Link building - deliberately earning backlinks from other websites - remains one of the three main ranking factors in Google. For businesses aiming for the top positions in Google in their country, a quality backlink profile is a basic requirement for competing in most niches.
The link building landscape has changed a great deal in recent years: Google's spam updates and its site reputation abuse policy reduced the value of paid placements on big media sites, AI-written content flooded low-quality blogs, and digital PR became the most dependable way to earn links from real publications. Relevant link sources now include national and international publications as well as local and industry websites that carry authority for the whole domain.
The basics of how Google evaluates backlinks
Google evaluates links on several criteria:
Domain Rating (DR) / Authority Score: The overall authority of the linking domain. A link from the BBC or The Guardian (DR 90+) is worth far more than a link from an unknown blog (DR 5).
Topical relevance: A link from a website in your niche matters more than a link from an unrelated website with a high DR.
Geographic relevance: Websites with an audience in your target country - for example, .co.uk, .com.au or .ca domains and local media - send geographic signals for ranking in that country's Google.
Language relevance: A website in the same language as your page that links to it adds a language relevance signal.
Link placement: A contextual link within the body of an article is much stronger than a link in the footer or sidebar.
How to check the backlinks to your website
You can check your backlinks for free in Google Search Console: the "Links" report lists the websites linking to you and the pages that receive the most links. It is Google's own data, but it does not rate the quality of the linking websites.
Paid tools - SE Ranking, Ahrefs, Semrush - give a more detailed view of your backlink profile: the authority of each linking website, anchors, and when links were gained or lost. Focus on three things: the topics of linking websites, the share of exact-match anchors (too many signals over-optimisation) and sudden spikes in links you never asked for.
The international link landscape
National media and business portals
Technology and business publications: TechRadar, Wired, The Next Web - leading technology and digital media with a broad business audience. Coverage there earns authoritative links with genuine editorial review.
Business publications: the Financial Times, The Globe and Mail business section, the Australian Financial Review - a B2B readership with wide reach across the business community.
Marketing and digital: Search Engine Journal, Econsultancy, Marketing Week - specialist resources on SEO, marketing and ecommerce.
News outlets and agencies: Reuters, BBC News, ABC News (Australia) - maximum reach and a national audience. Links from these outlets are rare but carry very high authority.
Regional portals: local newspapers and city portals - the Manchester Evening News, the Sydney Morning Herald, the Toronto Star and similar - for businesses with a regional presence.
How the link landscape has changed in recent years
- Google's site reputation abuse policy (2024) stripped most of the value from paid "sponsored" sections on large media websites.
- AI-generated content has flooded low-quality blogs, so links need to be vetted more carefully than before.
- Expired domains with a history have become a target for PBN operators - potential linking websites need closer checks than ever.
- Digital PR and original data have gained weight: journalists and AI answers both cite sources that have unique figures.
Business directories
- Kompass - an international B2B company directory, useful for B2B
- Amazon and eBay - for ecommerce
- Yell, Yelp and local business directories - for local businesses
- Industry directories run by professional associations
Effective link building methods for Google
Digital PR through the media
Original research: Unique data about your market, industry benchmarks, comparative studies - trade titles and business media actively look for this kind of material. A single study with original data can earn 10-30 editorial links from several publications.
Topical case studies: "How a mid-sized online retailer held its rankings through a Google core update" - a genuinely publishable case for trade media. Concrete figures, dates and business results are what editors want to see.
Expert comments: Journalists look for industry experts to quote. Building relationships with two or three journalists in your field, or responding to journalist requests on platforms such as Qwoted, Featured or ResponseSource, is a long-term source of regular authoritative mentions with links.
Guest articles
Search Engine Journal, Econsultancy, Smart Insights and industry trade blogs publish bylined articles from outside experts. The requirements:
- Real expertise and practical value for readers
- Original content that has not been published elsewhere
- A good fit with the publication's editorial policy
A tip: if your expertise covers a particular industry or region - for example, ecommerce in Australia or B2B manufacturing in Germany - that is a rare and much-wanted angle for trade publications.
Industry associations
- techUK, the Information Technology Association of Canada and similar IT bodies - for IT and digital companies
- national retail associations, such as the British Retail Consortium - for ecommerce
- chambers of commerce, including the International Chamber of Commerce - for businesses that work internationally
- the Federation of Small Businesses and similar organisations - for small and medium-sized businesses
Association membership - directory listings, partner content, taking part in events - earns legitimate links from topically and geographically relevant websites.
Recovering lost links
Over the years, a noticeable share of any website's links gets "lost":
- Use Ahrefs to check the links pointing to your domain - especially to old URLs (if your website structure has changed).
- Find authoritative links that point to pages which no longer exist (404) and set up 301 redirects.
- Find closed websites that you linked to or that linked to you, and restore the "chain" through websites that are still active.
Broken Link Building
- Use Ahrefs to find authoritative websites in your niche with many broken outbound links.
- Work out what content those dead pages contained.
- Create up-to-date content on the same topic.
- Contact the websites that link to the dead resources and suggest your page as a replacement.
Partner links
The companies you work with - clients, partners, technology providers - are a source of natural links through "Our partners", "Clients" and "Recommended" sections. If your clients or partners have authoritative websites, suggest publishing a case study on their website or being listed as a supplier.
Technical aspects of links for multi-regional websites
Language and market specifics
- Links from websites in the same language and country → the matching version of your website: The strongest language and market signals for that particular version.
- Links from any reputable websites → the domain: Raise the overall Domain Rating, which benefits every version of the website.
- Links from other countries: Raise overall authority but send weaker signals for a specific country's Google.
Protecting link equity when restructuring
If your website's URL structure has changed, check that every old URL has a 301 redirect to the matching new page. Links that point to 404 pages pass no authority. This is especially important for websites that have changed platforms or moved from one language to several language versions.
What to avoid in link building
PBNs and link schemes: A direct breach of Google's rules with a risk of penalties. More in our guide PBN in SEO: why it is risky.
Spammy directories: Bulk submission to hundreds of directories without editorial control has no SEO effect.
Irrelevant links: Links from websites unrelated to your niche or your target market do not help and can damage your profile.
Sudden mass growth: Hundreds of new links in a week is an unnatural pattern for Google's algorithms.
Links, mentions and AI answers
For GEO, brand mentions matter alongside links. AI search names companies that authoritative sources write about more often: trade publications, reviews, roundups, expert comments. That is why the digital PR and guest articles described here pay off twice - in Google rankings and in visibility in ChatGPT, Gemini and Google AI answers.
How YoSiteUp builds a backlink profile for clients worldwide
Audit of your current profile: Analysis of existing backlinks, spotting toxic and outdated links, finding "lost" links after URL changes.
Strategy for your niche: Identifying the specific publications, associations and directories in your country where a link is realistic for your business.
Digital PR outreach: Producing publishable content and professional outreach to media editors.
Transparent reporting: A monthly table of new links with exact URLs, Domain Rating, anchors and how the profile is developing.
Links are part of all GEO SEO marketing plans: 2, 3 or 10 a month - with a report on every link.
Frequently asked questions
How many backlinks does it take to rank in Google? That depends on how competitive the niche is. In low-competition niches, 20-50 quality links can be enough for the first page. In highly competitive ones (property, finance, insurance), the leading websites have thousands. Look at the top 5 results for your target phrase in Ahrefs to see the real threshold.
Do different language versions need their own links? Ideally, yes. Links from websites in the same language and country as a version send that version strong language signals. But any reputable link strengthens the authority of the whole domain, which helps every version.
How quickly does link building work? Google usually picks up new links within 2-8 weeks. A visible effect on rankings follows after 2-4 months of consistent work. Steady growth in organic traffic from Google takes 6-12 months.
Is it worth buying links from link sellers? Many sellers offer link packages - usually these are PBNs or spammy directories. Before signing anything, ask for specific examples of past placements. Vague answers or "we cannot disclose that" are a red flag.
