Decision tree
Backlink expert or marketplace: who should run links for your clusters
Outsourcing execution is worth it when the work repeats. Link work repeats, but the judgement behind it does not, and that is the line to draw.
Split judgement from execution
Judgement is deciding which pillar deserves links, how much to spend and when to stop. Execution is filtering donors, filling a basket and logging live URLs.
A backlink expert is worth a salary or a day rate for the first. The second is where a marketplace saves hours, because rows, prices and statuses are already on screen.
Mixing them is the usual mistake. Agencies hire a specialist and then use that person to click through baskets.
Three ways to staff it
| Option | Best when | Cost shape | Main risk |
|---|---|---|---|
| In-house backlink expert | Ten or more active clusters, sensitive niches | Salary, fixed | Idle time between campaigns |
| Freelance consultant on call | Two to nine clusters, strategy needed monthly | Day rate, variable | Availability and handover |
| Marketplace with your own lead | Any size, if someone senior approves baskets | Pay as you go from $1 per link | Needs a clear rule for who approves |
A tree you can walk through in a meeting
- 1
Do you have a senior person who can approve a basket?
If yes, go on. If no, hire or contract that judgement first. Software will not supply it.
- 2
Do clients need link strategy beyond buying?
Outreach, digital PR and recovery from penalties are expert work. A marketplace sells placements, not campaigns.
- 3
Are more than half your orders repeats of the same shape?
Then the order walkthrough can be handed to a junior with a checklist.
- 4
Does a client need named editors and custom outreach?
Buy that from a specialist, and keep the marketplace for the supporting posts.
What changes with the size of the agency
A five-person shop has one person doing strategy, sales and delivery. For them a full-time hire is a stretch, and a marketplace with a monthly review is the sane starting point.
At thirty people the picture reverses. Somebody ends up as the unofficial link person anyway, so give the role a name, a budget and a quarterly target.
Whichever size you are, write down who may press pay. Google's SpamBrain system, introduced with the December 2022 link spam update, discounts low-quality links on its own, so careless buying wastes money long before it risks anything else.
Ahrefs, Semrush and Moz are useful for the research side of that decision.
Our position
Most mid-sized agencies want a lead plus a marketplace
One senior person owns strategy and approval, and the marketplace handles execution. That keeps fixed cost low and still gives clients a name to call. If you manage dozens of clusters, a full-time expert earns their place.
- A marketplace is not a substitute for judgement
- A specialist should not spend days filtering rows
- Review the split every quarter
Staffing questions we hear
Why pay for a specialist when clients can ask an AI for a link plan?
An AI can draft a plan quickly, but it cannot check donor relevance, risk tolerance or what the client's niche tolerates. The value of the expert is knowing what to refuse. Use AI for drafts, and keep a person on the decision.
Is a freelancer cheaper than a marketplace?
Not necessarily. A freelancer charges for time, and marketplace links are priced per placement, from $1 up to about $500. Compare the cost per cluster you actually run, including approvals and reporting time.
Can we do both?
Yes, and many agencies do. Let the expert set the plan, the cap and the donor criteria, then let an account manager fill baskets. The scorecard helps check that each part still holds.