Many businesses today wonder how many backlinks they need to rank on the first page of Google. Unfortunately, the answer to that question is not as simple as you think. In this blog post, we’ll dive deeply into backlinks and try to understand better how many backlinks you need to rank.
What are backlinks?
A backlink is a link from one website to another. They are also sometimes called inbound links. Backlinks are essential for SEO because they act as a “vote” for your site. The more backlinks you have, the more popular search engines will consider your site.
This can help you climb the rankings and get more traffic. In addition, backlinks can help improve your site’s PageRank, which measures its importance. Because of all these benefits, it’s crucial to ensure you get high-quality backlinks from relevant and popular websites. There are many ways to do this, such as;
- Blog commenting,
- Social media outreach.
By taking the time to build up a strong backlink profile, you’ll be able to improve your SEO and get more traffic to your website.
How can you acquire backlinks for your website or blog post?
There are a few ways to acquire backlinks for your website or blog post; a few were mentioned above, but others can include;
- Helpful how-to guides
- Interesting infographics
- Original research blog post
- Reaching out to other website owners and ask them to link to your site
- Creating great content that other people want to link to
- Guest posts on other websites in your industry.
Guest posts, in particular, can be a great way to get exposure for your site while also building relationships with other bloggers and thought leaders in your field. By taking a proactive approach to backlinking, you can ensure that your site gets the attention it deserves.
Related Reading: How to create effective contextual backlinks
Why are backlinks important?
Backlinks are vital because they help search engines like Google determine the quality and relevancy of your site. The more high-quality backlinks you have pointing to your site, the higher your site will rank in Google’s search results. However, it’s not just about quantity; it’s also about quality. That’s why it’s essential to focus on getting high-quality backlinks from authoritative websites.
How many backlinks do I need to rank?
The answer to this question may surprise you: the number of backlinks your website has isn’t nearly as important as the quality of those backlinks. But, don’t get us wrong; backlinks are still a critical ranking factor for SEO purposes.
But what matters more is where those backlinks are coming from. A single backlink from a high-authority website can be more valuable than hundreds of low-quality backlinks. That’s because Google looks at the quality of a website when determining where to rank it in search engine results pages (SERPs). So, when it comes to link building, quantity isn’t nearly as important as quality;
But what exactly makes a high-quality backlink? Let’s take a look.
There are three primary factors that Google looks at when determining whether or not a backlink is a high quality;
- The linking domain’s authority
- The anchoring text
- The context surrounding the text
1. The Linking Domain’s Authority
Authority is determined by several factors, including age, size, and links from other websites. The older and larger a website is, the more authority it has. In addition, a website with links from other high-quality websites also has more authority.
To check the authority of a linking domain, you can use Moz’s Open Site Explorer tool. Just enter the URL of the site you want to check, and you’ll see its Page Authority (PA) and Domain Authority (DA) scores. The higher these scores are, the more powerful the linking domain is.
2. Anchor Text
Anchor text is the visible part of a hyperlink, the words that people click on to visit your website. When creating anchor text, you want to use keywords that accurately describe your page or, better yet, key phrases that people are searching for. That way, when someone sees your anchor text and clicks on it, they know exactly what they will find on your website. These keyword-rich anchor texts are much more valuable than generic ones like “click here” or “read more.”
3. Context Surrounding the Link:
The context surrounding a link and the other content on the page where the link appears is also important. For example, if the rest of the page is full of low-quality content, Google will likely view the link as low-quality. On the other hand, if the rest of the page is full of high-quality content, Google will likely view the link as being high quality.
Quantity isn’t nearly as important as quality regarding backlinks, although both are still important for SEO purposes. Focus on getting high-quality backlinks from authoritative sites with keyword-rich anchor text in contextually relevant articles. You should see your website rise in SERPs in no time!
Can you have too many backlinks?
It is possible to have too many backlinks. Creating too many backlinks too quickly can look spammy to search engines and may hurt your ranking. In addition, if most of your backlinks come from low-quality websites, it can damage your reputation.
Therefore, it is essential to focus on quality over quantity when building backlinks. Creating a few high-quality backlinks is always better than creating many low-quality links. With that said, there is no magic number of backlinks that you should aim for.
As long as you focus on quality and avoid creating an excessive number of links, you should be fine.
What standard methods for obtaining backlinks, both white and black hat techniques?
Getting backlinks is an integral part of any SEO strategy. Backlinks are links from other websites to yours and help improve your site’s visibility and authority. But not all backlinks are created equal. Some backlinking techniques are considered “white hat,” meaning they’re ethically sound and will not get you in trouble with Google (some of which we have covered). Other techniques are considered “black hat” and can result in a Google penalty. We’ll take a look at five standard methods for getting backlinks, both white hat, and black hat.
1. White Hat: Guest Blogging
Guest blogging is when you write a blog post for another website in your industry. This is a great way to get exposure to your website and build relationships with other thought leaders in your field. When you guest blog, include a link to your website in your author bio.
2. White Hat: Broken Link Building
Broken link building is where you find websites with broken links (links that go to 404 pages) and then reach out to the site owner to let them know. Many site owners will be happy to replace the broken link with a link to your website. This technique takes time and effort, but it can be very effective.
3. White Hat: Resource Page Links
Resource page links are links from pages that list helpful resources on a particular topic. To get resource page links, first identify relevant resource pages using Google search operators like “keyword + resources.” Then reach out to the site owner and ask them to add your website to their list of resources. Be sure to provide them with a link to your website so they can easily add it.
4. Black Hat: Paid Links
Paid links are exactly what they sound like, links that you pay for. Unfortunately, this is considered a black hat technique because it goes against Google’s guidelines, which state that “buying or selling links that pass PageRank violates Google’s Webmaster Guidelines.” You could be hit with a Google penalty if caught doing this, which can significantly hurt your website’s traffic and visibility. So buyer, beware!
5. Black Hat: Link Farms
Link farms are websites that exist solely to sell links. These sites typically have low-quality content and plenty of spammy-looking links. Linking to a link farm can hurt your website’s reputation, so it’s best to avoid them altogether. If you do find yourself linked to one, use Google’s disavow tool to have the link removed from your site.
You can use many techniques to get backlinks for your website. Some of these techniques are considered white hat and are perfectly ethical; others are regarded as black hat and could result in a Google penalty if you’re caught. Always provide quality backlinks for your audience, and do not fall victim to shady SEO methods.
Conclusion
Backlinks are an important ranking factor for SEO and should be a crucial part of your link-building strategy. You need no magic number of links to rank on the first page of Google; however, the more high-quality links you have pointing to your site, the better. So, if you want to improve your chances of ranking on the first page of Google, then focus on building as many high-quality links as possible.
FAQs
How many backlinks per day is safe?
There is no definitive answer to this question as it depends on several factors, including the website’s domain authority, the quality of the backlinks, and how competitive the niche is.
Some experts recommend aiming for around 1-500 backlinks per day if done safely, while others suggest a more conservative approach of 20-30 backlinks per day.
It’s important to remember that quality always trumps quantity when it comes to backlinks, so be sure to focus on obtaining links from high-quality websites.
How many backlinks per month is safe?
There is no definitive answer to this question as it depends on several factors, such as the website’s niche, the quality of the backlinks, and how competitive the industry is.
However, a safe number of backlinks to aim for per month is around 50-100, but this figure is again subjective to the current status; as mentioned previously, you can do between 1-500 backlinks per day if safely carried out.
If a website is trying to increase its SEO ranking quickly, it may be necessary to exceed this number to make an impact. However, it is important to be careful not to overdo it, as too many low-quality links can harm SEO.
Recommended reading: The complete guide to white hat SEO