Why We Built 3way.Social (and What We’re Fixing in Link Building)

Last Updated on July 3, 2025 by Becky Halls

I thought I’d tell you the story behind 3way.Social and how it came to be.

You can probably all relate – most backlink strategies feel like a bad group project. One person’s doing all the work, someone’s ghosted the email thread, and someone else is trying to sell you a link for $250 from a site you’ve never heard of. Then comes spammy directories, irrelevant and totally useless content swaps, or cringey cold pitches that even ChatGPT would side-eye.

We got tired of it but we knew backlinks were still super important in SEO, even with all the recent Google updates and algorithm changes.
So we built something better.

Welcome to 3way.social: a platform built by us! The people who’ve lived through the broken world of SEO, and decided to fix the one part that everyone complains about but no one’s sorted out properly: backlink building.

The Problem with Traditional Link Building

Whether you’re an SEO pro or a content creator just trying to improve your rankings, you already know that links matter. A lot. They’re still one of Google’s top-ranking factors even after all the AI and algorithm updates. Why? because they are a major signal of trust and authority – and they show your brand name out there in the world.

But let’s face it:

Outreach is exhausting (and often ignored)
Paid links can get you penalized
Organising manual swaps are time-consuming
And marketplaces? A wild west of quality

We saw our friends and acquaintances in the digital space wasting hours on outreach spreadsheets and cold DMs… only to land links that were off-topic, overpriced, or outright shady.

And for small businesses or solo creators? Forget it. Competing with enterprise-level budgets in this space felt impossible.

👋 Who We Are

3way.social was founded by Ian Naylor — a seasoned SaaS entrepreneur and digital strategist who knows exactly how frustrating (and painfully inefficient) traditional link building can be.

Ian previously founded AppInstitute, one of the UK’s leading DIY app builder platforms, used by thousands of small businesses around the world. After scaling it over 13 years and navigating everything from SEO algorithm changes to the rise of mobile-first content, Ian saw the same problem crop up time and again: backlink building was stuck in 2011.

So, in 2023, he set out to change things, and create a simple, yet effective, platform that makes ethical, relevant, and scalable link building accessible to everyone, not just those with massive budgets or armies of outreach interns.

You can connect with Ian here:
🔗 Ian Naylor – LinkedIn

Of course, no founder builds something great alone… 3way.social is backed by the tight-knit team that built and scaled AppInstitute, a SaaS platform used by thousands of small businesses worldwide. They are a small but mighty team of SEO specialists, developers, and support pros who are just as passionate about ethical, effective link building as you are – and they include myself! Hi i’m Becky: a content and UX strategist with a background in UI/UX as well as a passion for helping underprivileged communities by finding ways to give back.

You can find me here:
🔗 Becky Halls – LinkedIn

Together, we’re on a mission to make link building smarter, fairer, and more transparent for businesses of all sizes.

And we give back by supporting entrepreneurs in developing countries with their own pursuits and business dreams (more on this coming soon…).

We know what it feels like to need results without the luxury of a massive team or budget.

That’s why we decided to build a smarter way to trade backlinks, with:

✅ Relevance
✅ Transparency
✅ Reciprocity
✅ And no BS

So, What Is 3way.social?

It’s a matchmaking platform for backlinks.

You register your site for free, select relevant categories, and either choose sites to link with or let us match you with other complementary sites. There’s also the option for guest posts or niche edits – it’s up to you.

It’s efficient, ethical, and actually works.

We called it 3way social because it’s based upon the 3-way ABC link exchange and it’s our answer to the outdated, over-complicated link building process.

What Makes Us Different

We’re not just here to dish out DA numbers and hope for the best. Everything about 3way.social is designed to make real link building easier, more accessible, and a whole lot less soul-destroying.

Here’s how:

We vet sites manually to keep the spam away
Our categories are tight – you’ll only be matched with relevant partners based on keywords
We reward contribution, not budgets – every site in the network gets value
We believe in equity – whether you’re a niche blogger or an agency, you get the same tools

And yes, we’re biased – but our users tell us it’s the easiest, fairest way they’ve ever built backlinks.

Why This Matters Now

Google’s algorithm isn’t just looking at links. It’s looking at trust.
With the rise of AI-generated content, fake authority, and SERP saturation, quality matters more than ever.

That means:

Real sites
Real relationships
Real relevance

Our goal? To level the playing field. To help small businesses, SEO freelancers, and marketers compete, without resorting to spam tactics or breaking Google’s guidelines.

3way.social isn’t a shortcut. It’s a smarter route.

What’s Next?

We’re just getting started…

We’re rolling out new features, working on deeper SEO integrations, and building a community of creators who believe that backlink building doesn’t have to suck.

We also plan to develop our social impact campaign where we sponsor a small business in an underserved market.

(Yes, backlinks for good. Watch this space.)

🚀 Join the Movement

If you’ve ever opened a cold outreach email and thought “I hate this”,
or you’ve spent more time tracking backlinks than writing content,
you’re exactly who we built this for.