Growing Brands. Not Just Backlinks and AI Citations
I’m Maria-Katarina Johannesson – though you might know me as Linksandmaria. I help brands grow through link building and digital PR, earning backlinks, building meaningful relationships and increasing their visibility.
My goal is to help your business not only to stand out, but be the brand people remember – and when they are ready – choose.
I’m also plant-obsessed, a hobby-knitter and a mom with a background in sales who has always had a passion for digital marketing.
My approach is very human-centered and I believe the biggest differentiator in the AI-slop world is you. Because people don’t choose the best brand – they choose the brand that feels the most aligned with them.
Looking back, the seed for Linksandmaria was planted years ago when I used to “help” my dad at his copywriting agency. Back then, my “creative plant” was just a small seed, but the curiosity for marketing, people and the drive to create something on my own has always been there.
Being a nerd, I’ve always had a soft spot for SEO, especially link building
I love asking questions and getting to know people (hence the sales part), and with my nerdy side, link building is an ideal fit for me.
Who is Maria-Katarina Johannesson?
How do I sum up my personality in a few words? I find that challenging (that’s why I’m trying to write like I talk so you can get an idea what I’m like in “real life”).
By now, you know plants, and being in nature is a big part of who I am, what makes me genuinely happy.
Another big thing that makes this Swedish heart happy (yep, I am from Sweden – UV index obsessed!) is knitting and enjoying the sun.
Oh, and I love SEO and doing nerdy stuff in general.
And whenever life feels hard I put on “Hard Rock Halleuljah” by Lordi. Highly recommend 🙂
Human in an AI-driven world
In a world where everyone is using AI to automate everything, I believe that human connection is what makes the data work.
I am just as nerdy about “traditional SEO” as I am about making sure your brand shows up in AI search. To me, these aren’t separate things – they are both parts of an ecosystem (that will continue to evolve).
I especially enjoy the outreach part of link building because that’s pretty much what I like most in life – building relationships. And to do this for your business, this is always the starting point:
Understanding your business
Understanding your position in the knowledge graph
Understanding the prospect
Understanding the customer journey
Understanding your ideal client
I guess it’s pretty obvious by now I like people. And data.
And link building.
