How to get backlinks: 9 safe strategies that work

Content and technical health get your site ready to rank, but links help prove that it deserves to. When respected, relevant websites link to yours, they tell search engines that your business is real and useful. That is why backlinks remain one of the most important parts of SEO, and also one of the easiest to get wrong.

This guide explains what backlinks are, what separates a valuable link from a harmful one, nine safe strategies for earning them, an outreach template, how to measure results and the practices to avoid.

What backlinks are and why they matter

A backlink is a link from another website to yours. Search engines use links to discover pages and to judge how trusted and relevant a site is. A link from a respected, relevant site works like a recommendation. Many such recommendations, earned over time, make it easier for your pages to compete.

Links don’t replace helpful content. They amplify it. A page with no links and strong content can still rank for easier searches, but competitive searches usually require authority.

What makes a backlink valuable

Not all links are equal. Look for these qualities.

• Relevance: the linking site and page relate to your topic or location.
• Trust: the site is reputable, with real content and real visitors.
• Editorial placement: the link sits naturally within useful content, not in a footer or a list of paid links.
• Context: the text around the link explains why it is there.
• Diversity: links come from many different sites, not one source repeated.

A few links from respected, relevant sites usually beat hundreds from low-quality ones.

Figure 1: Healthy link profiles come from many relevant, trusted sources.

Nine safe strategies for earning backlinks

1. Partners and suppliers

Companies you already work with are natural link sources. Ask suppliers, manufacturers and partners to list you on their partner, stockist or “where to buy” pages. Offer a logo and a short description to make it easy.

2. Local and industry organisations

Chambers of commerce, trade associations, networking groups and charities often list members and sponsors with links. Join or sponsor organisations that genuinely fit your business, then make sure your listing includes your website.

3. Original data and research

Journalists and bloggers love sources they can cite. Publish something nobody else has: a survey of your customers, an analysis of your own job data or a summary of trends in your market. Present it with clear charts and a simple summary, so others can reference it.

4. Digital PR

Offer expert comments and data to journalists, publications and podcasts covering your topic. Respond promptly when reporters ask for sources, and keep your pitches short, relevant and genuinely useful. Coverage that links to your site is a strong signal.

5. Genuinely useful resources

Build resources that others want to reference: checklists, calculators, templates, glossaries and clear guides. Our own Search Console guide and technical SEO checklist are the kind of material that earns links over time.

6. Unlinked brand mentions

Sometimes people mention your business without linking. Search for your name, then politely ask the writer to add a link. This is among the easiest wins, because they already know you.

7. Broken link outreach

Find relevant pages with links that no longer work, then suggest your page as a replacement if it truly fits. Make it helpful for the site owner, not a favour request.

8. Guest contributions that add value

Write useful articles for respected publications in your industry. Focus on teaching something, not on stuffing a link in. Choose outlets with real audiences, and stay away from sites that exist to sell guest posts.

9. Community and sponsorship

Sponsor a local event, team or scholarship, or contribute to community projects. These often come with a mention and a link from the organiser’s site, and they build real-world goodwill.

A short outreach template

Good outreach is personal, brief and offers something useful. Adapt this to each recipient.

Subject: Quick question about your partners page

Hi [Name], I work with [Business], a [type of business] that uses [Supplier]‘s products. I noticed your partners page lists several companies in our area. Would you consider adding us? I can send our logo and a short description. Thanks for your time, [Your name]

Send a single polite follow-up after three or four days, then move on. Never send the same message to hundreds of people.

What to avoid

Google’s spam policies treat attempts to manipulate rankings with links as a violation. Read its spam policies and avoid:

• Buying or selling links that pass ranking credit.
• Private blog networks and link farms.
• Excessive link exchanges (“link to me and I’ll link to you”).
• Automated link creation and mass comment or forum spam.
• Using exactly the same keyword-rich anchor text everywhere.

If you place paid or sponsored links, mark them with the correct attributes. Google explains how in its guide to qualifying outbound links.

How to measure your link building

Track more than the count.

1. New links: record each new link, its source, date and the page it points to in a simple sheet.
2. Quality: note whether the linking site is relevant, trusted and editorial.
3. Search Console: the Links report shows who links to you and which pages are linked most.
4. Referral traffic: check Analytics to see visits that came through those links.
5. Rankings and impressions: watch whether pages with new links gain visibility over the following weeks.

Figure 2: A backlink report from your link tool or Search Console. Replace with your own data.

How long does link building take?

Expect results to build over months. A single good link can help, but sustained, steady link earning produces the biggest gains. Be wary of anyone who promises a fixed number of links per month at a low price, because quantity without quality is what leads to penalties.

Frequently asked questions

Are nofollow links worthless?

Not entirely. They can still bring visitors and brand awareness, and Google treats them as hints. A natural profile includes a mix.

How many backlinks do I need?

There is no magic number. You need enough relevant, trusted links to compete with the pages that rank for your target searches.

Can I remove bad links?

Most low-quality links are simply ignored by Google. Disavow only when you have a clear pattern of manipulative links that you can’t remove.

Do internal links count?

They help search engines understand your site and pass authority between your own pages, but they are different from backlinks from other sites.

Is buying links ever safe?

Buying links to pass ranking credit breaks Google’s guidelines. Advertising and sponsorships are fine when properly labelled.

Next steps

Link building works best alongside strong content and technical health. If you’d like help with a safe, relevant link plan, see our link building service or request a free SEO audit. You might also read our guide on what SEO is to see how links fit with the rest.

Sources and further reading

• Google spam policies: what counts as link spam.
• Qualify your outbound links: nofollow, sponsored and UGC attributes.
• SEO Starter Guide: Google’s introduction to SEO.
• Google Search Console: free link data for your own site.