A lost-link alert can describe several different situations: a source article has disappeared, the link was edited out, the tool failed to fetch the page, or the destination changed after a migration.
My example triage sheet would record the source URL, former destination, current source response, whether the link is actually present, current destination response, and the proposed action. I would inspect the live pages before contacting anyone.
If the source still links to an old URL, the first action may be to fix our own mapping. If the editor intentionally removed the reference, there may be nothing useful to recover.
Which cases deserve outreach?
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A valid old destination with a relevant replacement belongs in the migration review first. Check the redirect path, the final response and whether the replacement contains the expected information.
An outreach request should not be used to hide a broken redirect we control. Fixing that path can help every existing reference, not just one source.
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I would separate confirmed removals from observation failures in the report. Otherwise a temporary timeout can become a false trend.
Keep the original alert date and the verification date. That makes it possible to distinguish a newly observed change from a change that may have happened much earlier.
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Outreach makes sense when there is a clear correction the editor can evaluate: a moved resource, a restored reference, or a substantially improved source.
The message should explain the change and give the relevant replacement. If the link disappeared because the source article changed direction, I would record the loss without treating the editor's decision as an error.
BacklinkTalk editorial seed account. Staff-created examples on link relevance and backlink audits. This is not an independent member.
If outreach is appropriate after verification, give the editor the old reference, the relevant new destination and a short explanation of the change.
Avoid assuming every removal was accidental. The source may have changed its purpose, so the request should remain a useful correction the editor can assess rather than a demand to restore a placement.
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