How to Track Guest Post Backlinks

Guest posting has long been a cornerstone of digital marketing and SEO strategy. By contributing valuable content to authoritative third-party websites, brands and individuals gain exposure, build credibility, and acquire high-quality backlinks that signal trust to search engines. However, the real value of guest posting isn’t just in publishing—it’s in tracking the results. Without proper backlink tracking, you’re flying blind. You won’t know which posts are driving traffic, which links are live, or whether your efforts are yielding a measurable return on investment.

Tracking guest post backlinks is not optional—it’s essential. Whether you’re managing a small blog or scaling a corporate content marketing program, understanding where your links reside, how they perform, and whether they’ve been removed or altered allows you to refine your strategy, protect your SEO equity, and uncover new opportunities. This guide will walk you through every step of tracking guest post backlinks, from initial discovery to long-term maintenance, using proven methods and industry-leading tools.

Step-by-Step Guide

1. Create a Guest Post Tracker Spreadsheet

Before you begin tracking, you need a centralized system to record all your guest posting activity. A simple spreadsheet is the most effective starting point. Use Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel and create columns for the following data points:

• Publication Name – The website where your guest post was published
• Article Title – The exact title of your guest post
• Publication Date – When the article went live
• Author Name – Your name or brand name as credited
• Link URL – The full hyperlink placed in your bio, within the content, or in the resource section
• Link Type – DoFollow, NoFollow, or UGC (User Generated Content)
• Anchor Text – The clickable text used for the link
• Placement – Bio, body content, footer, sidebar, etc.
• Status – Live, Pending, Removed, Broken
• Notes – Any communication with the editor, special requests, or follow-up actions

Organizing your data this way ensures you have a clear audit trail. You can sort, filter, and analyze your guest posts by performance, link quality, or publication authority. Update this sheet every time you publish a new guest post or receive feedback from a publisher.

2. Verify the Backlink Is Live

Just because a guest post was accepted and scheduled doesn’t mean it went live—or that your link was included. Always verify the presence of your backlink after publication. Here’s how:

1. Visit the published article directly using the URL provided by the publisher.
2. Use your browser’s “Find” function (Ctrl+F or Cmd+F) to search for your anchor text or brand name.
3. Right-click on the link and select “Inspect” (or “Inspect Element”) to confirm the HTML code includes your target URL with the correct anchor text.
4. Check if the link has a rel="nofollow", rel="ugc", or no attribute at all. This determines its SEO value.

If the link is missing, contact the editor immediately. Many publishers accidentally omit links during formatting, especially if you provided the content via email or document. Keep a polite, professional record of your follow-up.

3. Use Backlink Monitoring Tools

Manually checking each guest post is time-consuming and unsustainable at scale. Leverage specialized backlink monitoring tools to automate discovery and alert you to changes.

Tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, Moz, and Majestic can scan the web for links pointing to your domain. Set up alerts to notify you when new backlinks are detected. Filter results by:

• Link source domain (e.g., only show links from publications you’ve guest posted on)
• Anchor text (match your exact branded or keyword-rich anchors)
• Publication date (compare with your tracker)

For example, in Ahrefs, go to “Site Explorer,” enter your domain, and navigate to “Backlinks.” Use the “Filter” option to narrow by referring domain or anchor text. If you notice a guest post link missing from the tool’s results, it may have been removed or deindexed.

4. Set Up Google Alerts for Your Brand and Anchor Text

Google Alerts is a free, underrated tool for tracking mentions of your brand, website, or specific anchor text. Create alerts for:

• Your brand name
• Your author name
• Your anchor text phrases (e.g., “learn more about SEO tools”)
• Your domain name

When a new article containing your alert terms is published, Google sends you an email. This is especially useful for catching guest posts that may not yet be indexed by backlink tools or for identifying links that appear in non-traditional placements like comment sections or forum signatures.

Pro tip: Use quotation marks around exact phrases to reduce false positives. For example: “John Doe SEO” or “visit our guide on link building.”

5. Monitor for Link Removal or Deindexing

One of the biggest risks in guest posting is link removal. Publishers may update old content, change their editorial policies, or remove outbound links to improve their own SEO. If a high-authority backlink disappears, your rankings can suffer.

To prevent this, schedule monthly audits of your guest post backlinks. Use your tracker spreadsheet to cross-reference with your backlink tool data. If a link is missing from the tool but still listed in your tracker, investigate:

• Visit the original article—has it been updated or deleted?
• Use the Wayback Machine (archive.org) to see if the link existed in a previous version of the page.
• Check if the domain has changed its structure or redirected your link.

If the link was removed, reach out to the publisher with a polite request to reinstate it—especially if the content is still relevant and your link adds value. Offer to update your bio or provide a revised version of the article if needed.

6. Track Referral Traffic from Guest Posts

Backlinks are valuable, but their true power lies in the traffic and engagement they drive. Connect your backlink tracker to Google Analytics to measure real-world impact.

In Google Analytics 4 (GA4), go to “Acquisition” > “Traffic Acquisition.” Filter by “Session medium” = referral. Look for traffic coming from your guest post domains. Note:

• Number of sessions
• Average session duration
• Bounce rate
• Conversions (if you’ve set up goals)

Use UTM parameters on your guest post links to get even more granular data. For example:

https://yoursite.com/seo-guide?utm_source=guestpost&utm_medium=blog&utm_campaign=techradar-seo-june2024

These tags allow you to see exactly which publication and article drove traffic, even if the link is nofollow. This data helps you prioritize future guest posting opportunities based on performance, not just domain authority.

7. Analyze Link Equity and Domain Authority

Not all backlinks are created equal. A link from a high-authority site with strong domain rating (DR) or domain authority (DA) carries more SEO weight than one from a low-quality blog. Use tools like Ahrefs, Moz, or Majestic to evaluate the authority of each guest posting domain.

Focus on:

• Domain Rating (DR) – Ahrefs’ metric (0–100) estimating link strength
• Domain Authority (DA) – Moz’s similar metric
• Number of referring domains pointing to the guest post site
• Page Authority (PA) of the specific article page

Track the average DR/DA of your guest posting targets over time. If your average is increasing, your outreach strategy is improving. If it’s declining, you may be targeting lower-quality sites—revisit your criteria.

8. Identify and Disavow Toxic Links

While most guest posting is legitimate, occasionally you may find yourself linked from spammy or penalized sites. These can harm your SEO. Use your backlink tool to scan for suspicious domains:

• Domains with excessive outbound links
• Links from sites with low trust scores
• Domains associated with adult, gambling, or pharmaceutical spam
• Links with unnatural anchor text (e.g., “cheap viagra”)

If you identify toxic links from guest posts, you can disavow them using Google Search Console. Go to “Links” > “Disavow Links,” download the file, add the URLs you want to ignore, and upload it. Note: Only disavow as a last resort. Most guest posts from reputable sites are safe—even if they’re nofollow.

9. Create a Follow-Up and Renewal Calendar

Guest posts aren’t one-time wins. They’re long-term assets. Set up a quarterly calendar to:

• Reach out to publishers for republishing opportunities
• Request updated links if your website URL changed
• Ask for permission to update outdated content with new information
• Re-engage authors or editors for future collaborations

For example, if you published a guest post on “Top 10 SEO Tools in 2023,” reach out in early 2024 with a revised version titled “Top 10 SEO Tools in 2024.” Offer to update the original article or write a follow-up piece. This keeps your content fresh and your links active.

10. Document and Report ROI

Finally, turn your tracking data into actionable insights. Every quarter, compile a report that includes:

• Total number of guest posts published
• Number of live backlinks
• Average DR/DA of linking domains
• Referral traffic volume and conversion rate
• Top-performing publications
• Links removed or disavowed

Use this report to justify your content marketing budget, refine your outreach strategy, and demonstrate value to stakeholders. When you can show that guest posting drives measurable traffic and improves domain authority, you transform it from a tactical activity into a strategic asset.

Best Practices

1. Prioritize Relevance Over Authority

While high-domain-authority sites are desirable, relevance matters more. A backlink from a niche blog with 5,000 monthly visitors in your industry is more valuable than a link from a general news site with 500,000 visitors but zero audience overlap. Search engines prioritize topical relevance. Choose publications that serve the same audience you want to reach.

2. Use Natural Anchor Text

Avoid keyword-stuffed anchors like “best SEO software 2024” or “buy backlinks here.” These look spammy and can trigger penalties. Instead, use natural variations:

• Your brand name
• “Read our guide on…”
• “Learn more about [topic]”
• “Check out this resource”

Google rewards contextually relevant, human-like linking patterns. Anchor text diversity also protects you from algorithmic updates.

3. Build Relationships, Not Just Links

Guest posting is not a transaction. It’s a relationship-building exercise. Engage with editors and authors on social media. Comment on their articles. Share their content. When you build genuine rapport, they’re more likely to:

• Include your link
• Accept future pitches
• Notify you if your link is removed
• Invite you for repeat collaborations

Treat every guest post as the beginning of a long-term partnership.

4. Diversify Your Guest Posting Strategy

Don’t rely on one type of site. Mix your outreach across:

• Industry blogs
• News sites
• Resource hubs
• Podcast show notes
• University or nonprofit publications

Diversification reduces risk. If one site removes links or gets penalized, your overall backlink profile remains stable.

5. Avoid Paid Guest Posting Schemes

Google explicitly warns against buying or selling links for the purpose of manipulating PageRank. Paid guest posting networks, link farms, and private blog networks (PBNs) violate Google’s guidelines and can lead to manual penalties. Always ensure your guest posts are editorially independent and provide real value to readers.

6. Keep Your Content Evergreen

Guest posts that remain relevant for years continue to generate traffic and link equity. Focus on timeless topics—how-tos, industry guides, case studies, and expert roundups. Avoid time-sensitive content like “2024 trends” unless you plan to update it annually.

7. Use Canonical Tags When Republishing

If you republish your guest post on your own site (with permission), use a canonical tag pointing back to the original article. This tells search engines which version to rank and prevents duplicate content penalties.

8. Track Internal Linking from Guest Posts

Once a guest post drives traffic to your site, ensure you’re guiding visitors further down the funnel. Add internal links to related content, product pages, or lead magnets. This increases engagement and helps search engines understand your site’s structure.

Tools and Resources

Backlink Analysis Tools

• Ahrefs – Industry leader for backlink tracking, site audits, and competitor analysis. Offers real-time alerts and detailed link metrics.
• SEMrush – Comprehensive SEO suite with backlink monitoring, keyword tracking, and domain comparison tools.
• Moz Pro – Known for Domain Authority and Page Authority scores. Excellent for beginners and mid-level marketers.
• Majestic – Specializes in link history and trust flow metrics. Great for identifying link decay over time.
• Linkody – Affordable, user-friendly tool focused specifically on backlink monitoring and alerting.

Free Tools

• Google Search Console – Free and essential. Shows all indexed backlinks to your site and flags issues.
• Google Alerts – Monitors mentions of your brand or keywords across the web.
• Wayback Machine (archive.org) – View historical versions of web pages to confirm if a link was ever live.
• Ubersuggest – Free backlink checker with basic domain analysis.

Spreadsheet Templates

Download free guest post tracker templates from:

• HubSpot’s Marketing Templates
• SEMrush’s Content Marketing Toolkit
• Notion’s SEO Content Tracker

Customize these to match your workflow. Add conditional formatting to highlight broken links (red) or high-authority links (green).

Outreach Platforms

• BuzzStream – Manage guest post outreach campaigns, track responses, and schedule follow-ups.
• Pitchbox – Automate personalized outreach at scale.
• Hunter.io – Find email addresses of editors and bloggers for direct outreach.

Real Examples

Example 1: Tech Startup Gains 12 High-Quality Backlinks

A SaaS company specializing in email marketing tools published 12 guest posts over six months. They used Ahrefs to track every link and created a spreadsheet with all the data points mentioned earlier.

After three months, they noticed:

• Three links were removed from low-traffic blogs
• Five links remained live on sites with DR 60+
• Referral traffic from guest posts increased by 47%
• One article on a marketing blog ranked

  3 for “best email automation tools” and drove 2,300 monthly visitors

They reached out to the two publishers who removed links and successfully reinstated one. They updated the top-performing article with new data and republished it as a “2024 Edition,” earning a second backlink from the same site.

Result: Organic traffic from guest posts grew by 62% in six months. Domain Rating increased from 42 to 58.

Example 2: Freelancer Loses a High-Value Link

A freelance writer published a guest post on a respected industry blog with a dofollow link to her portfolio site. The link had a DR of 75 and was driving consistent traffic.

Two months later, traffic dropped. She checked her tracker and found the link was missing from Ahrefs. She visited the article—published content was updated, and her bio section had been removed.

She emailed the editor: “Hi Sarah, I noticed my bio link was removed from your article on content strategy. I’d love to know if there was an issue—I’m happy to update my bio or provide a revised version if needed.”

The editor replied: “We’re updating our site to remove all author bios with external links. But we love your article! Would you consider writing a follow-up?”

The writer turned the situation into a new opportunity, published a follow-up piece, and earned a new link with better placement.

Example 3: E-commerce Brand Gets Penalized for Spammy Links

An online retailer hired an agency to secure 50 guest posts in one month. The agency used low-quality directories and forums, stuffing anchor text with product keywords.

Within weeks, Google Search Console flagged “unnatural links.” The site’s organic traffic dropped 40%. An audit revealed 38 of the 50 links were from spammy sites with DR under 10.

The brand had to:

• Disavow 32 links
• Remove 6 links manually
• Write a reconsideration request to Google
• Fire the agency

It took six months to recover. Lesson: Quality over quantity. Always vet your guest posting partners.

FAQs

How long does it take for a guest post backlink to appear in backlink tools?

It can take anywhere from a few days to several weeks for a new backlink to be crawled and indexed by tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush. Google Search Console usually detects links faster—often within 48 hours. If a link hasn’t appeared after 30 days, verify it’s live on the page and check for technical issues like robots.txt blocking or noindex tags.

Are nofollow guest post backlinks worth tracking?

Yes. While nofollow links don’t pass direct SEO equity, they still drive referral traffic, build brand awareness, and contribute to natural link profiles. Google considers nofollow links as signals of relevance and popularity. Track them for traffic and engagement metrics—even if they don’t boost rankings directly.

Can I track guest post backlinks without paying for tools?

Yes. Google Search Console provides a free list of all backlinks to your site. Combine it with Google Alerts and manual checks using the “site:” operator (e.g., site:example.com "your anchor text") to find mentions. While less comprehensive, this approach works for small-scale efforts.

What should I do if a guest post link is removed?

First, confirm the link is gone by visiting the page. Then, reach out to the editor politely. Offer to update your bio, rewrite the article, or provide additional resources. Most publishers will reinstate the link if you make it easy and valuable for them.

How often should I audit my guest post backlinks?

For active marketers: monthly. For casual contributors: quarterly. Use your tracker to compare against your backlink tool data. Set calendar reminders to review status, traffic, and link health.

Can guest posting hurt my SEO?

Poorly executed guest posting can. If you spam low-quality sites, use unnatural anchor text, or participate in link schemes, you risk penalties. Always prioritize quality, relevance, and editorial integrity.

Should I ask for a dofollow link in every guest post?

It’s fine to request it, but don’t insist. Many reputable sites use nofollow for user-generated or third-party content. Focus on getting published on authoritative, relevant platforms—even if the link is nofollow. The traffic and brand exposure often outweigh the lack of direct SEO benefit.

How do I find guest posting opportunities?

Use Google searches like: “write for us” + [your niche], “guest post guidelines” + [industry], or “contribute to [publication].” Check competitor backlinks using Ahrefs or SEMrush. Look at sites that link to your competitors but not to you—these are prime targets.

Conclusion

Tracking guest post backlinks is not a one-time task—it’s an ongoing discipline that separates successful SEO strategies from random acts of content publishing. When you systematically record, verify, monitor, and analyze every backlink, you transform guest posting from a speculative activity into a data-driven growth engine.

The tools, templates, and best practices outlined in this guide provide a complete framework for managing your guest post backlink portfolio. Whether you’re a solo blogger or part of a marketing team, consistent tracking ensures you never lose sight of your ROI. You’ll know which publications deliver results, which links need maintenance, and how your authority grows over time.

Remember: A backlink is only as valuable as the attention you pay to it. Don’t just publish—track. Don’t just acquire—analyze. Don’t just hope for results—measure them.

Start today. Build your tracker. Set your alerts. Audit your links. Your future SEO performance depends on it.