Backlinks refer to external links connecting a webpage, also referred to as inbound links. Backlinks are important in SEO (Search Engine optimization) for a number of reasons. They include:
- Attract the much-needed referral traffic to one’s website
- Help in faster indexing of a new website
- Enhances natural linking to various websites thus increasing the ranks in the search engine
Over the years, there are many myths that have come up regarding backlinks. In this article, there will be a breakdown for the biggest backlinks myths.
The more the backlinks the higher the rank
The quantity of the links matter but the biggest myth is that the more backlinks the rank will be higher. The number of backlinks is not as important as the quality of backlinks which is understood by experts like SEO Shark. It would be better to have a few quality backlinks from websites with high authority than many from low quality websites.
Links from low quality website design and old websites do not count
The myth is that a search engine cares on the look and design on the website, that if the link is from an old source it will not count.
The search engine does not care how the website design is like, what is important is the content emanating from the site. It is not also concerned on how old the website is.
Only high-quality links that matter
The other biggest myth is that Google only considers high quality links.
The quality of the links is important but it does not mean you cannot have the perceived low-quality links. What is important is to make sure all the backlinks are making sense.
Blog comments are bad links
Blog commenting is misconceived as spam. This is another of the biggest backlink myths. What is important is to ensure that you only comment on blogs that are relevant to your business. Give a genuine comment not necessary targeting creating a backlink.
Name mentions without a link count as backlink
The biggest myth, that if an article mentions your name without a link the search engine will count. It is not a common occurrence, that a search engine gets to count a mention without a link; in most cases they are ignored.
No-follow links are invalid
Another big myth is that no follow does not help as a stand-alone piece. No follow links still drive traffic to your website.
Getting links to fast will attract a penalty
Another biggest backlink myth is that Google has a penalty for links generated too fast. The fact is Google has patents filed applications against spam and low-quality links.
Never get backlinks from directories
This myth was, generated, because Google has in the past-penalized links emanating from low-quality directories. However once can use links from great quality directories with useful resources.
Bio links are useless
The myth is that a bio link is useless and if a link is mentioned in ones’ bio then it’s of no help. The fact is, bio is a strong base for awesome content creation and promotion using a different website viewer base.
People need to change on these misconceptions. No one who has a guarantee of what a search engine use, we live by presumptions.