iGaming Operator: Top 3 Rankings for 5 Competitive Keywords in 6 Months
A UK-licensed online casino was losing ground to affiliates and aggregators for their own target terms. In 6 months, we placed 52 links on vetted iGaming-friendly publishers and moved all 5 priority keywords from page 2–3 into the top 3 positions.
- 5 / 5Priority keywords in top 3From 0 in top 3
- +63%Organic traffic21,000 → 34,200 / month
- DR 58Domain RatingFrom DR 44
- 52Links placedAverage publisher DR 61
Figures as reported in the original campaign write-up. Client name withheld under confidentiality.
Outranked by Affiliates on Its Own Target Terms
The client held a full UK Gambling Commission licence and had operated for 7 years. Despite a strong product, established players, and a DR of 44, they were losing organic positions to affiliate comparison sites for queries like "best UK online slots," "new casino sites 2024," and "fast payout casino UK."
The iGaming niche is one of the hardest link-building verticals. Most mainstream publishers refuse gambling content outright, and the high-DR sites in the space (sports publications, news outlets, entertainment sites) almost all have editorial policies against casino or betting content. That leaves a narrow pool of qualified publishers.
Many agencies in this space fill the gap with low-quality "casino guest post" networks. These are easily identified by Google and frequently trigger devaluation or manual actions. The client had previously acquired 40+ links from one such network and needed a clean, sustainable strategy instead.
| Domain Rating | DR 44 |
|---|---|
| Monthly organic traffic | ~21,000 |
| Toxic / network links | 40+ (flagged) |
Why iGaming link building is different
- Most mainstream publishers reject gambling content
- Cheap "casino link" networks trigger penalties
- Compliance requirements shape what can be published
- Affiliates have massive link advantages
A Vetted Pool of iGaming-Friendly Publishers
Through our iGaming link building work, we have curated a private database of publishers that accept gambling, casino and betting content. These are not PBNs. They are real editorial sites, sports and entertainment blogs, review publications and niche media properties, vetted for organic traffic, editorial independence and Google penalty history.
For this campaign we selected 52 publishers from that database, all with real organic traffic (minimum 8,000 a month), no history of link-scheme penalties and existing content categories close to gaming or entertainment. The average publisher DR was 61, well above the typical iGaming guest post market.
We also assisted the client in filing a disavow update for the 40+ flagged network links before placing new ones. This was a non-negotiable first step: adding quality links on top of a dirty profile is inefficient. Cleaning first maximised the impact of every new placement.
| Minimum monthly organic traffic | 8,000 |
|---|---|
| Minimum publisher DR | DR 40 |
| Penalty history check | Required |
| Editorial policy review | Required |
| Gambling content accepted | Verified |
| Average publisher DR (final) | DR 61 |
6-Month Link Building Timeline
- Month 1
Disavow update filed for 40 toxic links. Publisher selection from iGaming-vetted database. Anchor strategy reviewed against the client’s compliance requirements. 0 links placed.
- Month 2
9 guest posts live on entertainment, sports, and gaming-adjacent publishers (DR 40–55). Branded and URL anchors only.
- Month 3
11 placements. First DR 65+ links from sports media and gaming review properties. Two keywords move from page 2 to bottom of page 1.
- Month 4
10 placements. Partial-match anchors introduced. All 5 priority keywords now on page 1. Top position reached for "fast payout casino UK."
- Months 5–6
22 placements including 3 DR 70+ authority links. Campaign ends with 5/5 target keywords in top 3. Organic traffic +63% vs start.
Final Results After 6 Months
| Metric | Start | End |
|---|---|---|
| Priority keywords in top 3 | 0 | 5 |
| Monthly organic traffic | 21,000 | 34,200 |
| Domain Rating | 44 | 58 |
| Referring domains | 94 | 142 |
| Organic traffic growth | — | +63% |
Need iGaming Links That Actually Work?
We have direct publisher relationships across the iGaming space. No networks. No PBNs.