Marketing
What is link building and how to do it (a practical guide)
A plain-English guide to link building: what backlinks are, why Google values them, and safe, practical ways a small business can earn them.
Rapid Action Team · · 9 min read
Key takeaways
- Link building is the work of getting other relevant websites to link to your pages, which helps search engines judge how trustworthy and useful you are.
- One link from a respected, on-topic site is usually worth more than dozens of links from random directories.
- The safest links are earned through useful content, real relationships and genuine business activity, not bought in bulk.
- Treat link building as a steady monthly habit and track results in terms of rankings and traffic, not just link counts.
If you have spent any time reading about SEO, you will have come across the phrase "link building". It is often described in vague terms or wrapped in jargon, which makes it hard to know whether it is something your business actually needs to think about.
This guide explains what link building is, why it still matters for Google rankings, which links are worth having and which to avoid, and the tactics we see working for small and medium-sized UK businesses. By the end you should be able to put together a simple plan you can run each month.
What is link building?
Link building is the process of getting other websites to add hyperlinks that point to pages on your website. Those incoming links are called backlinks (or inbound links), and gathering good ones is a core part of off-page SEO.
Search engines use links in two main ways:
- To discover pages. Crawlers follow links from one page to another, so a link from a well-crawled site helps new pages get found.
- To judge importance and trust. A link works a bit like a reference. When an established, relevant site links to you, it suggests your page is worth reading. Google's original PageRank system was built on this idea, and links remain part of how it assesses pages today.
Not every link is equal, though. A link from a respected trade publication in your sector carries far more weight than one from a spammy directory that lists anyone who pays.
Backlinks, internal links and external links
These terms get mixed up, so here is a quick reference:
| Term | What it means | Who controls it |
|---|---|---|
| Backlink | A link on another website pointing to yours | The other site owner |
| Internal link | A link from one page on your site to another page on your site | You |
| External (outbound) link | A link from your site to another website | You |
| Referring domain | A unique website that links to you, however many links it gives | The other site owner |
Link building is mostly about backlinks and referring domains. Internal linking is still worth doing well, because it spreads the value of the links you earn across your site.
Why link building still matters for SEO
Google has said for years that it uses hundreds of signals to rank pages, and content relevance comes first. A page that does not answer the searcher's question will not rank, however many links it has. But when several pages are similarly relevant, links are one of the clearest ways for Google to tell them apart.
In practice, we see three benefits for small businesses:
- Better rankings for competitive terms. For phrases where competitors have strong content too, a handful of quality links is often what moves a page from page two to page one.
- Referral traffic. A link in a well-read article or local news story sends real visitors, some of whom become customers.
- Brand credibility. Being mentioned by respected sites builds trust with people, not just algorithms.
What makes a good backlink?
Before you start chasing links, it helps to know what you are aiming for. These are the qualities we look at when judging whether a link is worth the effort.
Relevance
A link from a site in your industry, or one that serves the same audience, makes far more sense than an unrelated one. A Manchester bakery gains more from a local food blog than from a tech review site.
Authority and trust
Links from sites that are themselves well linked and well regarded pass more value. Third-party tools estimate this with scores such as Domain Rating or Authority Score. These are useful for comparison, but they are not Google metrics, so treat them as a rough guide.
Placement and context
A link inside the main body of an article, surrounded by relevant text, is generally worth more than one tucked into a footer or a long list of sponsors.
Anchor text
Anchor text is the clickable wording of a link. Natural anchors vary: your brand name, a plain URL, "this guide", and occasionally a descriptive phrase. If every link to you uses the same exact keyword, it looks manufactured.
Follow versus nofollow
Site owners can mark links with attributes such as rel="nofollow", rel="sponsored" or rel="ugc". Google treats these as hints rather than passing full value. They are still worth having, since they bring traffic and make your profile look natural, but followed editorial links are the main prize.
Links to avoid
Google's spam policies are clear that links bought or arranged mainly to manipulate rankings break its rules. The risk is not just a wasted budget; sites can lose rankings either through algorithm updates or a manual action.
Steer clear of:
- Paying for links that are not marked as sponsored
- Private blog networks (groups of sites built only to link out)
- Large-scale link exchanges ("I'll link to you if you link to me")
- Automated comment, forum or profile spam
- Low-quality directories that accept any submission
- Guest posts written purely to squeeze in keyword-rich links
How to do link building: seven practical tactics
There is no single trick. The businesses that build strong profiles combine a few reliable methods and keep at them. Here are the ones we find most effective.
1. Claim the easy foundation links
Start with links that come from simply being a real business:
- Accurate listings on reputable directories and platforms relevant to your sector
- Memberships of trade bodies, chambers of commerce and professional associations
- Supplier, manufacturer and partner pages that list stockists or clients
- Local organisations you sponsor or support
These rarely move rankings much on their own, but they are low risk and help build a natural-looking profile.
2. Reclaim unlinked brand mentions
People often mention your business without linking to it. Search for your brand name, your founders' names and your products, then politely ask the author to add a link. Because they already know you, the success rate tends to be higher than cold outreach.
3. Create linkable assets
A linkable asset is something people want to reference: original research, a free tool or calculator, a genuinely helpful guide, a set of local statistics, or a well-designed template. Think about what journalists, bloggers and other businesses in your niche keep needing and cannot easily find.
4. Study competitor backlinks
Use a backlink tool to see who links to the competitors outranking you. Some of those sites will link to anyone who offers something similar or better. Look for patterns: resource pages, roundups, local news, industry blogs.
5. Do targeted outreach
Once you have a list of relevant sites, contact the people who run them with a short, personal message that explains why your content helps their readers. Good outreach is specific. Mention the page you are referring to, say what you are offering and keep it brief.
6. Write guest articles for the right reasons
Writing for respected publications in your industry still works when the focus is on reaching a new audience. Pitch a useful idea, write something properly good and accept a single natural link to your site, usually in your author bio.
7. Use digital PR
Digital PR means creating stories that journalists want to cover, such as survey data, expert commentary or a timely angle on news in your sector. Services that connect journalists with expert sources can also lead to coverage. Links from news sites are hard to win but tend to be very valuable.
Link building tools that save time
You can start with a spreadsheet and Google, but the right tools make the process quicker and more consistent.
| Task | What the tool helps with |
|---|---|
| Backlink analysis | Seeing who links to you and your competitors |
| Prospecting | Finding relevant sites and contact details |
| Metric checks | Comparing estimated authority and traffic of prospects |
| Outreach | Sending and tracking personalised emails |
| Monitoring | Spotting new and lost links |
| Google Search Console | Free view of the sites Google knows link to you |
If you would rather hand it over, our link building service does all of this for you: we find relevant sites, check their metrics, run personal outreach and report every link, with each site approved by you first.
A simple monthly link building plan
Consistency beats bursts of activity. A small business can make real progress with a few hours a month if the work is focused.
- Week one: review. Check Search Console and your backlink tool for new and lost links. Note which pages you want to rank and which need more authority.
- Week two: prospect. Build a list of 20 to 40 relevant sites from competitor research, resource pages and industry publications.
- Week three: outreach. Send personalised emails, follow up once after about a week and log every response.
- Week four: create. Improve or produce one linkable piece of content to support next month's outreach.
Measure success by what matters to the business: rankings for target terms, organic traffic to key pages and enquiries. A rising link count is only useful if those numbers move too.
How long does link building take to work?
Expect a delay. New links need to be discovered and processed, and the effect on rankings usually builds over months rather than days. Pages that are already close to the top of results tend to respond fastest, so it often makes sense to point early efforts at those.
If you have a new site in a competitive market, plan for six to twelve months of steady activity before judging results. If you are in a smaller local niche, gains can come sooner.
FAQs
Is link building still worth it?
Yes, for most businesses that want to rank for competitive terms. Google still uses links as one of its signals, and good links also bring referral traffic and credibility. It works best alongside strong content and a technically sound website.
Is buying backlinks illegal?
It is not illegal, but buying links that pass ranking value without marking them as sponsored breaks Google's spam policies. That can lead to the links being ignored or, in worse cases, a manual action against your site.
How many backlinks do I need to rank?
There is no fixed number. It depends on how competitive the search term is and how strong the pages already ranking are. Compare yourself with the top results for your target phrase, and focus on quality and relevance rather than volume.
Can I do link building myself?
Yes. Foundation links, unlinked mentions and local relationships are all manageable in-house. Many businesses bring in help when they want to scale outreach or run digital PR, which needs more time and contacts.
What is the difference between link building and digital PR?
Link building is the broad goal of earning backlinks. Digital PR is one method of doing it, focused on getting coverage and links from news and media sites through stories and expert comment.
If you would like a clear view of your current backlink profile and where the best opportunities are, book a call with our team or request a free audit and we will show you where to start.
