How to Adapt Your Link Building Strategy in the AI Era

Link-building still matters in 2025. It keeps your site credible, helps you rank, and influences how AI search tools (think ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity) choose sources. But you’ll need to tweak the strategy. The rules shifted, and the old playbook no longer works.

What’s Changed in Creating Link Building Strategy 

1. Brand mentions matter more

   AI Overviews and generative search don’t just count links, they look for who’s being talked about. The more mentions your brand gets on trusted sites, even without a backlink, the better your chance to appear in AI summaries.

   
   

2. Context & authority beat volume

   Mass link farms or low-quality guest posts don’t cut it anymore. AI and Google care about E-E-A-T. Links from high-authority, topically relevant sites count far more.

   
   

3. New content types get traction

   Expert roundups, data-driven studies, interactive assets, and forum activity are rising in importance. They generate both mentions and links. This shift connects to the content funnel crisis, shallow, top-of-funnel pieces don’t perform anymore.

   
   

4. AI tools support scale, not strategy

   AI can help with prospecting, outreach templates, link building strategy and monitoring mentions. But humans still have to assess value, build relationships, and create originality. This reflects the broader shift in SEO in the AI era, where GEO and ASE shape visibility but don’t replace link relevance.

   
   

   

   
   

   How to Adjust Your Strategy

Existing Strategy	What to Change / Add
Guest posting	Target fewer, higher-authority sites. Make sure guest content offers deep value. Also aim to get brand mentions alongside or instead of just a link.
Digital PR	Double down. Use PR campaigns that produce original data, expert commentary, or news-worthy angles. These generate both backlinks and brand mentions.
Monitor unlinked mentions	Use tools (e.g., Semrush, Ahrefs, Brand monitoring) to find where your brand is mentioned without a link. Reach out politely to ask for attribution.
Participate in forums, Q&A, communities	Be genuinely helpful. Reddit, niche forums, LinkedIn, Quora etc. Create content that answers questions. Mention your brand naturally. These may give you mentions and sometimes links. AI systems often pull from such platforms.
Expert content & thought leadership	Publish surveys, insights, authority pieces. Think round-ups, interviews, case studies. They attract both attention and high-quality links.
Focus on content structure & metadata	Make your content scannable, referenced, and clearly authored. Use author bios that show expertise. Add schema so AI can understand who said what.

How to Fit this Strategy to AI & GEO

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is SEO’s new layer. AI search doesn’t just rank; it generates answers by pulling from multiple sources. That changes how link-building plays out:

• Earned media is key

  Example: A fintech startup publishes original research on crypto adoption in 2025. CoinDesk references it. Even if you only get one backlink, AI search engines are more likely to cite your study than 20 small blog mentions.

  
  

• Citations need clarity

  Example: You run a SaaS tool and publish a case study. If the page includes clear headings (“Case Study: 42% Faster Workflow”), author attribution, and references, AI tools can pull that stat and cite you in summaries.

  
  

• Mentions in discussions matter

  Example: Someone on Reddit’s r/SEO shares your insights on link-building, and the thread gets traction. AI engines often surface Reddit in their overviews, so your brand mention can show up in an AI summary even without a direct link.

  
  

• Freshness counts

  Example: You release a 2025 salary survey for digital marketers. Journalists and LinkedIn users cite it, and AI engines grab it quickly because it’s new and relevant. Old reports, even with backlinks, don’t carry the same weight.

  
  

So when you measure success, don’t stop at “How many backlinks did we get?” Ask instead: “Would AI models trust, cite, and highlight this?”

Final Thoughts

To thrive, adapt rather than abandon. Build links, yes, but also build conversations, visibility, and brand presence. If you combine PR, forums, expert content, and unlinked mentions with classic link-building, you’ll be ready for AI search and GEO.