Is It Worth Buying Backlinks in 2024?

New search engine optimization (SEO) trends will impact how modern marketers develop their strategies in 2024. One approach that has recently helped advertising teams reach new heights is link buying. As the new year begins, marketers are wondering if the strategy will continue to provide the same value for their investment.

To help equip marketers with the right SEO strategy this year, we will discuss how buying backlinks can help brands build their presence online. After reading, you can decide whether buying links is a strategy your organization can heavily benefit from.

Understanding the Role of Links in SEO

Link buying is an SEO tactic involving paying a site owner in exchange for backlinks. A website owner sells a placement or position on their site, allowing other brands to publish posts and links that redirect to their website. 

This year, SEO professionals believe that marketers will continue to get value from investing in paid links. The strategy allows brands to quickly boost their content and web pages at the top of the search engine results page (SERP). It aims to improve a website’s trustworthiness and domain rating/domain authority (DR/DA).

Search engines use various factors and metrics to determine the ranking of a particular website. Trustworthiness is only one of these factors. By getting high-quality backlinks from other trusted websites, modern brands can prove that their websites deserve a high ranking.

The more high-authority backlinks on your content, the higher you can place in the search results. Meanwhile, those who acquire cheap backlinks or spammy links will appear lower. In some cases, Google may even completely devalue a webpage and remove it from the rankings if the search engine deems it unhelpful to searchers.

Remember that your website’s backlink profile impacts overall authority. Having reputable websites publish your links encourages organic search growth and generates more traffic.

Due to its impact on a brand’s online presence, link buying must be a part of your company’s SEO strategy. There are rarely free backlinks, and link building remains a crucial component of optimization. In fact, 43.7 percent of top-ranking pages on Google use link-building strategies, such as link exchanges.

How SearchEye is changing link building

One effective way to do link-building properly is to work with expert digital marketing agencies. At SearchEye, we help clients implement SEO strategies that will make them stand out in a crowded market. 

For example, one of our clients is a virtual private network (VPN) provider facing dwindling traffic, pressure from competitors, and low brand recognition. The VPN industry is highly competitive, and getting audience attention is a constant battle among the most prominent players.

To help turn things around, SearchEye developed a content strategy for the brand. The aim was to find the right content that resonates with the VPN company’s audience and boost search traffic.

This strategy was supplemented with a link-building approach focused on securing impactful backlinks from publishers active within the VPN industry.

After a year of working with our company, our client saw a significant boost in organic traffic and visibility, recording 238,000 new searches per month. Keywords in the top 100 also grew by 80.7 percent, from roughly 76,800 to 138,900.

Through SearchEye, the VPN provider also collaborated with publishers like:

Today, the SearchEye team continues to work hard to help the company maintain and accelerate growth.

Benefits of Buying Backlinks

To highlight the significance of this approach, let us take an in-depth look at the positive impact of buying backlinks for web pages. After reading, you will learn how your brand can benefit from implementing this SEO strategy in 2024.

Boosts site quality

In the early days of SEO, the number of backlinks on a webpage was the most crucial factor in determining its ranking. However, as time passed and search algorithms became more sophisticated, search engines shifted their focus on the quality of the links. 

This year, building a diverse and high-quality backlink profile is more crucial than ever. This process involves including links from authoritative, relevant, and reputable sites, which carry more weight than low-quality links. Characteristics of a high-quality link include the following:

• Relevant
• Authoritative
• Organic acquisition
• Anchor text optimization
• Dofollow designation

To develop a high-quality backlink profile, marketers must focus on establishing relationships with thought leaders and industry influencers. These individuals can offer valuable links to a website and help boost visibility and authority within a particular industry. 

Moreover, staying active on social media can be an effective strategy for building new relationships and getting backlinks. By engaging with followers and sharing high-quality and relevant content, brands can attract attention from potential link partners and develop better SEO campaigns.

Establishes social proof

Now that social media and networking reign supreme among marketers, backlinks are a crucial tool for establishing social proof. While social media posts may not qualify as backlinks, they still offer a myriad of advantages for brands, including the following:

• Boosting online visibility
• Highlighting social content in SERPs
• Expanding audience reach and sparking engagement
• Positioning brands as thought leaders
• Demonstrating high-quality content from web pages

Reputable websites linking to your social media posts bolster your credibility with your target audience while improving your visibility. 

You can also maximize the impact of your social media advertising campaigns by connecting your company profiles with your website. This strategy allows you to feature your accounts in the knowledge panel of SERPs when searchers look up your brand.

You can encourage your audience and followers to interact with your original content by incorporating a call-to-action (CTA). Ask them to share snippets of your article on social media so their followers will also get your message.

Builds authority

When ranking web pages on SERPs, Google places significant weight on website authority and trustworthiness. One of the critical factors search engines use to evaluate a website’s authority is backlinks. 

Backlinks work like virtual endorsements, telling search engines that other popular and reliable sites endorse the content of the webpage. The more relevant backlinks a website has, the more likely search engines will consider it a reliable and authoritative source of information.

In 2024, the role of backlinks in building authority and gaining audience trust may become even more prominent. To cement their authority and credibility in the eyes of search engines, site owners must prioritize building high-quality backlinks from reputable sources. 

Marketers should always prioritize relevancy and human value when looking for authoritative backlinks. Ensure that the page linking to the website is relevant to your brand and audience. 

To incorporate human value into your link-building strategy, consider the following best practices:

• Reach out to the webmaster – Establish a rapport with the webmaster of the linking site. Demonstrating an understanding of their audience and genuine interest can foster a positive relationship.
• Show understanding of the publishing site’s audience – Show the webmaster that you know and comprehend their audience’s needs and preferences. Designing your approach to align with their interests can boost the likelihood of getting high-quality backlinks.
• Underscore unique value – Show how your content will provide value to the linking site’s audience. Highlight what sets your new content apart and why it would be valuable for readers.

By integrating human value and relevance into your link-building strategy, you can get authoritative backlinks that can boost your website’s visibility, credibility, and trustworthiness.

Elevates user experience

User experience remains significant in SEO, especially when talking about backlinks. When searchers click on a backlink, they expect to be redirected to additional valuable content. This process enriches their online experience and helps extend their time on the website. 

This engagement shows search engines that the website produces high-quality content that aligns with user intent.

Consider search engines as expansive libraries encompassing various subjects, with each book author trying hard to be endorsed. Similar to votes of confidence, backlinks serve as an effective way to get recommended and carry significant influence. 

Just as an endorsement for a popular book holds sway, a reputable site linking to another website conveys a similar sentiment. Google evaluates these backlinks or “endorsements” and says, “If reputable sources recommend this particular webpage, the content must be valuable.”

Backlinks also function as navigational aids, directing searchers to where they have to go to get the information they need. A link pointing in the right direction saves valuable time and effort, which can help improve user experience. Search engines use these navigational cues to determine which websites are most beneficial and relevant to users’ search queries.

Ethical Considerations of Link Buying in 2024

According to Google Search Essentials, links designed to manipulate rankings in SERPs are considered link spam, which undermines search results. This process includes the following strategies:

• Selling or buying links to improve DR/DA or SERP rankings
• Excessive link exchanges
• Distribution of links in the footers or templates of different sites
• Building partner pages for cross-linking purposes
• Text ads or text links that do not block ranking credit
• Low-quality directory site links
• Using automated services to build links to a website
• Keyword-rich or low-quality links embedded in widgets spread across various sites
• Forum responses filed with optimized links in the post or links in the signature

Despite this rule, site owners and web admins still sell backlinks, and marketing agencies continue to offer paid linking services.

Why site owners sell backlinks

After learning Google’s guidelines, you may wonder why web admins still sell backlinks. Website owners also benefit when selling links, making the process mutually beneficial for both parties.

By selling links, webmasters can give their audience exciting and relevant content without spending time and effort making it themselves. The payment from link-building opportunities can also help them cover operational expenses, such as administrative or website maintenance costs.

Site owners recognize how valuable backlinks can be to modern businesses, seeing them as lucrative money-making opportunities. With this knowledge, only a few are willing to offer free links.

That said, not all publishers are the same, with some site owners following Google’s guidelines better than others. Some accept every paid link offer, which can be a mistake that may devalue their site in the future. Meanwhile, others have more stringent requirements on the content and links they accept. 

If you plan to implement a backlink acquisition strategy this year, work with publishers who care how your content will impact their audiences.

Why marketing agencies offer paid links

With free backlinks becoming rare and reputable sites charging for publishing posts, developing a high-quality backlink profile has become challenging without expert assistance.

The best marketing agencies recommend an SEO strategy that involves developing high-quality content for relevant sites, supplemented by a strategic backlink approach to yield the best results.

Since the most sought-after link placements come with a fee, marketing agencies often provide paid links if needed. Buying links may be an effective way to break through in fiercely competitive industries where acquiring backlinks is almost impossible.

That said, the best agencies get paid not to help clients buy links but to provide expertise. These companies help clients develop professional relationships with site owners, build the right content strategy, and provide the tools to perform competitive analysis and keyword research.

Choose to work with link-building agencies that can help your site appear higher in relevant search results without relying on cheap black hat tricks that damage searcher’s online experience and websites.

In short, while Google considers link buying a link scheme, paid backlinks remain prevalent in the SEO industry. Today, getting top rankings against competitors can be a real challenge without some form of a link acquisition strategy.

Google prefers and rewards organic SEO practices. Unfortunately, the massive amount of online content makes organic backlink acquisition nearly impossible. 

Additionally, Google is aware of the common practice of buying and selling backlinks. However, there are significant differences between outright purchasing backlinks from marketplaces and working with experts to facilitate the acquisition of high-quality backlinks through organic, content-based tactics.

Hiring reputable, white-hat link-building agencies allows brands to acquire backlinks through high-quality content creation, strategies, and outreach. This approach eliminates the risk of jeopardizing your website’s ranking and reputation in your effort to get links.

In 2024, backlinks will remain crucial for brands wanting to improve their reach and build their online presence. Marketers should be prepared to pivot as backlinking continues to evolve and search engines focus even more on the quality, relevance, and context of links.

The SearchEye Solution: Optimization Beyond Link Building

SearchEye stands out as a beacon for forward-thinking content marketers navigating the complexities of SEO in 2024. Our company connects brands with reputable publishers, facilitating the acquisition of high-quality links, mentions, and quotes. Our marketplace model emphasizes transparency, efficiency, and, most importantly, adherence to SEO best practices.

We offer a strategic approach to getting high-quality backlinks, blending ethical practices with strategic insight. Our approach not only aligns with Google’s guidelines but also paves the way for sustainable digital growth. 

As we look towards the future of SEO, it’s clear that the landscape is shifting from traditional link building to a more integrated approach of brand building. At SearchEye, we understand that authority and credibility cannot be established through backlinks alone. Hence, we’re expanding our strategies to include securing Expert Quotes, Brand Mentions, Interviews, and Full Features for our clients. 

This multifaceted approach is designed to not only enhance your SEO performance but also to solidify your brand’s authority in your industry. By leveraging these elements, we help brands craft a narrative that resonates with their audience, establishes their expertise, and positions them as leaders in their field. 

This is the new era of SEO—where brand building and storytelling take center stage, ensuring that your brand doesn’t just appear in search results but dominates them. Through SearchEye’s innovative strategies, your brand can achieve unparalleled visibility, credibility, and engagement, setting the foundation for long-term success in the digital landscape.

Sign up to SearchEye today and check out how our solutions can position your business to succeed in the competitive landscape of SEO.