If your website is a part of an affiliate or some referral program, you probably have been told to buy backlinks from other similar sites. While this idea may seem appropriate on the surface, there are many reasons why it might be a bad idea that will end up hurting you more than helping you. In this article, you will uncover six aspects to avoid when buying backlinks.
1) Buying links from a source with poor website structure/navigation
Website navigation and structure is critical to Google and other search engines since it helps them determine what the site is about. Is there something for everyone? Or is it more specialized? Do you get lost once you start exploring the website? If these types of things are going on, then Google might see your link as less relevant than others, or worse yet, completely irrelevant at all, which means it will hurt your rankings and that people won’t ever click on it either. When someone gets lost looking around a website, they assume the content they were looking for isn’t there in the first place. That means you’re paying for something that people don’t want, which will never be valuable to anyone.
2) Buying links from a source with a site full of ads and popups
While it makes sense that websites with intrusive advertisements are more likely to have some monetization going on, this can ruin your rankings. Google especially doesn’t like people who try to get around their system by using AdSense everywhere on the page (especially the top and side). They will punish these sites for doing this by dropping them out of the search results entirely. Further, people hate annoying popup ads even more, which is why they’re doubtful about clicking on one. It’s probably best to avoid sites/services with these types of things going on.
3) Buying too many links at once
When you buy a link, your goal should be to have Google believe that you indeed are an authoritative website in your niche for whatever keyword(s) you are targeting with the link. You can do that by ensuring your backlink profile looks natural and isn’t pushing things too far by having too many links from one domain coming in all at once. You have to remember that just because you bought a backlink from one source doesn’t mean that every person who sees it will click on it right away. On top of that, Google constantly updates its algorithms to fight back against this sort of thing.
4) Buying the same link multiple times
When buying backlinks from somebody, they are supposed to pass them through their website’s code, which will then show your website’s URL to all of their visitors looking for that specific keyword(s). If you find out that the site owner has passed along the same link repeatedly (which happens often), you’re going to end up with too many links pointing at your website from one source. That can result in being penalized by Google. If someone wants to place the same link on different pages or posts on their site, they should let you know to negotiate a rate for it.
5) Buying links from a source with a bad reputation
Just as you should check a source’s link profile before buying any of their links, you also need to ensure that these individuals haven’t been penalized by Google or other search engines. Searching around online will give you an idea if this is the case, but always do your research. It’s better to go with somebody who has never been involved in anything fishy rather than end up at the receiving end of some bad SEO. Remember that just because they’ve done it before doesn’t mean they’re guaranteed to get away with it again, so don’t take a risk if you’re not sure.
6) Buying backlinks with keyword-rich anchor text
Anchor text refers to the visible part of a link that appears in front of most keywords, which Google uses to determine what your site is about. For instance, if you buy links with the anchor text “cheap flights” pointing at your website, they’re probably going to assume your site sells cheap airline tickets or something along those lines. If you are buying links with keyword-rich anchor text, not only might it tip off search engines, but also some people see this as spammy and obvious (which makes them less likely to click on it.) Keyword-stuffed anchor texts are considered bad SEO by Google and other major search engines, and if you are going to use them, make sure they include at least one of your primary keywords.
