How-to steps · Chapter 7, O for Offsite

Find unlinked mentions and ask for the link

Last checked 23 September 2026Part of the mentions and citations guide

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☐ Set brand alerts (Google alerts is great and free); find last 12 months' unlinked mentions; email each for links; typical conversion: 20 to 30%.

Chapter 7, O for Offsite

Find unlinked mentions

Set a Google Alert: type your brand name in quotes, choose Show options to set how often, which sources and which region, then Create Alert. New mentions arrive by email.
For the last year, search Google for "your brand" -site:yourdomain.com after:2025-09-24, changing the date to a year before today. (Tools under the search box also has a date filter.)
Open each result and note whether it links to you. Mentions without a link are the list.
Paid tools such as Ahrefs or Semrush can filter unlinked mentions directly if you already pay for one.

Ask for the link

Keep it short and thank them first. In our experience 20 to 30 percent say yes.

Subject: Thanks for mentioning [Brand]

Hi [Name],

Thanks for including [Brand] in [article title]. Would you be open to linking our name to [exact URL] so your readers can find us?

Either way, we appreciate the mention.

[Your name]

You're done when you have a list of the last year's mentions without a link, and a short email sent to each publisher.