{"id":5532,"date":"2024-07-10T10:52:04","date_gmt":"2024-07-10T15:52:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digitalstristg.wpenginepowered.com\/?p=5532"},"modified":"2026-01-06T15:10:43","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T21:10:43","slug":"are-backlinks-important","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.digitalstrike.com\/are-backlinks-important\/","title":{"rendered":"Are Backlinks Important Anymore?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Google dropped a bombshell recently:<\/span> backlinks aren\u2019t actually all that important to ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs) as many initially believed<\/span><\/a>. This revelation has left many digital marketers wondering, \u201cAre backlinks important anymore?\u201d The answer is <\/span>Yes<\/i><\/b>.<\/span><\/p>\n

But, like, it\u2019s complicated.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here\u2019s why.<\/span><\/p>\n

Backlinks? What are those?<\/b><\/h2>\n

Let\u2019s make sure we\u2019re all on the same page.<\/span><\/p>\n

What\u2019s a backlink?<\/b> A backlink is a link that goes to your website from another point on the Internet, like forums, social media posts, and a competitor\u2019s website.<\/span><\/p>\n

Why are backlinks important?<\/b> (Or, at least, why did conventional wisdom say that they were important before the Google leaks?) Having backlinks to your site is an important aspect of search engine optimization, or SEO, strategy. Specifically, backlinks act like a vote of confidence for your site, telling search engines that your site is trustworthy, relevant, and has good content worth reading. This vote of confidence affects search engine rankings, as the more high-quality backlinks your site has, the more likely search platforms are to reward your site with higher rankings in organic SERPs.<\/span><\/p>\n

Types of Links<\/b><\/h2>\n

Now that we know what backlinks are, let\u2019s talk more about other types of links (trust us; this knowledge will come in handy in a moment).<\/span><\/p>\n

External Links vs Internal Links<\/b><\/h3>\n

External links<\/b> are links that go from your website to another domain. These links are important for SEO because they signal to search engines that you are citing your sources and have done your research, making you appear more credible. Think of it this way: would you trust a student\u2019s paper that cited everything properly, or a paper that ended with \u201cTrust me, bro\u201d?<\/span><\/p>\n

Internal links<\/b> are links that go from one page on your website to another page on your website. These links are important as they create a complex web of relevancy that tells search platforms in greater detail what pages on your site are about and how they relate to each other.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A<\/p>\n

Dofollow Links vs Nofollow Links<\/b><\/h3>\n

\u201cDofollow\u201d and \u201cnofollow\u201d are link attributes, meaning they are bits of code that tell search platforms how they should read the links they are attributed to.<\/span><\/p>\n

Dofollow links<\/b> are links that search engines know to crawl and index; these types of backlinks help boost page rankings for whatever page they direct to. By default, all links are dofollow unless specified otherwise.<\/span><\/p>\n

Nofollow links<\/b>, traditionally, were links that search engines did not crawl and index, meaning they did not affect page rankings. Google has revealed that in recent years, however, it does<\/em> use nofollow link attributes as link signals<\/a>, or signals to help search engines better understand links and their strength for ranking purposes.<\/span><\/p>\n

Outbound Links vs Inbound Links<\/b><\/h3>\n

Outbound links,<\/b> external links, or outgoing links, are links that go from your website to another website.<\/span><\/p>\n

Inbound links<\/b>, or incoming links, are links that come to your website from another website.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Graphic<\/p>\n

Good Backlinks vs Bad Backlinks<\/b><\/h3>\n

Not all backlinks are created equal. Google and other search engines will reward your site for having \u201cgood\u201d backlinks… and punish your site for having too many \u201cbad\u201d backlinks.<\/span><\/p>\n

A <\/span>good backlink<\/b> is a link to your website from a high-authority website. Having high-quality backlinks can signal to search engines that your site is worth reading and, therefore, worth rewarding with higher Google rankings.<\/span><\/p>\n

A <\/span>bad backlink<\/b> is a low-quality link to your website from a low-domain authority site or site that otherwise appears spammy. Having a few bad backlinks won\u2019t hurt your website, but if your website has tons of bad backlinks\u2014and only bad backlinks\u2014Google and other search platforms will penalize your site.<\/span><\/p>\n

Importance of Backlinks<\/b><\/h2>\n

Now that you know what backlinks (and other types of links) are, it\u2019s time to talk about why backlinks are important… just not in the same way as many digital marketers initially thought.<\/span><\/p>\n

Many SEO strategists assumed that having lots and lots of backlinks was important for building site authority. While backlinks <\/span>are<\/span><\/i> important for determining domain authority in search engine algorithms, a recent Google leak revealed that a site doesn\u2019t really need <\/span>that<\/span><\/i> many high-quality backlinks to rank well in organic search results. In other words, backlinks are still an important part of SEO strategy, but the quality of links should always come before quantity.<\/span><\/p>\n

Having good quality backlinks can help:<\/span><\/p>\n