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Backlinks

Updated: 3 min read SEOFuxx editorial team

A backlink is a link from another website to yours. For search engines, links have always been a signal for which pages exist and how they relate to each other. Google says that PageRank, the link-based method from its early days, continues to be part of its core ranking systems, even though it has changed considerably since launch.

Google uses links to understand how pages connect and what they are about. The crawler also discovers new pages through links. Google does not say how much a single link weighs, and there is no fixed number. What matters is that the link fits the page and that a person would actually follow it.

  • Placed editorially: Someone links because your content helps, not because they were paid for it.
  • Thematically fitting: The linking page has something to do with your topic.
  • Embedded in the text: a link in the middle of running text with a meaningful link text.
  • To a sensible target page: not just the home page but the page that matches the statement.
  • On a trustworthy website: The linking page should show quality itself (see E-E-A-T).

The rel attributes

With a rel attribute you label what a link is. Google generally does not treat such links as an endorsement, but the linked pages can still be found by other routes (sitemap, other websites).

ValueUse
sponsoredpaid links, ads, advertising placements
ugcuser-generated links, for example in comments and forum posts
nofollowall other cases in which you do not want to vouch for the target
 
<a href="https://example.com/" rel="sponsored">Provider</a>
<a href="https://example.com/" rel="ugc">Link in a comment</a>
<a href="https://example.com/" rel="nofollow">Link without endorsement</a>

Links that mainly serve to influence rankings count as spam at Google. According to the spam policies, this includes:

  • buying or selling links, also in exchange for goods, services or sample products, without marking them as sponsored
  • excessive link exchange and partner pages that only serve mutual linking
  • automatically generated links
  • links from low-quality directories and bookmark sites
  • links in footers or templates that appear on a very large number of websites
  • forum comments and signatures with optimized links

Paid advertising and sponsorship are allowed if the links are marked with nofollow or sponsored. Violations can cause the website to rank lower or not appear at all, up to a manual action.

The disavow tool

With the disavow tool you have Google ignore certain links. Google calls it an advanced feature that you should use only with caution: it is meant for the case that there are very many bad links and a manual action is imminent or has already been imposed. In most cases Google can judge for itself which links to trust. You should first have the bad links removed at the source.

  • The "Links" report in Google Search Console shows linking websites, most linked pages and the most common link texts. It is the only source directly from Google, but it is not complete.
  • Third-party tools have their own link indexes. The numbers differ by provider, so compare only values from the same tool.

Common mistakes

  • Buying links in bulk: That contradicts the spam policies and brings more risk than benefit in the long run.
  • Looking at the number instead of the quality: Hundreds of weak links are no gain.
  • Pointing all links at the home page: It looks unnatural and leaves subpages empty-handed.
  • Not marking bought links: They need to be marked with sponsored or nofollow.
  • Disavowing by reflex: The tool is meant for exceptions, not for every unknown link.

Sources

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