Broken Link Building and Resource Page Outreach

Websites are full of dead links. Every one is an opportunity to be helpful. Broken link building and resource page outreach earn links by offering site owners a working, useful replacement. It's slower than some tactics, but it's genuinely helpful, which is why it works.

This guide is part of our authority link building series.

Why it works

• Site owners want their pages to work
• You're solving a problem, not just asking for a favour
• Resource pages exist specifically to link to useful content

Step 1: Find opportunities

• Resource pages: search for phrases like "small business marketing resources," "advertising resources," or "helpful links" plus your topic or city
• Broken outbound links: use SEO tools or browser extensions to find dead links on relevant pages
• Competitors' lost pages: find pages that used to exist and still have links pointing to them
• Libraries, associations, universities and chambers often maintain resource lists (association links)

Step 2: Check relevance and quality

Is the site relevant, trustworthy and read by real people? Would your resource genuinely fit?

Step 3: Have a great replacement

Your page must be as good as, or better than, what was there. Linkable assets work best: guides, tools, templates and research (linkable assets).

Step 4: Reach out politely

Subject: Broken link on your [topic] resources page

Hi [Name], I was reading your [page title] and noticed the link to [old resource] isn't working anymore. If you're looking for a replacement, our [resource title] covers [what it covers]: [URL]. Either way, thought you'd want to know about the broken link!

More templates in outreach templates.

Step 5: Follow up once

A polite follow-up after a week is fine. Then move on.

Local and Canadian angles

Canadian libraries, business support organizations, chambers of commerce, colleges and regional development agencies often maintain resource pages for local businesses. A well-made, locally relevant guide can be a natural fit.

Measure

Track pages contacted, replies and links earned. Expect a modest success rate; focus on quality over quantity. See link building metrics.

A simple workflow

1. Build a list of 30–50 relevant resource pages
2. Check each for broken links and fit
3. Match each opportunity to your best resource
4. Send personalized emails in small batches
5. Log replies and results
6. Review what types of pages respond best, and focus there

Keep your own links healthy

Check your site for broken internal and outbound links too, and fix them. See internal linking.