Free resource for ecommerce SEO teams and agencies
Ecommerce link-building domain vetting checklist
Stop judging publishers by a DR screenshot alone. This free field guide gives you a practical, repeatable way to decide whether a domain, placement or partner is worth pursuing before you spend outreach time or link-building budget.
- Screen a domain for relevance, geography, audience quality, safety and publisher behaviour.
- Use metrics such as DR, DA, traffic and spam signals as context, not as blind pass or fail rules.
- Review recent content, outbound links, history, ownership signals and exact placement context.
- Score approved prospects with a simple 20-point quality score.
- Record costs, disclosure expectations, link attributes and the reason behind every decision.
Inside the free guide
| Section | What you get | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Fast reject screen | Six checks for relevance, safety, editorial quality and commercial transparency | Before you send an outreach email or waste time researching a poor fit |
| 20-point quality score | A consistent scoring system across fit, traffic quality, editorial standards, placement value and footprint risk | When you need to choose between several potential publishers |
| Deeper review guide | What to check in search visibility, geography, outbound links, ownership, history and terms | Before approving a placement, collaboration or paid partnership |
| Prospect decision record | A one-page record for evidence, score, decision and reviewer | When multiple people prospect or you want a defensible audit trail |
| Pre-approval checklist | Ten final checks to complete before a prospect enters outreach | Immediately before a pitch, proposal or contract |
Who this is for
This guide is for ecommerce founders, in-house SEO teams, freelance consultants and agencies who are building relationships with editors, creators, suppliers, publishers and partners. It is designed for people who want to earn relevant editorial exposure without filling their reports with low-value or risky placements.
How to use it
- Pick a store target page and identify the reader benefit it offers.
- Run each publisher through the fast reject screen.
- Complete the deeper review only for credible prospects.
- Score the opportunity, document any concerns and mark it approved, conditional or rejected.
- Pitch a contribution or relationship that helps the publisher’s audience, not a prescribed anchor text.
What this is not
This is not a guide to buying hidden links, gaming anchor text or treating a metric as proof of quality. Paid, gifted or compensated placements require transparent terms, suitable disclosure and appropriate link attributes. The purpose of the checklist is to improve your judgement, save outreach time and protect your brand.
Frequently asked questions
Is the checklist free?
Yes. It is a free PDF resource for qualifying ecommerce link-building prospects and placements.
Do I need Ahrefs or Moz to use it?
No. The guide explains where third-party metrics can help, but the core checks are relevance, publisher quality, placement context and evidence you can review manually.
Will the checklist guarantee better rankings?
No. It helps you avoid weak placements and build a more credible process. Rankings also depend on content, technical health, internal links, competition and many other factors.
Can agencies use it with clients?
Yes. The prospect record and scoring model are particularly useful when an agency needs to document why a domain was approved or rejected.