Building impossible Links
In an Impossible Industry
30+
Links Secured
Web & Radio
Exposure
100.000+
Data Rows Analyzed
500+
Emails Sent
iGaming
Industry
The Client
“Online-Casinos.com” is one of Europe’s most reputable iGaming affiliate platforms, known for its in-depth reviews, market analyses, and educational content covering online casinos and gambling regulation across multiple countries. Their Romanian branch — online-casinos.com/romania — focuses on delivering trustworthy, data-driven information on the local gambling landscape.
When they partnered with us, the goal was clear: to strengthen the website’s authority and visibility in Romania through organic, high-quality media coverage — without relying on paid placements. The result was one of the most successful PR campaigns ever executed for a gambling affiliate site in the region.
The Challenge
How do you earn links when journalists avoid your topic?
Online-casinos.com had a tough challenge in Romania: earning quality editorial backlinks. Media coverage of gambling-related topics is scarce because of regulatory issues and ethical concerns, making it hard to earn writer coverage. The purpose of this campaign was to enhance SEO through the acquisition of authoritative links. However, as the industry is highly competitive and regulated, achieving this through conventional PR techniques was nearly impossible. We had to find a way to intrigue the media and the public enough to make a gambling affiliate story actually stick.
Our Solution
Turning raw data into a story journalists couldn’t ignore.
We created a campaign, titled “Topul orașelor și județelor cu cele mai multe cazinouri și agenții de pariuri din România” (the ranking of the Romanian cities and counties with the most casinos and betting agencies).
Our approach was methodical and incredibly tailored to our main target, in order generate a truly newsworthy story:
1. Data Gathering
We leveraged DataForSEO’s tools to collect location-based data on the number of casinos and betting shops across all major Romanian cities and counties.
2. Analysis & Angle Identification
The raw data was cleaned and analyzed to uncover interesting angles.
For instance, we calculated casino density per capita, which allowed us to establish regional rankings (which regions have the most gambling venues and which have the highest density). We even identified particular streets that have unusual concentrations of betting agencies for a lovely touch.
3. Story Development
Using these insights, we crafted a compelling narrative that would appeal to both national and local media. The ranking format along with the regional highlights made the content linkable and relevant as any region could see where it stood. The article we wrote was elaborate with the findings well laid out in interesting ways. It had highlights and an infographic.
4. Targeted Outreach
We then prepared personalized outreach emails for journalists and editors. We tailored each message by adding a relevant hook, be it national importance for the mainstream media or local statistics for the regional press. More than five hundred journalists and media outlets ranging from general news to business and regional press and radio were pitched the story. Our pitch was based on the uniqueness of the data and the human interest angle on the community gambling spots.
Results
30 media features, 16 backlinks – all achieved in just one week. Link to the full PR piece here.
Who would have thought a gambling affiliate site would be able to capture so many “free” links?
- Widespread Media Coverage: In the span of just one week, 30 publications across Romania picked up the story. This included top-tier national news outlets and numerous local publications, creating a nationwide buzz.
- High-Authority Backlinks: 16 of those publications included direct backlinks to the online-casinos.com study page, delivering a surge of impactful SEO signals. The articles published on websites with a national character such as Capital.ro (DR 72) and Puterea.ro offered the client valuable high-DR links. We also got the chance to go on Radio Brașov FM, too, which was simply a nice add-on
- Local & Regional Reach: The story resonated in local press across multiple regions (Transylvania, Muntenia, Moldova, and beyond). From big cities to smaller towns, outlets found a local angle in our data – for example, highlighting a particular city’s casino density rank – which led to broad pick-up and social media sharing.
- Fast & Cost-Effective Impact: All this coverage and link acquisition happened within one week of launch, with zero paid placements. The campaign proved extremely cost-effective, relying on creative data storytelling rather than expensive ads or sponsorships.
Main Takeaways
- Data Story Telling Works in any industry: It doesn’t matter what the industry may be; proper data storytelling will yield great results in all sorts of domains. This case proves that even “taboo” industries can earn genuine media coverage when you present journalists with compelling, data-backed stories. A carefully sculpted story with unique information can pierce the barriers of the subject and attract the media and readership.
- Custom angles build evergreen links: By strategizing the story from angles such as National Rankings, Local Impacts, Human Interest etc. we targeted the creation of a broad audience appeal. When we create custom PR, not only do we get instant backlinks but it also creates an evergreen asset through which we keep gaining authority links. Further it can be used in future campaigns too.
Ain’t that something?
Contact us and let’s make the impossible – possible. One creative idea at a time.
