Barnacle SEO: No-Rank SEO Opportunities—and How to Land ’Em

What if we told you you could SEO without SEOing?

That’s right: We’re talking about no-rank SEO opps—drawing impressions and clicks without ranking URLs from your site in search. 

🤯

Behold barnacle SEO.

In this article, we’ll explore what barnacle SEO is (and what it’s not), why it matters, and some tips and strategies for doing some barnaclin’ of your own. 

Ready for some no-rank SEO? Let’s dive right in and catch a few barnacles of our own! 🐳

What is barnacle SEO?

Barnacle SEO is a strategy where a business “attaches” its website or content to high-authority sites that already rank well for money keywords to capture referral traffic and leads, build brand awareness, and even snag some link equity.

For newer or smaller businesses in crowded online marketplaces, barnacle SEO is your chance to enjoy some traffic from big players in your niche without having to outrank them directly.

Origins and concept

Will Scott of Search Influence coined the term barnacle SEO in 2008. The concept is straightforward: just as barnacles latch onto hosts like whales or ships, a business latches onto high-ranking websites and rides their wave of success. 

Barnacle SEO is all about attaching a smaller, newer website to a stronger website that’s already drawing the attention you want for the reasons you want. This could look like a new plumbing business getting listed on Yelp or a SaaS company writing content, complete with a link back to their own site, for a larger brand in a similar space.

Why it works

When trying to break into a competitive space, barnacle SEO may be one of the few strategies you have for online visibility. Ranking well takes time, effort, and budget, but if there’s one thing you’re desperate for with a new website or business, it’s traffic and leads.

Instead of just sitting back, hoping, and waiting for rankings, barnacle SEO allows your website to get found for the right reasons when users visit the host site. The benefits aren’t as direct and bountiful as ranking on your own, but at least you still have an opportunity to get found, where previously you may not have been found.  

Barnacle SEO vs. Parasite SEO

In nature, barnacles have a symbiotic relationship with whales rather than a parasitic one. The same is generally true of barnacle SEO: the barnacle and host website ought to have symbiotic relationships. In contrast, parasite SEO tends to harm the host site over time, limiting the parasite’s long-term ROI. 

Parasite SEO is often part of “pump-and-dump” or “churn-and-burn” SEO strategies that seek to monetize short-term gains. These tactics often involve paying for brand mentions and link placements on content that “are typically independent of the host site’s main purpose.” Google considers this practice site reputation abuse and quickly penalizes host sites that indiscriminately publish third-party content.

Businesses That Benefit Most from Barnacling 

Barnacle SEO is particularly powerful when you’re just starting out, facing fierce competition, or trying to get noticed in a saturated market. If ranking feels impossible next to big players and long-established businesses, Barnacle SEO can give you an initial boost by piggybacking on sites that already receive organic traffic for keywords from your target market. 

Even more established businesses and brands can benefit from barnacle SEO, however. Occupying more real estate on or near the first page of search results is always to your advantage. Even if your website has rankings locked in or potential on the first page, exploring more opportunities to get in front of potential customers is never a bad idea.

Barnacle SEO Pros & Cons

Discover Your Big Break with Barnacle SEO

So how do you find your white whale, and what do you do once you’ve identified it? Here are four simple steps to follow. 

1. Conduct keyword research.

You probably already have a solid idea of keywords that are important for your business. Barnacle SEO works especially for higher-level, categorical keywords that can prove more difficult to rank for. 

For example, for a plumbing business it’s generally going to prove much more challenging to rank for broader keywords like plumbing company near me or plumber detroit than it is to rank a query like tankless water heater installation.

Focus on broader, categorical keywords when starting your search for third-party sites, and narrow down from there. 

2. Locate high-authority sites in your niche.

Once you’ve got your keywords, the next step is to find the high-authority sites you could latch onto. 

If you are a plumber in Somerville, Massachusetts, searching for plumber near me yields opportunities in the second, third, and fourth positions:

Yelp, Better Business Bureau, and Angi are common opportunities for home services businesses of all kinds.

The same strategy can work for non-local businesses, too. For example, if you search for a broad competitive term like project management software, you’ll encounter opportunities to increase your visibility.

These aren’t directories, of course, but they are opportunities, nevertheless. A little outreach in your niche can go a long way.

3. Claim and optimize your listings.

Once you discover relevant opportunities, get your business listed wherever you can. Some directories and sites will require payment, but an initial cost may be worth it for the visibility you generate. 

Here are a few more tips:

• Try using UTM codes for tracking. UTM parameters will help you identify just how successful your barnacle efforts are, especially if you pay for listings.
• Fill out all available fields on your listings and treat all copy with care. Make your listing compelling, enticing, and clickable.
• Use high-quality images that accurately depict and showcase your products or services.

4. Enhance your listing presence with reviews.

Reviews can significantly boost your visibility on third-party sites. Encourage satisfied customers to leave reviews and actively respond to them. The more positive, genuine reviews you have, the better your listing will perform—both on the third-party site and in search results. 

Other Successful Barnacle Approaches

Barnacle SEO isn’t limited to directories for home service businesses. Nearly every vertical imaginable has higher authority sites that are worth getting listed on.

Reach out to top-ranking sites in your niche

You might find that your niche has fewer directories and more round-up or review content ranking well. For example, if you sell dog toys for aggressive chewers, you might come across this content from Country Living:

It’s worth some outreach to ranking sites to see whether you can get your products or services listed.

Try guest posts

While time-honored in the SEO tradition for the link juice they pass, guest posts can also function as a barnacle SEO strategy. Offer the right content to a well-established, relevant site, and there’s no question you will reap referral traffic in addition to the authority that is passed through the backlink to your site.

Add value to discussion boards

Platforms like Reddit, Quora, and other forums more directly related to your niche can prove invaluable for building brand awareness among your target audience. By providing thoughtful, well-informed answers and linking back to your site when relevant, you can attach your brand to these high-traffic, highly relevant platforms. 

Measuring the Success of Your Barnacle SEO Efforts

GA4 easily enables you to monitor referral traffic. If you’re upping your barnacle game, keep an eye on the domains referring traffic to your site. You’ll know where to invest more time and energy if you see any outliers.

Tools for Monitoring Progress

If you’re really serious about your barnacle strategy, you might find Visual Ping to be a great resource. You can use it to monitor changes on any web page, including pages where you have a listing. Set up change detection and alerts for important listings, and you’ll be the first to know when your listing moves up or down on the page.

Adjusting Your Strategy Based on Results

Remember that search engine results and rankings can be rather volatile. What works today may not work tomorrow. Keep an eye on the SERPs for your target keywords, and be ready to adjust your strategy as needed.

The rise of UGC (user-generated content) in 2024 is a great example. Popular forums have always been an excellent avenue to promote your products and services, but the high visibility of UGC platforms has now dramatically increased their effectiveness. 

Barnacling for Better Business

Barnacle SEO isn’t just a shortcut—it’s a legitimate strategy to enhance your SEO efforts and build brand awareness where it really counts. By attaching your brand to high-authority sites, you increase your visibility, credibility, and, ultimately, your bottom line, all with relative ease.