SEO SOP: Build Local Links by Sponsoring Nonprofits

Josh Shankowsky runs Snap SEO in Edmonton, and when he came on Unscripted SEO he named one local link play he’d bet on for the long run: sponsoring nonprofits. “I feel in my heart that that’s going to be the more future-proof strategy going forward.” This SOP turns what he described into a process you can run for a local client this month.

Objective

You finish with a live link from a local nonprofit’s website to your client, a social mention from the nonprofit, and your own post that ties the two together. The link sits on a site that rarely changes, so it tends to hold. Josh: “most of them last over a year anyway, because they’re not-for-profits. They’re not going to be updating their websites too much.” You also reach the nonprofit’s local audience, which is the audience a local business wants.

Key Steps

1. List nonprofits in the client’s service area. Josh looks at little leagues, community leagues, charities and food banks. Jeremy’s tool tip: ZipLocal has a searchable database of local sponsorships by zip code, city and municipality. Josh also gives Claude Cowork his browser, the criteria and a budget, and asks for a list.
2. Check each one has a sponsor page or supporter list. You want a page on their site that links out to sponsors, plus an active social account. (inferred – Josh describes the link and the mention, not the vetting)
3. Set the budget and make the ask up front. Josh is direct about it: he tells the nonprofit he wants to donate and is looking for a link back from their website in return. Ask for a social media mention too.
4. Donate. Pay the sponsorship and get confirmation in writing of where the link and the mention will appear. (inferred)
5. Publish your own post about it. Write a blog post and a social post about the sponsorship on the client’s site and channels. Josh does this “not just for us but for our clients as well” – it ties the two entities together.
6. Offer help beyond the check. Jeremy’s point from the same conversation: nonprofits under-invest in marketing, so help with outreach, collateral or ads is often worth as much to them as the donation. For US 501(c)(3)s, mention Google Ad Grants.
7. Log the link and check it every quarter. Record the page URL, date and amount, and confirm the link is still live. (inferred)

Cautionary Notes

• Pick causes the client would support anyway. The post and the mention are public, and they should read as genuine community work.
• Don’t stop at the link. The social mention and your own post are part of the play, not extras.
• Sponsor pages can move when a nonprofit rebuilds its site. Check them on a schedule.

Tips for Efficiency

• Batch the outreach: build one list per city and work it for every local client in that city.
• Watch for the upsell. When Josh offered Santa’s Anonymous a donation for a link, they asked what else he did, and they became a Google Ads client.
• Pair this with citation work: the nonprofit mention adds a local entity signal alongside your directory listings.

Sources & Relevant Episodes

• Josh Shankowsky, Snap SEO – described sponsoring little leagues, community leagues, charities and food banks for links, mentions and local audience, and called it his most future-proof local strategy. Snap SEO’s own example: sponsoring the Silver Skate Festival.
• Read the full breakdown: Beat the Consensus Engines: 7 Local SEO Plays From Josh Shankowsky.
• Listen to the episode on Unscripted SEO.