Getting onto someone's blogroll without a reciprocal-link deal
Curated lists still exist, and the people who keep them still read mail. This tree walks you through the questions in the order a curator asks them.
Slinkroll editorial team ·
Start here
Most listings are earned by being useful in one narrow place
A curator adds a site when it fills a gap on their list. Tell them which gap, in one line, and the odds change more than any template can fix.
Pick one list, not twenty.
Name the page on your site that fits.
Offer nothing you would not do for a stranger.
The tree, branch by branch
01
Does the list have a page on your exact subject?
If it covers knitting patterns and you run a router tutorial blog, stop. If the topic matches, go on to the next branch.
02
Does it take submissions at all?
Look for a form, a mailbox on the page or an editor name. Some lists ask you to fill a field labelled suggest link listing url reciprocal url. That form is a hint that the curator expects a swap, so read the next branch before you fill it.
03
Do they ask for a link back?
A single mutual link between two sites on the same subject is normal. A page of hundreds of swaps is what Google's link scheme guidance calls excessive link exchange. If the form insists on it, decline and note the date.
04
Is the list alive?
Check the newest entry and the last post date. A page last touched in 2019 with half its links dead will not send you readers, so the effort is wasted.
05
Does your best page beat what is already listed?
Open the three nearest entries. If yours is clearly newer, deeper or better drawn, say exactly how. If it is not, improve the page before you write.
06
Write the message
Two sentences on what the page does, one with the URL. Skip the compliments and the pitch for three other services.
Reading the signs on a curator's page
Old-web curators leave clues. A dated byline, a hand-written intro and a handful of entries per heading all point to a person who reads what they list.
Compare that with a page that carries 400 links under one heading and no text. That is a link farm wearing a blogroll's clothes, and it can hurt more than it helps. Skip it.
Alive lists also say what they will not take. A line such as no casino, no payday loans, no AI-written filler saves you both a bad afternoon, so when a list says so, believe it and move on.
Last, look at who else is listed. Three sites you respect under your heading mean good company, but a column of near-identical pages with matching anchor words suggests a script built the list years ago and nobody has touched it since 2020.
Keep notes. A row for each list, with the date you checked it, saves you from asking the same curator twice. Short work, and worth it.
Three kinds of list, three ways in
A rough map from our own reading, not a measured survey.
Kind of list
Typical door
What to bring
Personal blogroll
A short note to the owner, often by email or a comment
A reason that fits their taste, and a page they have not seen
Resource page on a club or school site
A suggestion form or a named staff member
A free, stable, non-commercial page
Weekly digest
A submission address or a reply to the newsletter
A dated post with a clear angle from this week
When the tree says no
Some topics have no living list. In that case a paid placement on a relevant site is a fair second route, and you can filter the marketplace by niche and language. It is not a replacement for earning a listing, only a different door.
Why a pitch that sounds like a pitch gets skipped
Most outreach fails before the curator reads a single useful sentence. The note opens with praise, asks for a favour and then lists what the sender sells. Curators spot that shape fast.
Think about the moment your message lands. The curator has a list to keep tidy, a few requests already open and perhaps ten spare minutes. Attention is the scarce thing here. A note that makes them work out what you want has used up its welcome, and most people will not stay to find out.
Outreach that stands out is usually the boring kind. It names one entry, one gap and one page, then stops. Nothing in it begs.
What a curator hears in a generic note
Say you run a small site about bicycle repair, and you send the same note to forty curators. Each one gets a first name in the greeting and nothing else. A curator who keeps a bicycle page will notice in a glance that the note came from a template.
The fix is not longer copy. It is one sentence that could only be written to this curator, about this list. Refer to a real entry on their page, say what your page adds to it, and leave the rest out.
Asking a question instead of making a claim
A question gives the curator an easy way to answer. Would a short guide on fixing a derailleur sit well beside the tools on their page? That reads like a person looking, not a seller pushing.
Claims invite a debate you do not need. Telling a curator that your page is the best on the subject starts a comparison you may lose. Let the page make its own case, and ask whether it belongs.
Keeping the request small and honest
Ask for one thing: a look at a single page, or a place on one list. A request for three links, a swap and a mention in a newsletter is three requests wearing one coat, and curators see the stack and step back.
If the answer is yes, say thanks once and stop. If it is no, thank them anyway and close the file. That kindness keeps the door open for the next page you write, which is worth more than any single placement.
Posting in community groups without getting removed
Community groups are a common place to look for listings. They are also where moderators act fastest on anything that looks like an advert. Rules differ from room to room. Each group is new ground.
Read the rules before the first post, and read them all the way down. Many groups keep the link policy in a pinned post or a side panel, where people skip it.
Read the rules before the first post
Most groups pin their posting rules or keep them in a sidebar. Some ban outside links outright, while others allow one in a designated thread. You will not know which kind you are in until you read the whole thing.
If the rules are unclear, ask a moderator before you post. A short question costs less than a removal and a ban, and it shows the moderator that you care about the room.
Answer first, link second
A member who asks how to find a list is served by a person's answer more than by a bare link. Write two or three sentences that solve the question first. Only then mention a page of yours, and only if it genuinely helps.
Picture a member asking which blogrolls still take submissions in a narrow niche. A reply that names two lists, explains how each one takes a note, and then offers your page as one more option will land far better than a URL on its own.
What to do after a removal
If a moderator removes your post, accept it without arguing in the thread. Do not repost the same link in another thread, and do not message members to ask why it came down.
Write down the group, the date and the rule that applied. That note will tell you whether the group is worth returning to, and whether your next post should stay out of it. The testing routine covers what to check if a placement does go live.
Reading a reply, or the silence after one
A reply is information even when it is short. Read it for what it says about the list, not only for the yes or the no inside it.
A polite no with no reason
A no without a reason is still a no. It usually means the list is full in your area, or the entry does not fit the way the curator works. Thank them once, log the answer and move on.
Asking why a second time rarely changes the outcome. It mostly tells the curator that you did not hear the first answer.
A yes with conditions
Some curators say yes if you rewrite the note, mention a particular entry or add a line about your method. Treat those conditions as a checklist. If you can meet them honestly, do it. If you cannot, the yes was never really on offer.
Keep the revised note as a record of what they asked for. It saves time the next time the same list opens for submissions.
Silence after a good pitch
Silence is the most common reply, and it is not a verdict. Give it about two weeks, send one short nudge and then leave it alone. A list that has gone quiet for a year is a different case from a busy list that is slow to answer.
The pitch fixes page has a fuller set of rewrites if your first note did not land.
Finding lists that are still alive
Before you write anything, build a short list of candidates. Most people skip this step and pitch the first page they find, which is how they end up on a dead list.
Start with the search you already run
Search your subject with words such as blogroll, resource page or weekly links, and add a year if the results are crowded. Older pages still rank for those words, so set aside anything without a visible date. Keep the three most promising in a short note.
Open each one in a private window so the results are not shaped by your own history.
Check the last entry, not the design
A tidy page can hide a dead list. Open the newest entry and read its date. If nothing has been added for a long stretch, the page may still be online, but nobody is reading it.
Also click two of the older links. Several dead destinations in a row tell you more than any polished layout does.
Count the people behind the page
One name on an about page or a byline is a good sign. A page with no author, no contact and no way to reply is a list you cannot ask anything, so it earns less of your time.
Where the curator does name themselves, a single sentence of thanks that mentions one of their entries is usually enough to open the conversation.
