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Is link building really worth the hype?
To save you from endless searches, we’ve done the heavy lifting. We asked our team, including our CEO, and looked up the most searched link building questions to give you all the answers in one place.
Let’s start!
Link Building Questions Every
Beginner Wonders About
01
What is link building?
Link building is the process of getting links from other sites to your own to improve search engine rankings
What is a backlink?
Backlinks, also known as inbound links, are links that direct from one website to another.
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What makes a good backlink?
What’s the difference between do follow and no follow links?
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No follow
Do follow
- Links with rel=”nofollow” attribute in the HTML code
- Don’t pass ranking power
- Standard links without any attributes in the code
- Pass ranking power
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Can no follow links harm my website?
No, nofollow links won’t harm your site. However, a natural backlink profile includes both dofollow and nofollow links.
Only having dofollow links can look suspicious to search engines.
Only having dofollow links can look suspicious to search engines.
Why is link building important for SEO?
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Link Building
More Traffic
More Visibility
Better Rankings
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What is the difference between link building and SaaS link building?
SaaS link building is a specific form of link building focused on getting backlinks from SaaS (Software as a Service) business websites.
What’s the difference between SaaS and only-content websites?
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SaaS websites
Only-content websites
- Legitimate websites offering real services/products.
- Have distinctive features, pricing, and a separate blog section․
- Only offer content on different subjects (e.g., news and magazine websites)․
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When should I start link building?
Start link building once you’ve optimized the on-page elements and technical SEO of your website.
Also, be ready to invest in effective link building typically requires a minimum budget of $3,000 to see meaningful results.
Also, be ready to invest in effective link building typically requires a minimum budget of $3,000 to see meaningful results.
Further reading:
Skills Every Link Building Expert Needs
Link Building Outsourcing Questions: Costs and Considerations
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What does a link building agency do?
A link building agency helps businesses grow their backlink profiles using strategies like link insertions, guest posting, broken link building, etc.
How to outsource link building?
To outsource link building, hire a dedicated agency with a solid track record, ethical or white hat practices, and transparent communication.
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How much does link building cost?
Link building costs depend on the strategy, backlink quality, and provider.
Aim for links priced at $100 for a healthier backlink profile. At SayNine, we offer affordable packages to help you reach your SEO goals.
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Can I get only one backlink?
No, it’s not recommended to get only one backlink, as it won’t have any impact on your rankings.
We recommend starting from a minimum of ten backlinks to improve your rankings and domain rating.
We recommend starting from a minimum of ten backlinks to improve your rankings and domain rating.
How many backlinks do I need to rank monthly?
There’s no set rule, but we recommend building at least 10 backlinks per month to see impact.
Then, you can gradually increase the number of backlinks, as long as they come from credible and relevant sources.
Then, you can gradually increase the number of backlinks, as long as they come from credible and relevant sources.
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When can I see the results from link building?
There’s no fixed timeline for link building results and no agency can promise instant, solid achievements.
SEO success is built on strong on-page and technical optimization, as well as brand reputation.
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Why does SayNine build backlinks from 50+ DR websites?
We set a DR of 50 as our minimum to ensure a sustainable and long-term SEO strategy.
Backlinks from websites with a DR below 50 are typically considered below medium quality, while those with a DR above 50 are more valuable, supporting stronger SEO results.
Backlinks from websites with a DR below 50 are typically considered below medium quality, while those with a DR above 50 are more valuable, supporting stronger SEO results.
Link Building Metrics and Essential Tools Questions
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What’s the difference between DA and DR?
Domain Authority
Domain Rating
- Metric by Moz
- Scores range from 1 to 100
- Calculation Factors:
- number of total backlinks,
- number of linking root domains,
- quality of backlinks, etc.
- Metric by Ahrefs
- Scores range from 0 to 100
- Calculation Factors:
- number of unique referring domains,
- DR of referring domains,
- number of other websites the referring domain links to.
Do backlinks from domains with DR 80 and DR 50 hold the same value?
No, they don’t.
Backlinks from domains with a higher DR are more valuable because they come from more trusted sites.
Backlinks from domains with a higher DR are more valuable because they come from more trusted sites.
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How important is the spam score in link building?
Spam score is an important metric for assessing link quality, but it doesn’t directly affect your SEO or lead to penalties․
Google doesn’t use it in their algorithm, so the Spam Scores of websites linking to you won’t affect your own scores.
Google doesn’t use it in their algorithm, so the Spam Scores of websites linking to you won’t affect your own scores.
Which tools to use for checking link building metrics?
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Tools like Ahrefs, Moz, and SEMRush are ideal for
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What are the best tools for link building?
Some of the best tools for link building include
Further reading:
Top Link Building Tools You Need
SEMrush says one of my backlinks is suspicious. Should I disavow it?
Not necessarily. While SEMrush and other SEO tools have developed their own metrics to evaluate backlinks, it doesn’t mean you should fully rely on them.
If the backlink comes from a good source, there’s no need to disavow it. So, always assess the context and relevance of the link before making a decision.
If the backlink comes from a good source, there’s no need to disavow it. So, always assess the context and relevance of the link before making a decision.
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If the linking site’s traffic is mostly from India, will mine be too?
Guest posting can be more effective than a single link insertion, as it not only helps build backlinks but also boosts brand visibility.
However, they’re harder to scale long-term due to limited opportunities and common delays.
Link Building Strategies and
Techniques Questions
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What are link exchanges?
Link exchange, also called reciprocal linking, is a common SEO strategy where two websites agree to link to each other’s content.
What is the difference between A-B and A-B-C exchanges?
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A-B exchanges
A-B-C exchanges
- Two websites that exchange links directly with each other.
- More straightforward and can be easily detected by Google’s crawlers,
- Involve three websites where A links to B, B links to C, and C links back to A
- Are more natural and less manipulative to search engines.
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What is guest posting and why is it important in link building?
Guest posting is the practice of writing and publishing a blog post on other websites.
It’s an effective link building strategy because it helps build backlinks, improve SEO metrics like domain rating, boost brand awareness, reach broader audiences, and more.
It’s an effective link building strategy because it helps build backlinks, improve SEO metrics like domain rating, boost brand awareness, reach broader audiences, and more.
Further reading:
How to Find Guest Posting Opportunities
Is one link insertion more effective than guest posting with a few links?
Guest posting usually delivers more value than a single link insertion by building backlinks and increasing brand exposure. But it’s not a reliable long-term strategy. Legitimate guest post opportunities are limited and publishing timelines can drag.
Can AI generate backlinks?
AI can automate tasks like finding link opportunities and outreach.
However, creating relevant backlinks requires human effort, strategy, and relationship-building for success.
However, creating relevant backlinks requires human effort, strategy, and relationship-building for success.
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What is broken link building?
Broken link building is a strategy that involves finding broken or dead links on relevant websites and suggesting your content as a replacement.
Why is building unique backlinks important?
Unique backlinks diversify your profile, improve domain rating, and signal trust and value to search engines.
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Should I consider forum link building?
No. Backlinks gained through forum link building are not great in terms of SEO and won’t help you rank better. Google’s Senior Webmaster Trends Analyst, John Mueller, confirmed this in one Reddit thread question.
Should I build backlinks for service pages, home pages, or blogs?
It depends on your goals. If you aim to boost brand visibility, then you’ll need to build backlinks for your homepage.
However, if you want to attract more traffic and better keyword rankings, then get backlinks for both service pages and blogs.
However, if you want to attract more traffic and better keyword rankings, then get backlinks for both service pages and blogs.
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Should a referring domain be relevant to my niche/industry when building backlinks?
While it’s ideal to build backlinks from websites within your industry, it’s not a strict requirement.
Backlinks from unrelated industries can still be valuable, as long as they appear natural and relevant in context.
Backlinks from unrelated industries can still be valuable, as long as they appear natural and relevant in context.
Should I get backlinks from websites with no traffic?
Yes, they can still be valuable. Ahrefs found that 96.55% of pages get no traffic from Google even some with authority.
So don’t ignore backlinks just because the referring page gets little or no traffic.
Does link quantity matter in referring page’s content when doing niche edits?
There isn’t a hard-and-fast rule for how many links a page should contain, but it’s generally better to avoid paragraphs stuffed with links.
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Is the quality of backlinks more important than the quantity?
While the quality of backlinks is crucial, focusing only on one or two backlinks per month isn’t enough to make a meaningful impact.
It’s important to keep a balance between quality and quantity for an effective link building strategy.
It’s important to keep a balance between quality and quantity for an effective link building strategy.
Link Building Done Right: Ethics and Best Practices
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What does Google say about link building?
Buying PageRank-passing links or randomly exchanging links are the worst ways of attempting to gather links and they’re likely to have no positive impact on your site’s performance over time.
Further reading:
Google’s Guide to Quality Links
Is link building illegal?
No, link building itself is not illegal.
However, implementing black-hat techniques, such as buying links or involving in link schemes to manipulate search rankings can violate Google’s guidelines and lead to penalties (which can be really harsh).
However, implementing black-hat techniques, such as buying links or involving in link schemes to manipulate search rankings can violate Google’s guidelines and lead to penalties (which can be really harsh).
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How to spot link building scams?
- Check if the referring domain or page for backlink placement is indexable
- Avoid investing in overly cheap backlinks
- Be cautious of agencies promising excessive backlinks ((e.g., 1000+ per month)
- Review their case studies and trusted clients
- Check their contract terms
- Ask how long backlinks remain live; guarantees of lifetime backlinks should raise red flags
Is buying backlinks bad?
Yes, buying backlinks is bad because it violates Google’s guidelines.
They are often seen as manipulative and can lead to penalties or even deindexing by search engines.
They are often seen as manipulative and can lead to penalties or even deindexing by search engines.
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Which websites to avoid for building backlinks?
Avoid sites in industries like casino, CBD, and news/magazines.
They might have good SEO metrics, but their backlinks are often harmful and unhelpful for long-term SEO.
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Are A-B or direct exchanges bad?
Yes, direct exchanges are bad, as they are against Google’s guidelines.
Its algorithms are smart enough to detect “Link to me and I’ll link to you” exchanges or pages created solely for cross-linking.
Its algorithms are smart enough to detect “Link to me and I’ll link to you” exchanges or pages created solely for cross-linking.
Link Building Communication
Questions
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Which channels to use for link building communication?
There are several channels available, but we recommend using them for both link prospecting and ongoing communication.
How to build trust with link exchange partners?
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- Offer them your help (e.g., finding a relevant niche edit for them)
- Be responsive, and reply to their emails in a timely manner
- Be honest and never promise anything you cannot do
- Get to know their interests and hobbies, and try to connect on a personal level beyond just the business side (but don’t be a stalker).
Further reading:
How to Build Relationships for Better Backlinks
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What are the biggest mistakes in link building communication?
- Over-relying on link exchange partners
- Not having a Plan B when something goes wrong
- Forgetting to follow up on time
- Not tracking communication and collaboration, which can lead to confusion
Questions On Link Building Outreach
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What is link building outreach?
Link building outreach refers to connecting with websites, blogs, or other prospects through different platforms to find link opportunities for your site.
Further reading:
Guide to Successful Link Building Outreach
How to find domains for link building outreach?
Use Google SERPs, Ahrefs, and LinkedIn Sales Navigator for link building outreach.
For more specific data, like startups by revenue range, tools like Crunchbase or ZoomInfo can be chelpful.
Further reading:
Link Prospecting: A Complete Guide
How to find relevant people to reach out to?
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- Type the exact job title or position you’re looking for, such as “Off-page SEO specialist.”
- Click the “People” tab to view only profiles and choose a “Company” (e.g., SayNine) to find people working there.
- Collect relevant specialists’ contact info to prepare for the link building outreach
How to find emails for link building outreach?
If you know someone’s name and company, try guessing common email formats like:
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
Always verify email addresses to reduce email bounce rate and ensure you’re reaching the right person.
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What tools to use for link building outreach?
Mailmeteor makes link building outreach easier by letting you send personalized bulk emails from Gmail.
It includes templates, email tracking, and Google Sheets integration to manage campaigns smoothly.
It includes templates, email tracking, and Google Sheets integration to manage campaigns smoothly.
Are follow ups necessary in link building outreach?
Yes! We recommend following up three times, with each follow-up adding value to the conversation.
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Should I consider timing for link building outreach?
There’s no fixed time for outreach, but it’s important to be mindful of the time zones of link prospects to ensure your emails are received at convenient times.
Do I need to include the unsubscribe
button while link building outreach?
Yes, always include an unsubscribe button. It helps keep your emails from being flagged as spam and respects recipients’ preferences.
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What are the best link building outreach practices?
- Warm up your emails
- Verify email addresses before the outreach
- Avoid spam words
- Personalize emails
- Keep emails short
- Maintain consistency in sending emails
- Keep an eye on bounce rates
Which metrics to check for link building outreach?
Monitor open rate, answer/response rate, positive answer rate, unsubscribe rate, and click-through rates to adjust and improve your outreach strategy over time, ensuring you get the best results.
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