An unlinked mention is a page that names your product but doesn't link to it. A newsletter recommends your tool, a forum answer lists you as an option, a "tools I use" page has your logo in a screenshot, and none of them link. Turning those mentions into links is one of the few link-building jobs where the other person already likes you. You aren't asking a stranger to write about you. You're asking someone who already did to add one URL.
This guide walks through the whole loop for a small SaaS or indie product: finding the mentions, deciding which are worth a message, writing a short ask, following up once, and keeping a simple log so it becomes a 20-minute monthly habit rather than a one-off sprint.
Last checked: Nov 5, 2026
Disclosure: IndieHunt, its sibling hunt sites and HedPress are all run by the same owner, Praneet. I mention HedPress once below where it fits.
Why do unlinked mentions matter for a small product?
Links are still how search engines discover and understand pages. Google's own guidance on crawlable links and anchor text says the words in and around a link help people and Google make sense of the page being linked to. A mention without a link gives a reader your name. A mention with a link gives the reader a click and gives a crawler a path to your site, with context about what the product is.
For a new product, mentions also have a specific advantage over cold outreach:
The writer already chose to talk about you, so the ask is small.
The page is usually on-topic, because they mentioned you for a reason.
Readers of that page are already halfway interested. A link turns curiosity into a visit instead of a search they might not bother with.
What it won't do: guarantee rankings or get you quoted in AI answers. It's a tidy-up job that makes existing goodwill count for a bit more. Treat it that way and you won't be disappointed.
Step 1: Make a list of every way people write your name
Before searching, spend ten minutes writing down the variations. People rarely spell a small product's name the way you do.
The exact product name, in quotes.
Your bare domain without "https" (people often type it as plain text, which many sites don't turn into a link).
Common misspellings and spacing (using a made-up product, Notepail): "Note Pail", "Notepail", "Note-pail".
Your name plus a category word, if the name is a common word: "Notepail app", "Notepail invoices".
Your own name as founder, for interviews and podcast show notes.
Old names, if you renamed.
Keep this list in the first tab of your tracking sheet. You'll reuse it every month.
Step 2: Find the mentions
You don't need a paid tool to start. Use free sources first, then decide whether a paid backlink tool is worth it once you know how many mentions you actually get.
Search engines, by hand
Search each variation in quotes and exclude your own site, for example "notepail" -site:notepail.com. Repeat in Bing, which sometimes surfaces smaller blogs and forums in a different order. Then try your name plus words like "alternative", "vs", "review", "tools" and "stack". Write down every page that names you.
Google Alerts for new mentions
Google's help page on creating an alert explains that you enter a topic, open "Show options" to set how often you're notified, which sources and region, and how many results, then you get emails when Google finds new matching results. Set one alert per name variation, set it to "all results", and send it to a folder you actually read. Alerts miss plenty, so treat them as a top-up, not your only source.
Search Console's Links report, for the reverse check
The Search Console Links report lists the top linking sites and your most-linked pages. Google says it's a sample, not every link, and that it doesn't tell you whether a link is nofollow. It's still useful here: if a site that mentions you is already in that list, it already links, so cross it off.
Places search misses
Newsletter archives (many publish web versions on Substack, Beehiiv or Buttondown).
Podcast show notes and YouTube descriptions where you were a guest or were mentioned.
Community answers on Reddit, Indie Hackers, Stack Exchange and niche forums.
Customer "our stack" or "tools we use" pages. Ask your support inbox; customers often tell you.
Launch-platform and directory profiles that list you but whose link field you never filled in.
Step 3: Sort the list before you send anything
Most founders who try this burn out because they message everything. Don't. Sort first, then write to the best third or so.
Type of mention | Worth asking? | Why |
|---|---|---|
Blog post or article that recommends you | Yes, first priority | Real page, real author, usually still maintained. |
Newsletter web archive | Yes, if the archive is public | Editors often fix archives, and the next issue may link anyway. |
Your own profiles (directories, launch sites, marketplaces) | Fix it yourself | No ask needed: log in and add the URL. |
Customer "stack" page | Yes, gently | Friendly audience; offer them something useful in return, like a better screenshot. |
Forum or Reddit answer | Usually no | Editing old posts is often impossible, and asking can read as spam. |
News article | Only if it's recent | Newsrooms have link policies; one polite note, then let it go. |
Negative or critical mention | No | Reply to the substance if you must, but don't ask for a link. |
Scraped or spammy copy of another page | No | Not worth your time or a link. |
Before you add anything to the "ask" column, open the page and check three things: it's live, it's indexed (search the exact page title), and the author or site has a visible contact route. If any of those fail, mark it "skip" and move on.
Step 4: Check what's already there
Sometimes the link exists and you just didn't see it, or it points somewhere wrong. Right-click the mention and inspect it. You're looking for four situations:
No link at all. This is the main case.
Link to a dead URL, such as an old pricing page or a renamed path. Ask them to update it, and add a redirect on your side today so it works even if they never reply.
Link to a competitor or the wrong product with a similar name. Point this out kindly; most writers will want to fix a mistake.
Link that exists but carries a rel value like nofollow. That's the site's choice. Don't ask them to change it. If you want to know how to read it, see how to check whether a backlink is dofollow on Aura++.
Step 5: Write a short, specific ask
The person owes you nothing, so the message has one job: make adding the link take less than a minute. Keep it to four or five sentences.
Thank them for the specific mention, and quote or name the page.
Give the exact URL you'd like linked, ideally the page that matches what they wrote about (a feature page, not always your homepage).
Suggest where: "on the word Notepail in your second paragraph".
Offer one useful thing if you have it: an updated screenshot, a corrected price, or a short quote.
Make "no" easy.
Here's what that looks like next to the version people usually send:
Weak | Better |
|---|---|
"Hi, thanks for mentioning us! Could you add a backlink to our website? It would really help our SEO." | "Hi Maya, thanks for including Notepail in your post on invoicing tools for freelancers. If it's easy, could the name link to notepail.com/invoices? That's the page for the feature you described. Our pricing changed in September, so here's the current plan list in case you update the table. No worries if not." |
Generic subject: "Backlink request" | Specific subject: "Your freelancer invoicing post (small fix)" |
Three links and a media kit attached | One URL, no attachments |
Never offer payment, a reciprocal link swap or a "guest post in exchange" in this message. It turns a friendly correction into a negotiation, and most writers will simply ignore it.
Step 6: Follow up once, then close it
Send one follow-up about a week later, replying to your first message so the context is there. Two lines is enough: "Bumping this in case it got buried. Totally fine if you'd rather leave the post as is." After that, mark it closed. A second follow-up costs more goodwill than the link is worth.
When someone does add the link, thank them, then check it a few days later. Editors sometimes paste a URL with a typo or link the wrong word.
What should the tracking sheet look like?
One row per mention. These columns are enough:
Date found
Page URL and site
Type (from the table in Step 3)
Name variation that found it
Link status: none, dead, wrong, present
Decision: ask, fix myself, skip
Contact route and date sent
Follow-up date
Outcome: linked, declined, no reply
Notes (what they wrote about, so the next contact can be personal)
The notes column pays off later. The writers who mentioned you once are good people to tell about a big release, and the guide to getting press coverage without a PR agency on Aura++ covers how to approach them for a proper story when you have news.
A 20-minute monthly routine
Once the first sweep is done, the habit is small:
Read the month's Google Alerts folder and note new pages (5 minutes).
Run your saved quoted searches in Google and Bing for the newest results (5 minutes).
Check your own profiles on any directories or launch sites you joined that month and fill in missing links yourself (5 minutes).
Send asks for the best two or three new mentions, and one follow-up for last month's (5 minutes).
Do it on a fixed day, like the first Monday of the month. Skipping a month is fine; skipping a year means the list goes stale and the writers forget they mentioned you.
What if hardly anyone mentions you yet?
Then the problem isn't reclaiming mentions, it's having none to reclaim. That's normal in the first months. A few things create the first ones without spamming anyone:
Make your own profiles complete on the launch sites and directories you already joined. Those are mentions you control.
Ask happy customers whether they keep a "tools we use" page or write a newsletter. Some do and will add you.
Get one written piece about the product that you can point people to. Some founders start with a news-style launch write-up on HedPress, which publishes a short product story that opens with who the product is for and what it does, with one dofollow link in the text. Its page on getting an editorial backlink says it's free if your site links back to HedPress, or $29 without the badge, and that a ranking or citation isn't guaranteed.
Work toward third-party lists where buyers compare tools. The IndieHunt guide on getting your SaaS into "best tools" lists covers that outreach step by step.
Each of these produces pages that name you. Some will link and some won't, and the ones that don't go straight into next month's sheet.
Common mistakes
Asking for a specific anchor text. Let them link the words they already wrote. Asking for keyword anchors looks manipulative and annoys writers.
Sending the same template to everyone. If the message could be about any page, it will be treated like spam.
Arguing with critics. A negative review that names you isn't a link opportunity.
Ignoring your own broken pages. If old mentions point at URLs you've since moved, redirects fix most of the damage without anyone else's help.
Measuring only links. Also watch referral visits and signups from the pages that do link; that tells you which kinds of sites are worth more of your time.
FAQ
What is an unlinked brand mention?
A page that names your product, company or founder without linking to your website. It can be in an article, a newsletter archive, a forum answer or a profile page.
Is asking for a link on an existing mention allowed?
Asking someone to add a link to a page that already mentions you is an ordinary request, and many writers are glad to correct or complete their post. Don't offer money or swaps in return; keep it a simple request they can decline.
Do I need a paid SEO tool to find mentions?
No. Quoted searches, Google Alerts and the Search Console Links report are enough to start. Consider a paid tool only if your monthly sweep keeps turning up more mentions than you can check by hand.
Which page should the link point to?
The page that matches what they wrote about. If they described your invoicing feature, link the invoicing page. Use the homepage when they talked about the product in general.
How many follow-ups should I send?
One, about a week after the first message. Then close it in your sheet and move on.
