An In-depth Review of Base: Backlink Management Software

Introduction

In SEO, backlinks remain one of the most important ranking factors. Managing backlinks effectively can be time-consuming and challenging without the right tools.

In this exhaustive review, we’ll take an in-depth look at Base – a powerful backlink tracking, monitoring, and workflow management platform – to see how it can make backlink building more efficient.

Whether you’re an SEO agency, in-house marketer, or consultant, a robust backlink software solution can save huge amounts of time and effort. By understanding Base’s features and capabilities fully, you can determine if it’s the right fit for your backlink analysis and outreach needs.

Why Backlinks and Link Building Matter

Before diving into Base, let’s briefly recap why backlinks deserve so much focus in the first place.

Backlinks are essential because:

Google uses backlinks as a top ranking factor – More quality backlinks signal a popular, authoritative site worth ranking higher.
Backlinks can drive referral traffic – Quality sites linking back pass equity and visitors to your site.
Managing backlinks prevents penalties – Monitoring for toxic links helps avoid manual actions.
Link building is hard to automate – Unlike other factors like content, backlink outreach requires lots of manual processes.

So backlinks provide the quality votes and referral traffic Google wants to see. However, securing backlinks takes extensive outreach, relationship building, and follow-up.

This makes backlink management software invaluable for tracking, monitoring, and streamlining this demanding workflow.

Introducing Base by CognitiveSEO

To help with backlink acquisition and management, CognitiveSEO created the SaaS platform Base.

Launched in 2018, Base provides all-in-one tracking, monitoring, analytics, and workflow automation for managing backlinks effectively.

The key capabilities Base offers include:

Backlink tracking and monitoring
Workflow automation for outreach and follow-up
Competitive link-building research
Risk analysis for toxic or unnatural links
Analytics on backlink impacts and ROI

For SEO specialists who need to manage backlinks at scale, Base aims to provide efficiency through automation.

Next, we’ll explore the Base’s main features and functionality in more detail.

Backlink Tracking and Discovery in Base

The foundation of any backlink tool is comprehensive tracking—aggregating links from various sources into a centralized database.

Base offers robust backlink tracking through:

Multiple Data Sources

Base pulls backlink data from sources like:

Google Search Console
Bing Webmaster Tools
Majestic
Moz
SEMrush
Ahrefs

By combining data from Google with commercial crawler sources, Base delivers more complete backlink indexing.

Automated Backlink Tracking

Rather than manual submissions, Base automatically discovers and imports new backlinks daily from its integrated data sources. This saves huge amounts of time versus manual spreadsheet tracking.

Bulk Tracking

For agencies or sites with thousands of backlinks, Base supports bulk tracking up to 10,000 root domains. This allows large-scale backlink profile monitoring.

Link Data and Metrics

Each backlink in Base provides dozens of data points, like:

Date first detected and last checked
Anchor text
IP address
Domain authority/page authority
Linking page title and URL
Linking domain details
Link type (follow/nofollow)

This rich link data helps analyze and prioritize backlinks effectively.

Filtering, Tagging, and Organization

Robust filters allow segmenting backlinks by:

Date Range
Follow or nofollow
Anchor text keywords
Linking topical categories
Linking domain authority
Referring domains or URLs
And more…

Custom tags can also be added to backlinks for organization and management. This makes sorting through extensive backlink profiles much easier.

For in-depth backlink tracking and discovery, Base provides extensive capabilities that would require numerous manual spreadsheets otherwise.

Backlink Monitoring and Alerts

In addition to aggregation and reporting, monitoring backlinks over time is crucial.

Base facilitates monitoring through:

Link Gain/Loss Tracking

Instant alerts notify you when a new backlink is found.
Lost link notifications show if a backlink gets removed or broken.

Monitoring link gains and losses lets you update outreach lists accordingly and identify issues.

Referring Domain Tracking

See stats like:

Total referring domains
New referring domains over time
Lost referring domains

This shows the growth in diverse sites linking to you.

Rankings Correlation

Base correlates backlink growth with rankings changes to see the direct SEO impact.

Traffic Data

For links tagged with UTM codes, see the site traffic referred by specific backlinks. This helps quantify ROI.

Mobile vs. Desktop

Segment backlinks are detected on mobile and desktop to ensure visibility across devices.

Link Velocity

Visualized trends show the velocity of new link gains or losses week-over-week. Spikes or drops can be investigated.

With Base’s monitoring capabilities, you can instantly detect issues, track growth, and evaluate backlink ROI in one dashboard.

Workflow Automation for Backlink Outreach

Discovering new backlink opportunities is only the first step. Reaching out, following up, and tracking responses is equally crucial but time-consuming.

Base provides workflow automation for streamlined outreach, including:

Opportunity Finder

Base automatically suggests new websites and pages to reach out to, based on:

Analyzing competitors’ link profiles
Finding sites that link to competitors but not you
Identifying relevant pages on authority sites related to your industry

This removes the tedious manual research involved in finding potential link opportunities.

Email Sequences

Create automated dripped email sequences for outreach follow-up. Set reminder triggers if no response after a certain time period.

Gmail Integration

Sync Base directly with your Gmail for one-click email outreach right from identified opportunities, with tracking and reminders.

Outreach Tracking

Email status tracking automatically logs email opens, clicks, and replies. Activity timestamps document the full outreach history.

Email Templates

Configure customizable outreach email templates that you can instantly insert variables into like first name, company, etc.

Team Collaboration

Assign outreach tasks to team members and track who is managing the follow-up for each opportunity.

Base transforms an otherwise fragmented manual process into a streamlined workflow for backlink outreach and management at scale.

Competitive Backlink Research

In addition to building links to your site, researching competitors’ backlink profiles provides valuable intelligence.

Base lets you research competitors through:

Competitive Link Intersection

See domains that link to a competitor but not you, revealing fresh link-building targets. Filters help narrow down the most promising prospects.

Influential Linkers

Identify sites with high authority or traffic that actively link to competitors. Getting links from these influencers should become a priority.

Gaining an Edge

Uncover areas where competitors have more or better backlinks, so you can focus on surpassing them in those areas.

EEO and TEO

Base shows External Equity Overlap and Total Equity Overlap—how much your overall backlink profile overlaps with competitors, highlighting threats and gaps.

Link Growth Trends

Analyze competitors’ link velocity to see accelerating growth that needs matching. Base makes this competitive intelligence easy to act on.

Backlink Risk Management in Base

While links can improve rankings, low-quality links pose risks, like manual penalties from Google.

Base helps assess backlink risks through:

Toxic Link Warnings

Automatic warnings highlight links from questionable or spammy sites that should be disavowed. This prevents indexing issues before they happen.

IP Checks

See all backlinks from the same IP address, indicating potential paid or unnatural links needing cleanup.

Nofollow Audit

Confirm which links are nofollowed to avoid passing equity from risky sites.

Redirect Analysis

Identify and tag any redirected links to avoid surprises if old domains expire.

Domain Authority Filter

Segment by low domain authority to isolate unsavory sites. Disable low-DA sites from being automatically tracked.

The more backlinks you accumulate, the higher the chance of toxic links. Base makes it easier to stay on top of link risks.

Base Backlink Tracking Pricing and Plans

Base offers various pricing tiers based on the number of root domains being tracked:

Plan	Base Price	Domains Tracked
Base Free	Free	1
Starter	$29/mo	5
Basic	$79/mo	25
Pro	$149/mo	75
Plus	$299/mo	200
Premium	$599/mo	500
Enterprise	Custom	1,000+

Discounts of up to 25% are offered for annual subscriptions.

The platform is very affordable for individuals and small agencies tracking a handful of domains. Costs scale up for larger link profiles but remain competitive compared to alternative tools.

Volume discounts are available for managing extensive domain portfolios.

The Pros and Cons of Using Base

Based on our in-depth review, here are some of the key pros of using Base for backlink tracking and link building:

An all-in-one platform combines tracking, monitoring, automation, and analytics.
Robust workflow features for streamlined management and outreach.
Competitive intelligence provides insights into competitors’ link-building strategies.
Reliable data is pulled from multiple quality sources, like Google and Majestic.
Alerts and tracking enable real-time monitoring and management.
Affordable pricing, especially for small agencies and consultants.

Some potential cons to consider:

Steep learning curve to fully leverage advanced features.
No keyword tracking for anchor text opportunities. Rely on competitors for this.
Complex UI can seem overwhelming until you acclimate.
Costs add up on a larger scale with hundreds or thousands of domains.

For most use cases, the platform’s benefits and capabilities justify the investment. But expect a more gradual onboarding process.

Conclusion: Who Should Use Base for Backlink Management?

To wrap up this comprehensive review, when and for whom do we recommend Base most for backlink tracking and management?

For SEO consultants and freelancers, Base provides affordable access to enterprise-grade link tracking and monitoring tools to level up your services.

For agencies, the workflow automation and productivity features enable seamlessly managing countless link-building campaigns and outreach efficiently.

For in-house SEO teams, Base is ideal for tracking link-building efforts across large websites with tens of thousands of backlinks.

For enterprises, bulk tracking and workflow efficiency pay dividends across entire portfolios of sites and links.

For site owners and bloggers, a paid Base plan may be overkill. Free alternatives like Google Search Console provide basic backlink tracking.

The more backlinks and the larger the scale, the more value Base provides through automation, competitive intelligence, risk management, and workflow tools.

For anyone managing backlinks manually through spreadsheets, Base is a must-have to save huge time and effort. The platform streamlines backlink acquisition and management seamlessly.

While the interface takes some onboarding, once mastered, Base pays for itself in productivity gains and link-building results. Managing backlinks at scale without software like Base would be extremely challenging.

Top Base Alternatives for Backlink Software

While Base is a robust backlink management platform, it’s not the only option. Some other top competitors include:

Ahrefs

Features: Backlink tracking, metrics, alerts, reporting, ranking correlation, content explorer for opportunities
Pros: Huge backlink database, extensive metrics on links, good for organic discovery
Cons: Expensive, no workflow automation, just tracks your links, not outreach
Pricing: From $99/month for 500 tracked links

Ahrefs competes on its vast link index and intelligence gathering. But it lacks workflow features to manage outreach.

SEMrush

Features: Backlink overview, some metrics, site audit including links
Pros: Affordable, integrates with other SEMrush tools, full SEO toolkit
Cons: Very limited link data and management capabilities
Pricing: From $99/month

SEMrush offers backlink tracking as part of its wider SEO toolkit. But link capabilities are basic compared to dedicated software.

Moz

Features: Backlink tracking, metrics, some monitoring, workflow to request link removal
Pros: Built for collaboration, good for disavowal management
Cons: Light on workflow automation for outreach and management
Pricing: From $99/month for Moz Pro

Moz allows collaboration across a team for link-building campaigns. But its workflow features come up short compared to Base.

Linkody

Features: Backlink tracker, metrics, monitoring, outreach and management workflows
Pros: Solid automation for outreach, integrates with Chrome and Gmail
Cons: Smaller backlink database than some alternatives
Pricing: From $67/month

For workflow automation, Linkody provides Base’s biggest competition. But its backlink index is smaller.

Pitchbox

Features: Backlink outreach only, Gmail integration, templates, follow-ups
Pros: Streamlined cold email outreach, affordable pricing
Cons: No optimization based on your backlinks, just generic outreach
Pricing: From $47/month

Pitchbox focuses solely on high-volume outreach. It lacks personalization powered by your unique backlink and competitor data.

As this overview shows, while competitors exist, no platform matches Base’s combination of robust backlink tracking and monitoring with advanced workflow automation for streamlined link-building campaigns. The end-to-end capabilities provide efficiency gains for SEO experts managing backlinks at scale.

Let me know if you need any additional details on how alternatives stack up against Base!

Frequently Asked Questions About Base

1. Does Base integrate with other software?

Yes, Base offers integrations with tools like Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Majestic, Slack, and email services like Gmail. This allows accessing backlink data from additional sources and managing workflows across platforms.

2. Can I collaborate with my team on Base?

Yes, the software supports team collaboration. You can add team members, assign user roles like admin or editor, @mention users in activity logs, and allocate particular domains or projects to specific team members.

3. Does Base offer training?

Base provides a knowledge base with articles and guides to learn the platform. Live online training webinars are also offered frequently for newer users. And their support team is very responsive to any questions.

4. What size sites or campaigns is Base suited for?

Base scales from individuals up to large enterprises. The workflow automation makes it ideal for sites with over 10,000 backlinks. Smaller sites may find the free plan sufficient.

5. Can Base help clean up toxic backlinks?

Yes, the risk management features help identify toxic links and create disavowed files. But for large-scale cleanups, cognitiveSEO’s Link Detox Pro may be a better-dedicated solution.

6. Does Base allow setting goals and tracking ROI?

You can define targets for metrics like link growth and traffic driven to track campaign ROI. Broader goal setting and attribution are lacking compared to full SEO platforms.

7. Can Base audit on-page optimization?

No, Base focuses solely on backlink tracking and management. For on-page SEO audits and keyword research, tools like SEMrush integrate better.

8. Does Base integrate with Google Sheets?

Not directly, but backlink data can be exported to CSV or Excel formats for further analysis in sheets if desired.

9. How often does Base update link data?

New backlinks are added within 24 hours automatically. So link tracking data stays extremely fresh and timely.

10. Does Base offer technical SEO audits?

No, Base just covers link-building needs. For site speed, security, etc. audits, try Screaming Frog or DeepCrawl.