What are backlinks?

Backlink is a link from one website to another. If it is your website, a backlink is a link that comes from another site and leads to yours.

Backlinks are often referred to as Inbound links. They are the opposite Outbound links, which lead from your site to another website.

In fact, it is the same relationship seen from two perspectives: on the page from which it starts it is an external link and on the page on which it leads - backlink.

For search engines, backlinks are extremely important because they are considered a kind of “voice of trust”. When another quality website links to your content, Google interprets it as a signal that your content is valuable and relevant. That's why sites with many quality backlinks tend to take better positions in search results (SERPs).

Difference Between Link and Backlink

A link (link or hyperlink) is a clickable element that leads from one website to another. Depending on where it comes from and where it goes, we distinguish three types of connections:

Internal connections – lead from one page to another within the same website;
External links – lead from your website to another website (outbound link)
Backlinks – lead from someone else's website to your (inbound link)

So, backlink is just one special type of connection. It is important to understand this, as in practice the terms ‘link’ and ‘backlink’ are often used interchangeably, which can cause confusion.

Why are backlinks important?

Backlinks have a great impact on the ranking of pages. In the early days of search engines, there were different ways to determine the relevance of content, but Google introduced PageRank, an algorithm that based the quality assessment precisely on backlinks. The idea is simple: If more than one website links to some content, it is probably valuable and useful.

Although Google now uses many other algorithms and signals, backlinks remain one of the key ranking factors. Quality backlinks increase the credibility of the site and help it to better position itself in search results.

Quality or quantity of backlinks – what is more important?

It's in SEO. quality of backlinks far more important than quantity. One link to an authoritative and thematically linked site may have a greater effect than dozens of links to spam or irrelevant sites.

Moreover, too many bad backlinks can harm your site and even lead to Google being fined for “unnatural links”. However, quantity also has a role to play: To rank well for competitive keywords, you need more quality backlinks. The stronger the competition, the more strong the connections you will need.

How to check your backlinks?

You can view your backlinks via Google Search Console:

Log in to Google Search Console
Click on Links the Menu
Focus on the section External links

There you will see:

The most linked pages – which pages receive the most backlinks
Pages that link to you – from which websites the links come
Anchor texts – texts on which backlinks are placed

However, GSC does not always display all backlinks, so tools such as Ahrefs, Semrush or Moz, which give a more complete picture and allow for an analysis of competition.

What makes a good backlink?

Not all backlinks are equally valuable. A good backlink has the following characteristics:

1. Dofollow connection

Dofollow link transfers SEO value (link equity and PageRank). It's the type of connection that really helps rank. Nofollow links don't transfer that value.

2. It comes from an authoritative domain

A link to a well-known and reliable website is worth much more than from an unknown or weak site.

3. Thematically relevant

The link must make sense in the context of the content. If the text talks about SEO, the backlink from the SEO or marketing website has a much higher value.

4. It is in the main content

Links within the article are valid more than those in the footer, sidebar or menu.

5. Has a descriptive anchor text

The text of the link should naturally describe the content it leads to, without overly ‘charged’ keywords.

6. It comes with multiple different domains

It is better to have backlinks from more different websites than many links from one single one.

7. It comes from new sources.

The first link from a domain has the greatest weight. Each following from the same page is worth a little less.

8. Comes from a website with low spam-score

Links to spam or suspicious sites can seriously harm your SEO.

Types of valuable backlinks

Backlinks are mainly divided into:

Natural – they occur spontaneously because someone wants to recommend your content
Manual – obtained through collaborations, guest articles, PR, etc.

Examples of quality backlinks:

Editorial links
Links from guest articles
Connections from social networks
Links to resource pages
PR and press release links
Links from the directory