1) How Google Views Backlinks

Google's algorithm relies heavily on backlinks to determine the authority and relevance of a website. Backlinks are essentially hyperlinks from one website to another. When reputable websites link to your content, it signals to Google that your site offers value, increasing your site's chances of ranking higher.

You can see more explanations on link ranking mechanisms on https://googleseo.kr

However, as experienced SEO specialists keep saying, Google doesn’t just count the number of backlinks. It assesses the quality of the links. It is believed that high-quality backlinks from authoritative, relevant sites carry far more weight than a large number of low-quality links. Additionally, the anchor text, the words used to hyperlink to your page, helps Google understand the context of the link. See the picture below to better understand how links work.

In short, Google favors backlinks that:

- Come from trusted, authoritative sources (high Domain Authority websites). According to Joshua Ping (a Forbes Analyst), most seo experts (up to 58%) look at domain authority when choosing a website to build links from.
How link algorithms work


- Are contextually relevant to the content on both the linking and linked sites.

- Appear natural (not forced or paid).

- Diversify in anchor text (avoiding over-optimization or exact-match keyword stuffing).

2) How to Build a Good Link Profile

A good link profile is diverse, natural, and consistent. Here are some key strategies to follow when building a strong link profile:

- Content Creation and Promotion: High-quality content naturally attracts links. Focus on creating insightful articles, reports, infographics, and other shareable content. Promoting content via outreach to bloggers, journalists, and influencers can result in valuable backlinks.



- Guest Blogging: Writing for authoritative websites in your niche can provide high-quality backlinks. Ensure that guest posts are informative and relevant to the host site's audience.

- Engage in PR and Networking: Building relationships with influencers and reporters in your industry can lead to mentions and links from reputable sources.

- Directory Listings and Resource Pages: Ensure your site is listed in relevant business directories, industry-specific resource pages, or roundup posts. Always opt for high-quality directories over link farms.



- Broken Link Building: Identify broken links on relevant websites and offer your content as a replacement. Many webmasters will appreciate this as it helps improve their site's usability while earning you a backlink.

- Internal Linking: While not technically backlinks, internal linking plays a crucial role in strengthening your site’s SEO. It helps distribute link equity across your pages, making sure that key content is properly indexed and ranked.

3) What Are Natural Links?

Natural links, also known as organic links, are backlinks that are acquired without any direct effort to influence them. These links occur naturally when other websites find your content valuable and choose to link to it without you asking. Google highly values natural links because they indicate that your site is genuinely providing useful content.

For instance:

- A blogger might link to your article because it provides useful information or insights relevant to their own content.

- A news outlet might reference your research or case study in a story.

Natural links:

- Are unsolicited – You don’t ask for them directly.

- Come from a variety of sources – They don’t all come from the same site or network.

- Use natural anchor text – Often, the anchor text is a title or a relevant phrase, not necessarily a target keyword.

To attract natural links, your best bet is to consistently create high-quality content that offers real value to your target audience.

4) What Link Strategies Should Be Avoided?

Not all link-building strategies are safe. In fact, some tactics can lead to penalties from Google if they are deemed manipulative. Here are strategies you should avoid:

- Buying Links: Google’s guidelines strictly prohibit purchasing links. While it may seem like an easy way to boost your backlink profile, paid links are easily detected by Google and can result in severe penalties, including a drastic drop in rankings.

- Link Farms and PBNs (Private Blog Networks): Link farms are groups of low-quality websites created solely for the purpose of generating backlinks. PBNs are a more sophisticated version of this, but Google is adept at identifying and penalizing both. Links from these networks can cause more harm than good.

- Excessive Reciprocal Linking: While exchanging links with other websites is fine in moderation, doing it excessively or as part of a "link exchange" scheme can be a red flag for Google.

- Low-Quality or Irrelevant Directory Listings: Submitting your website to random directories, especially those unrelated to your niche, can dilute your link profile and result in penalties. Stick to authoritative, relevant directories.

- Exact-Match Anchor Text Overuse: If your backlinks all use the same exact-match anchor text (e.g., “buy running shoes”), it signals manipulation to Google. Diversifying anchor text is key to maintaining a natural link profile.

- Comment Spam and Forum Links: Posting spammy comments on blogs or forums just to drop a link is frowned upon. These links often come from low-quality sites and will not help your SEO efforts.

Backlinks remain crucial to SEO, but they must be earned through high-quality content and ethical strategies. If you focus on building a diverse, natural link profile and avoiding manipulative tactics, you can improve your site's rankings and maintain a long-term, Google-friendly approach to SEO.