Open Secret

Service

Link Building

The standard playbook assumes publishers who will not return your emails. This is the version that works when half the internet declines the outreach on principle.

Rejection is the default, so the strategy has to assume it

Mainstream outreach in this category converts at a fraction of normal rates, and most of that is category refusal rather than anything about the pitch. Programmes built on volume outreach fail here. Programmes built on a smaller number of genuinely receptive source types work, and the resulting profile is harder for a competitor to copy precisely because it was harder to build.

Where the links actually are

Industry media and trade publications. The comparison and roundup ecosystem, which is also the layer AI engines cite most heavily. Partner and integration pages, which are frequently the highest-authority links available and cost nothing but a conversation. Original data and tooling that gives someone a reason to cite you. Conference and association listings.

The same work feeds the AI layer

A roundup that links to you is a ranking signal and a citation source simultaneously. This is the strongest argument for running link building and AI visibility as one programme rather than two: in restricted categories the source lists overlap almost completely, and buying them separately means paying twice for one outreach motion.

What a bought link costs you later

This category is saturated with vendors selling placements on networks that exist only to sell placements. They work until they do not, and the cleanup is more expensive than the original programme. We will tell you when a competitor is visibly buying, and we will not match it.

Scope

What is in, and what is not.

Includes

  • Link gap analysis against named competitors
  • Prospect list built by source type, not scraped by volume
  • Industry media and trade publication outreach
  • Roundup and comparison-page placement — the layer AI engines cite
  • Partner and integration page audit, usually the fastest wins available
  • Original data or tooling development where the category lacks it
  • Monthly reporting on referring domains, authority and citation overlap

Excludes

  • Paid links, private blog networks and placement marketplaces
  • Guest post farms
  • Any volume guarantee — a fixed monthly link count is a promise you can only keep by buying

Shape of the work

What happens, and when.

  1. Weeks 1–2Gap analysis and prospect list by source type
  2. Weeks 2–4Partner and integration wins — the fast ones land first
  3. Month 2+Media and roundup outreach, running continuously
  4. Month 3–6Authority compounds and commercial terms open up

The demand

430 searches a month, and the easiest sits at difficulty 0.

Measured, not estimated. This is what people type when they are looking for this service in these categories — published here because an agency that sells search should be willing to show its own numbers.

QueryUS / monthDifficultyCPC
adult backlinks 170 5 $7.12
adult link building 140 4 —
adult link building services 70 3 $24.12
buy adult backlinks 50 0 —

Source: Semrush, United States database, measured 2 October 2026. Difficulty is Semrush KD, where lower is easier.

By industry

The same work, tuned per category.

Also

The other two.

3 questions

Questions we get asked

How many links per month?

We do not quote a number, because a guaranteed monthly count can only be met by buying placements. We report referring domains earned, the source type, and whether the same source shows up in your AI citation map.

Our competitors are clearly buying links. Why should we not?

Because you inherit the cleanup. We will show you what they are doing and what it is worth, and you can make the call knowing the downside is a recovery project rather than a penalty notice.

Is adult link building really different?

Yes, and mostly in who says no. The tactics are ordinary; the prospect universe is a fraction of the size, so selection matters far more than volume and a scraped list is close to worthless.

Taking 2 new clients this quarter

Be the name AI gets named

Fifty prompts, four engines, your categories. You will see your score and exactly who is being named instead — before you commit to anything.

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