying links
- Set a realistic budget, as casino link building campaigns can be expensive
Don’t:
- Build links from websites affiliated with too many casinos. That could signal that they offer inorganic links for sale.
- Rely on low-quality or irrelevant websites (DA/DR lower than 30) for backlinks.
- Engage in excessive guest posting solely for link acquisition purposes
- Over-optimise anchor text with excessive keyword usage.
- Ignore the quality of your content. You should focus on creating high-quality, engaging content.
- Neglect link diversity. You should acquire links from various sources to maintain a healthy backlink profile.
- Neglect the power of social media and brand mentions. Engage with your audience and encourage social sharing.
Some Challenges of Link Building for Casinos
Several aspects make iGaming a challenging domain for link building, the competitive nature makes it difficult to stand out and acquire valuable links.
The iGaming industry is heavily regulated in many jurisdictions. So advertising and promoting gambling activities are subject to strict rules and regulations, including restrictions on certain types of link building. There’s also a historically negative perception in society about this activity. As such, many reputable websites and platforms have guidelines that prohibit or limit the inclusion of gambling-related links. Some are simply hesitant to link to iGaming sites due to ethical concerns or fear of association with an industry that is often seen as controversial.
On the other hand, there’s a constantly evolving landscape that can impact link building strategies. The iGaming industry is dynamic and subject to frequent changes, including regulatory updates, technological advancements, and shifting trends. This fast-paced nature requires continuous adaptation and staying up-to-date with the latest developments to maintain a successful link building campaign.
Combine all these factors and it’s much harder to secure high-quality and authoritative links than other conventional domains. And we know that search engines place a strong emphasis on link quality and relevance.
Non-Gambling Websites for Building Casino Backlinks
The gambling industry as a whole is very versatile. So when you run short of casino-related websites to acquire backlinks, you can branch out to several other industries. Best of all is that you get to expose your brand to a larger audience.
Here are some non-gambling sectors that can offer opportunities for building casino backlinks:
- Travel and Tourism – Casinos are common tourist destinations, and many hotels and resorts feature a casino within the property.
- Entertainment and Events – Gambling is entertainment first and foremost, and the best entertainment websites cover sections or articles on casinos, live shows, or specific casino-related events.
- Lifestyle and Luxury – Casinos often offer VIP experiences and high-stakes gambling. You can get valuable links from lifestyle and luxury websites focusing on high-end experiences.
- Sports and Sports Betting – Sports betting and casino are both forms of gambling, and many sports betting sites also have online casino sections.
- Business and Entrepreneurship – Casino companies are big shots in the business world, with several listed on the stock exchange. The business aspect of casinos often makes the news cycle.
- Charity and Sponsorship – Here, you need to seek out charitable organisations or sponsorship opportunities that align with your casino company’s values. By sponsoring events, fundraisers, or charitable initiatives, you can potentially earn backlinks from their websites.
In Conclusion
A backlink profile is a strong metric that search engines use when ranking your website and is essential for your SEO strategy. Because casino link building has so many challenges stemming from the industry itself, achieving that high-quality backlink profile you need can be difficult. However, there are still several effective ways to do so as explained in this article.
Just remember to avoid casino link building mistakes. Also, adhering to ethical and transparent practices when acquiring backlinks will allow you to maintain a positive reputation and long-term success.
