Link reclamation
Link reclamation is getting back links to your site that broke or disappeared, and asking sites that mention you to add a link.
Link reclamation is the work of getting back links you've lost. A site that used to link to you changes its page, moves it, or links to an address on your site that no longer works. You find those links and get them fixed. Many people also use the term for asking a site that mentions your brand without a link to add one.
It's often the quickest link work you can do, because the site already chose to talk about you once.
Where lost links come from
Most lost links are your own doing. You redesign the site, change your page addresses and forget to redirect the old ones, so every link to them now lands on an error page. Others go when a publisher edits an article, updates a roundup or deletes an old post.
For example, say Fernhill Coffee moves its blog from /news/ to /journal/ and doesn't redirect anything. A food magazine's guide to brewing at home still links to Fernhill's old cold brew recipe, so readers who click get a "page not found." One redirect from the old address to the new one wins the link back without anyone writing to the magazine.
How to do it
- Find links that point to pages on your site that return an error. SEO tools list them, and so does Google Search Console.
- Redirect each broken address to the closest page that still exists.
- For links the publisher removed, check why. If the page was updated and you're no longer the best fit, move on. If it was a mistake, a short, friendly note to the editor is usually enough.
Mentions without a link
In AI search, a mention without a link isn't wasted. An AI answer names brands, and it can repeat your name from a page whether that page links to you or not. A link still helps people reach you and helps your page rank. But when a page the platforms read gets your name or your facts wrong, fixing that matters more than adding a link.
Recommendations includes asking a site to correct what it says about you, with an evidence pack you can paste into an email.