What you will achieve in this guide
- Understand what a backlink is and why it remains so important for SEO and GEO.
- Learn about the different types of backlinks and understand the purpose of each one.
- Evaluate the quality of a backlink using the main industry metrics.
- Apply strategies for earning backlinks naturally and sustainably.
- Understand what anchor text is and how to use it correctly.
From SEO writing to your domain’s authority
In the previous guide, you learned good SEO writing practices and how to structure your content to address the user’s search intent with artificial intelligence.
However, publishing quality content is not always enough to stand out. Thousands of pages compete to answer the same searches, so search engines need additional signals to decide which ones deserve the top positions.
Backlinks are one of those signals.
What is a backlink?
Definition
A backlink, or inbound link, is a link from another website that points to a page on your website.
Backlinks vs internal links
It is common to confuse these two concepts when you start learning SEO.
| Link type | Description |
|---|---|
| Internal link | Connects two pages within the same website. As we saw in the module on website architecture, it helps organise information and distribute authority among your own pages. |
| Backlink | Comes from a different website and points to a page on your domain. It helps strengthen the website’s authority and credibility. |
Both types of link are important and serve different purposes within an SEO strategy.
Why are backlinks important for SEO?
Backlinks remain one of the main factors in SEO. Each link you receive from another website acts as a vote of confidence for both users and search engines.
If relevant, high-quality pages link to your content, search engines interpret your website as trustworthy and deserving of a better position in the results.
The more high-quality backlinks you earn, the greater your website’s authority becomes and the easier it is to compete in your niche.
Besides improving rankings, they offer other important benefits:
They strengthen domain authority
Links from trustworthy websites help increase your domain’s credibility and make it easier to compete for more demanding searches. A single link from a recognised website can provide more authority than dozens of low-quality links.
They help discover and crawl new pages
Search engines use links to navigate the internet. When another website links to a new page, their crawlers can discover it more quickly and add it to their index, improving your website’s overall visibility.
They generate qualified traffic
Backlinks do not only benefit SEO. If a user finds your website through an article, guide or recommendation on another page, you receive direct visits from people who are already interested in your subject.
They benefit GEO (Generative Engine Optimization)
Generative engines such as Gemini, Perplexity and ChatGPT Search provide answers based on reliable sources. Although backlinks do not guarantee that content will be cited, they help strengthen the domain’s authority and reputation. These two signals can increase your website’s credibility and help it be regarded as a more reliable source by both traditional search engines and generative engines.
Types of backlinks you should know
Not all backlinks have the same value. Their quality, context and type directly affect their SEO impact. When a link is created, different attributes can tell search engines how to interpret it.
In most cases, you will not have to configure them manually, as tools such as WordPress usually add them through the editor when you insert a link.
Most valuable
Dofollow
Standard link
Dofollow links pass SEO authority to your website, traditionally known as link juice. They are the most valuable links within an SEO strategy, especially when they come from relevant pages with a good reputation and a subject aligned with yours. This type of link directly helps improve your search-engine rankings.
Nofollow
rel="nofollow"
Nofollow links tell search engines not to treat the link as a direct recommendation intended to pass authority. However, they remain important because they bring traffic and visibility and, above all, make your link profile look more natural.
UGC (User Generated Content)
rel="ugc"
The UGC attribute identifies links published by users themselves. This type of link commonly appears in blog comments, forums, communities, reviews and collaborative platforms. It indicates that the link was not created directly by the website owner.
Sponsored
rel="sponsored"
The rel="sponsored" attribute identifies links included as part of paid collaborations, advertising or sponsored content. Although they do not pass direct SEO authority like dofollow links, they are necessary for complying with search-engine rules, avoiding penalties and gaining visibility, qualified traffic and brand recognition.
How do you measure the quality of a backlink?
Earning many backlinks does not guarantee better results. One of the most common mistakes is to assume that more is always better. In reality, quality is much more important than quantity: a single backlink from a relevant website can provide much more value than dozens of low-quality links.
Before trying to earn a link, ask yourself: is this backlink really worth earning? To answer that question, you need to analyse the website linking to you.
No single metric determines the quality of a backlink. You should analyse them together to obtain a more complete view of the domain.
Key metrics for evaluating a backlink, in order of importance
Topical relevance
This is probably the most important criterion. A backlink is much more powerful when it comes from a website related to your niche, for example, a finance website linking to a page about investing. Search engines pay particular attention to consistency between the two pieces of content.
Estimated organic traffic
A website that receives visits from search engines demonstrates that it publishes content capable of ranking. By contrast, a domain with no traffic or one in steep decline may be abandoned or even penalised.
Domain Authority (DA)
This metric, developed by SEO tools such as Moz, estimates the overall strength of a domain on a scale from 1 to 100. It should be used to compare websites within your industry.
Spam Score
This metric estimates the risk that a domain uses unnatural practices. A high value is a warning sign that requires a manual review of the website.
Domain age
Websites that have existed for several years generally convey greater stability to search engines, although this remains a secondary metric when considered on its own.
Tools for analysing domains
Tools such as Exaldia, Semrush, Ahrefs and Moz allow you to analyse the key metrics of any website quickly before trying to earn or buy a link.
Exaldia
Semrush
Ahrefs
Moz
How to interpret the metrics: a quick guide
| Metric | Low | Medium | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| Domain Authority (DA) | 1 to 20 | 21 to 40 | 41 to 100 |
| Estimated organic traffic | Fewer than 500 visits per month | 500 to 5,000 visits per month | More than 5,000 visits per month |
| Spam Score | 0% to 10% | 11% to 30% | 31% or more ⚠ |
| Domain age | Less than one year | 1 to 5 years | More than 5 years |
Note
These values are indicative. There is no perfect metric. You should analyse the website as a whole, the quality of its content and its own backlink profile.
What does a natural backlink profile look like?
A healthy backlink profile is built from a balanced combination of different types of links. The aim is not to accumulate as many as possible or to pursue only dofollow links with exact-match keywords, but to maintain a natural distribution that reflects the real growth of your website.
A natural profile combines:
- different types of backlinks (dofollow, nofollow, UGC and sponsored);
- different types of anchor text;
- links from a variety of domains;
- different destination pages, not just the home page but also articles and internal pages;
- gradual growth over time.
How to earn high-quality backlinks
Earning high-quality backlinks means applying specific strategies that can attract links from relevant, well-positioned websites.
Guest posting
This involves writing a useful article for another website in your industry in exchange for including a link to your content. The strategy benefits both parties: the host website receives quality content, while you gain visibility, authority and a relevant backlink.
Create content worth linking to
The best way to earn backlinks remains creating content that other people want to recommend naturally. Comprehensive guides, original studies, infographics, templates and free tools are more likely to receive links.
The key question is: does this content provide something that does not yet exist, or does it clearly improve what has already been published?
Collaborations and interviews
Taking part in interviews, podcasts, webinars or collaborative articles with other creators or brands in your niche is a powerful way to earn links. As well as building authority, it helps increase your visibility and strengthen your brand.
Specialist directories
Listing your website in relevant thematic or local directories can help you gain visibility, especially when you are starting out. Avoid general or large-scale directories and prioritise those with a good reputation that manually approve each website.
Analyse your competitors’ backlinks
With tools such as Exaldia, Semrush and Ahrefs, you can see which websites link to your competitors. Contact those same websites and propose better, more recent or complementary content so that they link to yours as well.
Participate in communities and forums
Leaving useful comments or answering questions on forums such as Reddit and on blogs in your industry can generate links and qualified traffic. Always do it naturally and provide genuine value.
Platforms for buying backlinks
Buying backlinks means paying a website to publish an article or include a link to your page within its content. Used carefully, it can help you gain visibility and authority more quickly, although it carries risks when applied incorrectly.
Important note:
Google recommends avoiding the purchase of links when it is done artificially or at scale to manipulate results. In practice, however, many websites use this strategy in a controlled way. The key is to prioritise quality, topical consistency and the natural integration of the link.
Platforms available to an international English-speaking market
WhitePress
Collaborator
Getfluence
Scale & Own advice before buying
- Ask for the exact domain: always request the domain where the link will be published. Avoid intermediaries or services that do not specify the final website.
- Check the metrics: review its authority, organic traffic, subject and Spam Score with the appropriate tools.
- Analyse its history: use Wayback Machine to review the website’s history and check that it has not previously hosted inappropriate content, spam or projects unrelated to its current subject.
- Choose strategic pages: do not direct every backlink to the home page. Prioritise the pages you genuinely want to rank. A good internal-linking structure will then distribute authority naturally across the rest of your website.
What budget do you need for a backlink strategy?
There is no universal amount. The cost depends on your SEO objectives, the level of competition in your industry and the actual price of links in your niche.
Treat backlinks as a medium- and long-term investment in authority and visibility, not as a one-off expense.
Factors that influence the price
- Domain authority: the greater the website’s authority, the higher the price of the link tends to be.
- Organic traffic: websites with real traffic and search-engine visibility generally charge more to publish links.
- Website subject: highly competitive sectors such as finance, health and insurance are generally more expensive.
- Publication type: a new article generally costs more than inserting a link into existing content.
Indicative price estimates
| Quality level | Website type | Estimated price |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | Thematic directories, small blogs or forums | USD 5 to 30 |
| Intermediate | Specialist blogs, niche websites with real traffic or local media | USD 50 to 150 |
| High or premium | High-authority media outlets, high-traffic websites or specialist portals | USD 150 to 600 or more |
Recommendation
In our experience, it is generally more cost-effective to begin with intermediate-quality links that balance cost and value. Later, you can complement the strategy with a few premium links directed to strategic pages. If you begin to see results, consider reinvesting some of the profits to continue strengthening your website’s authority.
What is anchor text and how do you use it?
Definition
Anchor text is the word or phrase that a user clicks to follow a link. It is the visible text connecting one page to another.
Example: in the sentence “Learn more in our backlink guide”, the words in bold are the anchor text.
Why anchor text matters for SEO
Using anchor text correctly strengthens the relevance of a link and gives search engines context about the destination page’s content. When the text accurately describes the destination page, it sends a clear signal about the topical relationship between the two URLs.
Not all anchor text should be identical. Always using the same type, especially exact-match keywords, can look like an artificial strategy. It is therefore important to maintain a varied and natural profile.
Types of anchor text and recommended distribution
| Anchor-text type | Recommended percentage | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Naked URL | 30% | www.scaleandown.com |
| Brand name | 25% | Scale & Own |
| Generic anchor | 15% | “click here”, “this website”, “more information” |
| Exact-match keyword | 10% | “backlinks” |
| Partial keyword or variation | 10% | “backlink strategy for SEO”, “quality links” |
| Mixed anchor (keyword and brand or URL) | 5% | “quality backlinks on Scale & Own” |
| Image (alternative text or alt attribute) | 5% | Descriptive alternative text for the image |
These percentages are only indicative and were developed by Scale & Own as a practical reference to help you build a more natural link profile. They should not be interpreted as mandatory rules.
Advanced link-building strategies
As you gain experience, you will discover more advanced strategies for building authority through backlinks:
- using expired domains;
- creating private blog networks (PBNs);
- developing several websites within the same digital ecosystem.
These techniques can be effective, but they require sufficient experience and a good understanding of SEO to avoid mistakes and penalties.
Important recommendation
You do not need to use these techniques when starting out. It is far more important to focus on creating quality content and earning backlinks gradually and naturally.
What you should remember about backlinks
Backlinks remain one of the pillars of SEO and play a fundamental role in building a website’s authority. However, quality, topical relevance and a natural profile are much more important than the number of links earned.
In addition to improving rankings, a solid backlink strategy also helps strengthen your brand’s reputation and your website’s credibility. Over time, these elements can increase the chances of your content being recognised and used as a source by generative engines.
The recommendations in this guide should not be treated as rigid rules. Every project is different, and the way search engines evaluate links continues to evolve. The important thing is to understand the principles behind a good strategy so that you can adapt to changes and make better decisions.
What is the next step?
So far, you have learned how to create quality content and strengthen your website’s authority through a backlink strategy. However, these efforts can lose much of their effectiveness if your website’s technical foundation is not up to standard.
A slow website that is difficult to crawl or poorly optimised can limit your rankings, even if you publish excellent content and earn high-quality backlinks.
In the next module, you will learn how to improve loading speed, user experience and the technical structure of your website to complete the three fundamental pillars of SEO: content, authority and technical optimisation.
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