What is link building
Link building is the process of acquiring hyperlinks from other websites pointing to yours. Those hyperlinks are called backlinks, and they work like recommendations — the more high-quality recommendations your site has, the more trustworthy search engines (and AI models) consider it to be.
Search engines like Google use backlinks as one of the strongest signals when judging the relevance and authority of a page. Link building is therefore an essential part of any serious SEO strategy.
Backlinks remain one of the strongest signals Google uses to determine the quality and relevance of a page.
Why link building matters
Without an active link-building strategy, a new website can take years to build sufficient authority to rank for competitive keywords. Three concrete benefits:
- Higher rankings in Google and Seznam for competitive keywords
- Higher Domain Rating (DR) and trust signal across your entire site
- Referral traffic from articles read by your target audience
- Direct citations in AI Overviews, ChatGPT and Perplexity
- Stronger brand recognition across niche communities
How link building works
Every backlink to your site passes a portion of authority (often called “link juice”) from the source page. The strength of that signal depends primarily on:
- 1
Source domain authority
A link from a high-DR, well-indexed domain carries more weight than a link from a thin, unknown site. - 2
Topical relevance
A fitness blog linking to a fitness shop matters more than an unrelated lifestyle blog linking to the same shop. - 3
Anchor text
The actual hyperlinked words convey context to search engines. Mix branded, naked-URL and partial-match anchors. - 4
Link placement
Links in the editorial body of an article are stronger signals than links buried in footers or sidebars. - 5
Dofollow vs nofollow
Dofollow links pass authority directly; nofollow links contribute to brand visibility and AI citations. - 6
Outbound-link density
A page that links to 200 external sites passes less authority per link than a focused article with 5 outbound links.
Types of backlinks
Dofollow vs nofollow
A dofollow link (the default) passes authority. A nofollow link has the rel="nofollow" attribute and does not directly pass ranking signal — but still drives traffic and brand exposure.
Editorial vs paid
Editorial links earned through quality content are the gold standard. Paid placements on relevant sites — disclosed correctly — are also a legitimate tactic widely used by agencies. Black-hat PBN links and paid links presented as editorial are a violation of search-engine guidelines and risk manual actions.
Link-building methods
The main methods we use at LinksQueen:
Methods we use at LinksQueen
We combine four complementary tactics so the link profile stays diverse, defensible and AI-friendly.
- PR articles on thematic magazines — Editorial articles with 1–3 contextual backlinks, published on our own network and on vetted third-party magazines with high DR.
- Brand mentions in discussions — Authentic brand mentions in forums and discussions — with and without hyperlink — feed AI Overviews and ChatGPT citations.
- Content creation — Long-form, evergreen articles for your blog optimized for both classical SEO and Generative Engine Optimization (GEO).
Link building & AI search
In 2026, AI-driven search — Google AI Overviews, ChatGPT search, Perplexity — is no longer experimental. It is the primary entry point for a growing share of queries. AI models pick citations based on a brand’s presence in their training data and live web index — and that presence is driven primarily by editorial mentions and backlinks.
See our dedicated article on backlinks and AI search for the full breakdown.
Best practices in 2026
- Prioritize topical relevance over raw DR
- Diversify your anchor-text profile: brand, naked URL, partial-match, long-tail
- Build links on a steady monthly schedule, not in spikes
- Mix dofollow, nofollow, link types and source types — natural profiles do
- Track every link in a permanent registry with screenshots
What to avoid
Stay clear of techniques that look cheap on paper but can crash your domain:
- Public link directories with no editorial review
- Comment-spam and forum-signature link blasting
- Private blog networks (PBNs)
- Mass guest posts on irrelevant low-quality sites
- Exact-match anchor text overuse
Important metrics
The metrics we track for every campaign:
| Metric | What it measures | Healthy growth |
|---|---|---|
| Domain Rating (DR) | Ahrefs score 0–100 of overall domain strength | +10 to +20 per year for mid-size sites |
| Referring Domains (RD) | Unique domains linking to your site | +150 to +300 per year for active campaigns |
| Organic clicks (GSC) | Real clicks from search results | +20–50% YoY on tracked clusters |
| Brand mentions (un-linked) | Brand named in editorial content without hyperlink | Treated as a citation signal by AI |
Frequently asked questions
10+ years of experience in SEO and link building. Built link campaigns for clients ranging from one-person shops to international brands. Speaks regularly on Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) and AI-driven search.
Sources & references
- 1Google Search Central — Search Essentials — official Google guidelines for webmasters and SEO professionals
- 2Ahrefs Blog — Link Building — industry-leading research and case studies on link-building tactics
- 3Moz — Beginner’s Guide to Backlinks — foundational SEO concepts and link-building basics