Search engines value backlinks. They are relevant to SEO.
Backlinks are one of the most vital components for achieving high organic search results with search engine optimization (SEO). Essentially, a backlink is a link on another website that “links back” to your website. Backlinks are relevant to SEO and valuable to search engines because they represent a “vote” from one website to another. Backlinks can be powerful when built naturally. But if used the wrong way, they can result in low organic search results.
Google’s search algorithm started ranking pages based on the number of backlinks with PageRank in 1998. Google’s algorithm is an ever-evolving system for ranking websites and it exists with protections as intellectual property. It is unknown exactly how many times Google has updated its algorithm. But we do know that Google makes thousands of changes to its algorithm every year. Though the raw algorithm is constantly-evolving and not public knowledge, backlinks remain a key component in SEO and how search engines rank websites, and it makes sense.
“Backlinks remain a key component in SEO and how search engines rank websites.”
Search engines judge websites and consider the quality of the webpage with the “link back” to your site. The link can boost or hamper the reputation of your website depending on the source. If a leading, important, or well-known website links to your website, search engines will weigh this positively when determining the quality of the backlink. In the search engine’s opinion, good backlinks are relevant to the subject matter on both websites, come from a high-quality, trustworthy sources, and are up-to-date.
The number of backlinks matter.
Pages with a high number of backlinks from numerous reputable sources tend to have high organic search engine rankings. We cannot underemphasize the phrase “numerous reputable sources” here. Link spamming random websites all over the Internet will quickly land your website in the SEO doghouse.
It’s important to understand that backlinks are something to be earned, not bought.
Backlinks have long been an important part of a successful SEO strategy. They are so important that website owners and SEO companies have deployed shady tactics like link-sharing and link-buying. Google caught on quickly and has been steadily dinging websites that don’t stick to the guidelines and try to take shortcuts.
The best way to get other sites to “link back” to you is to regularly produce high-quality, unique, and relevant content that can organically gain traction on the internet. The right way to gain backlinks is tedious, and like all natural, white-hat SEO strategies, it takes time and effort but is worth the long-term undertaking.