The world of SEO has been constantly evolving, with rankings on search engines influenced by a multitude of factors. Link building used to be the undisputed king in this regard and was seen as an essential vote for any website’s credibility. Fast forward to today, search engines are using more sophisticated algorithms that place less emphasis on backlinks quantity – but don’t write them off just yet! We’ll take a look at how link-building has changed over time and why it remains relevant now (even if not quite as much).

Link building has come a long way! 

Since the start of SEO, link acquisition has been a cornerstone of any SEO campaign. Although this has had many positive impacts on website ranking and visibility, some unscrupulous SEO folks are known to have taken advantage of it by deliberately spiking up their link counts in underhanded ways – otherwise known as ‘backlink spamming‘. Google’s Penguin update was designed specifically to tackle such practices. It started way back with what we know today as “Link Farming“. This involved groups of low-quality websites linking amongst themselves just so they could get higher rankings even though they weren’t really helping anyone out at all!

SEO has come a long way, and search engines have learned to sniff out shady tactics like automated link-building tools that flood low-quality backlinks into irrelevant websites. It’s no wonder these methods are frowned upon – not only do they provide minimal value for users but make it harder for the algorithm to identify quality sources of information. Fortunately, we can all rest easy knowing that search engines have now become wise to such tricks with more advanced algorithms, AI, and machine learning.

Stepping into a new era 

It looks like we’ve finally reached the age of sophistication when it comes to search engine optimization! Gone are the days when you simply needed a ton of backlinks in order for a website to rank successfully. Now, high-quality links from reliable sources reign supreme – furthermore envious competitors won’t stand much chance in their attempts at sabotage anymore! Search engines have caught up with these tactics and no longer reward cheap tricks; they’re smarter than ever before and see right through irrelevant bulk linking schemes.  As Barry Schwartz’s recent survey revealed, search engines now prioritize quality over quantity when it comes to links for ranking websites. This is because search engines take into account factors such as link relevancy, text anchor relevance, and domain authority when assessing a page for rankings meaning it takes more than just having lots of backlinks for a website to climb its way up! 

Going forward

• Creating useful content – Creating content that’s valuable and useful to users should be priority number one. When your content is great, organic backlinks from other sites can come naturally. It’s important not to bother too much with link-building activities themselves, but to spend more time creating valuable content that your audience will find useful.
• Build relationships – Rather than focusing on acquiring backlinks alone, consider using your content as an icebreaker, showcasing your expertise, and building relationships with other relevant websites by exchanging knowledge, and publishing useful information. You’ll not only be spreading knowledge but also building valuable relationships which can bring in good links organically.
• Monitor your backlinks – Keep your finger on the pulse of your backlink situation – it’s key to preserving a sterling online reputation. Monitoring tools like Google Search Console, Semrush, and Ahrefs can help you spot any spammy links that might show up sometimes due to negative SEO attacks. 

Despite Google’s stance that the importance of backlinks is on its way down, acquiring ‘good’ links is still effective in boosting a website’s rankings, but links have to be acquired in an ethical way. Link building is still a key component of any effective SEO Strategy.