Links remain one of the key ranking factors in Google. But only those that look natural and are placed on relevant platforms with real audiences actually work. Mass link exchanges, spam comments, one-day sites – all of this is not just useless but dangerous for site positions.
Why Links Still Matter
Google’s algorithms evolve, but the principle of evaluating site authority through external links hasn’t changed since the search engine’s creation. A link is a recommendation. When an authoritative resource links to your site, Google perceives this as confirmation of expertise and content relevance.
The problem is that people try to exploit this mechanism. Mass link purchases from exchanges, automated blog comments, site farms created exclusively for selling links. Google has learned to recognize such schemes and either ignores these links or applies penalties to sites using them.
Links work when they’re natural. When an editor of a topical site genuinely considers your content useful for their audience and links to it in relevant context. These are exactly the kinds of links we build.
Manual Outreach and Direct Publisher Relationships
We don’t buy links through exchanges. Instead, we work directly with owners and editors of topical resources, building long-term relationships.
How the process works:
- Niche analysis and search for relevant platforms with real traffic
- Personalized contact with site owners or editors
- Discussion of placement format and content requirements
- Creation of material useful to the donor site’s audience
- Placement with natural anchors in article context
This approach requires significantly more time than ordering a package of links on an exchange. But the result is fundamentally different. Links remain active for years, pass real weight, don’t raise suspicions with search algorithms.
Direct relationships with publishers provide quality control. We know the site’s history, its metrics, audience. Can negotiate placement in the needed section, with needed anchors, without neighboring dozens of other promotional links on the page.
Relevant Platforms with Traffic and History
Not all links are equal. A link from an authoritative topical resource that’s existed for several years and has stable organic traffic is worth more than a hundred links from young sites without audiences.
Platform selection criteria:
- Topical relevance to your niche
- Domain age minimum one year, preferably more
- Presence of real organic search traffic
- Absence from spam databases and Google filters
- Natural link profile without signs of manipulation
- Activity: regular content updates, live audience
We check metrics through multiple tools. Domain Authority, Trust Flow, traffic volume from Ahrefs or Semrush, search visibility dynamics. If a site sharply lost positions or its traffic dropped to zero – that’s a red flag.
Relevance matters more than absolute metrics. A link from a narrow specialized blog with DA 30 but exactly in your niche can deliver more impact than a link from a general news portal with DA 60.
Guest Posts with Natural Anchors
Guest publications are one of the most effective and safe link building methods. These are full articles that benefit the donor site’s audience and naturally include links to your resource.
We create content meeting specific platform requirements. Style, tone, material structure must match the donor site’s format. Readers shouldn’t sense this is promotional content.
Guest post creation principles:
- Real benefit for donor site readers
- Natural link integration into article context
- Anchor diversity: branded, generic, partial keyword matches
- Volume 1000-2000 words depending on topic and platform requirements
- Unique content not previously published
Anchors require special attention. If all links to your site use commercial anchors like “buy cheap links” – this is a direct manipulation signal for Google. A natural profile includes branded anchors (company name), generic phrases (“here”, “on this site”), plain URLs, and only a small portion of exact keyword matches.
Links are placed in article body, in relevant context. Google analyzes surrounding text around the link – if context isn’t related to the target page’s topic, that link’s value drops.
Proprietary PBN Networks
Private Blog Networks are networks of sites controlled by one owner and used for link placement. The technology is controversial and requires exceptionally careful approach because Google actively fights such schemes.
We use proprietary PBNs but build them following principles as close as possible to natural sites. Each domain in the network has unique content, regular updates, receives external links, is configured on separate hosting with unique IP address.
How we build safe PBNs:
- Purchasing domains with clean history or expired domains with preserved authority
- Unique design for each site, avoiding template themes
- Regular publication of useful content unrelated to promotion
- Diversity of hosting, IP addresses, domain registrars
- Natural behavior: social signals, incoming links, analytics
PBN is an additional tool, not the foundation of link building. Main emphasis goes to manual outreach and placement on third-party authoritative platforms. PBN is used to strengthen positions for specific queries and to control anchor profile.
Risk is always present. If Google identifies the network, all sites can fall under penalties simultaneously. Therefore we diversify link sources and don’t rely exclusively on PBN.
What Doesn’t Work and Why We Don’t Do It
Link building is full of temptations for quick and cheap solutions. Link exchanges offer hundreds of placements for pennies. Automated services promise thousands of backlinks in a week. None of this works or works until Google’s first algorithm update.
Methods we don’t use:
- Mass link exchanges with hundreds of donors of questionable quality
- Automated comments on blogs and forums
- Directories and listings without moderation
- Link exchange schemes “you link me – I link you”
- Placement on sites with signs of penalties or low trust
Cheap links are either ignored by the search engine or lead to penalties. Recovery after falling under a Google filter can take months, and sometimes it’s easier to launch a new domain than restore positions to the old one.
Link building is a long-term strategy. Natural growth of quality links, placement on authoritative platforms, diversity of sources and anchors. Results don’t come instantly, but hold steadily and strengthen over time.