Link building is the work of earning links from other websites to your own. Google says its ranking systems use links to understand what pages are about, so relevant links can help a new business rank. The safe strategies are relevant guest posts, broken-link outreach and content worth citing; buying links for ranking is link spam under Google’s policies.
Key Takeaways
- Google’s ranking systems guide (updated December 2025) says PageRank and link analysis are still part of its core ranking systems.
- Google’s spam policies list buying or selling links for ranking purposes, excessive link exchanges and automated link creation as link spam.
- Paid or sponsored links must carry rel=”sponsored” or rel=”nofollow”; links in comments and forums should carry rel=”ugc”.
- Guest posting is allowed when it informs readers; Google warned in May 2017 against guest posts made mainly to build links at scale.
- Google Search Console’s free Links report shows which sites link to you and with what anchor text.
New business owners have quite the hurdle to overcome, especially in a competitive industry. No one’s going to hold your hand while you try to work toward success, and your competitors will constantly try to take your target demographic through various marketing tactics. It’s a frustrating situation, especially if you aren’t sure where to start.
Fortunately, you don’t have to tackle everything alone. One of the core principles of startup management is the ability to take from the example of successful companies to help elevate your position in the industry. It also means getting the help of experienced professionals to help make up for your lack of experience.
Digital marketing is typically the way to go, as it’s an easy way to get the attention of your demographic – provided you know what you’re doing.
There are plenty of link-building strategies out there, which is a way to let search engine algorithms know that your business is worth ranking on the search engine results page (SERP). Here are a few link-building strategies for startup owners.
Effective guest blogging for your business
Many people claim that guest blogging is an obsolete digital marketing method for search engine optimisation (SEO). The claim comes from the old, large-scale form of guest blogging: in a May 2017 reminder, Google said guest posts violate its link-scheme guidelines when their main intent is to build links back to the author’s site in a large-scale way.
To be fair, many SEO strategies from way back had a hectic and imprecise quality about them that made it difficult to get the job done. However, search engine algorithms these days are much smarter, and they can tell when certain backlinks have no use.
When you’re dealing with content marketing and writing guest blogs to help improve your link-building strategy, relevance counts for quite a lot.
If the website is not relevant to what you’re writing, it won’t do much to help your position in the industry. Therefore, it’s crucial to look for websites relevant to your niche to ensure that your guest blogs make the most out of the situation.
Going for link-building agencies that know what they’re doing
While guest blogging can be an easy way to build backlinks, it’s crucial to get the help of a professional to make up for the lack of experience. Hiring marketing experts is not mandatory, but an experienced agency can ease the burden and give an owner more time to focus on running the business.
Research any agency carefully before hiring it: ask how links are earned and avoid providers that sell links, because Google’s spam policies list buying or selling links for ranking purposes as link spam.
Looking into broken links
One of the interesting things about link-building is you can find it in the most unlikely of places. For example, many quality blogging sites out there link to sites that no longer exist.
Considering the number of businesses that have come and gone over the years, it’s only natural there would be plenty of dead links. That said, each link is an opportunity for your company to fill in the void with relevant content.
Furthermore, there are software platforms capable of finding dead links you could potentially use to help your business. The usual method is to tell the webmaster about the dead link and suggest a relevant page of yours as a replacement; the site owner decides whether to use it.
It’s not something that everyone considers, but there are undoubtedly plenty of solutions you can use if you’re willing to look.
Connect with your audience
Last but certainly not least, connect with your audience in every method you can think of. You can use social media to help bridge the gap, as well as focus on customer service to get people talking.
Reply to the feedback you get from your supporters, and foster loyalty to your brand. That way, anything you market through social media gets the engagement your company needs.
Conclusion
Most new companies benefit from digital marketing, and earned links are one part of it. With the link-building strategies above, it’ll be much easier to get search engine algorithms to take notice, giving you the opportunity you need to successfully market your company.
What Is Link Building and Why Does It Matter for a New Business?
Link building is the process of getting other websites to link to pages on your site. A link from a relevant site acts as a reference: it helps search engines discover the page and judge what it is about.
According to Google’s guide to its ranking systems (last updated December 2025), Google’s link analysis systems, including PageRank, “understand how pages link to each other” to work out what pages are about and which might be most helpful. Google says PageRank has evolved a lot since it began and is still part of its core ranking systems.
A new business website usually starts with few or no links, which is why a deliberate, policy-safe plan matters. Readers new to the basics can start with this guide to small business SEO on a tight budget.
What Does Google Count as Link Spam?
Google’s spam policies for Search (page last updated August 2026) treat links created mainly to manipulate rankings as link spam. The examples Google lists include:
- Buying or selling links for ranking purposes, including exchanging money, goods or services for links.
- Excessive link exchanges (“link to me and I’ll link to you”) or partner pages made only for cross-linking.
- Using automated programs or services to create links to your site.
- Text ads or text links that do not block ranking credit.
- Guest posts and advertorials with optimized anchor text spread across many sites.
- Low-quality directory or bookmark site links, and widely distributed links in footers or templates of various sites.
- Forum comments with optimized links in the signature.
Google detects spam with systems including SpamBrain, which its ranking systems guide says is constantly updated as spam tactics change. Buying an advertisement is allowed when the link is qualified, as the next section explains.
Which rel Attributes Should Paid and Guest Links Use?
Google announced the rel=”sponsored” and rel=”ugc” values on September 10, 2019, alongside the older rel=”nofollow”. Google treats all three as hints rather than strict rules; for crawling and indexing, nofollow became a hint on March 1, 2020.
| Attribute | Use it for | Example for a new business |
|---|---|---|
| rel=”sponsored” | Advertisements, sponsorships and other paid placements | A paid listing or sponsored article that links to your site |
| rel=”ugc” | User-generated content such as comments and forum posts | Links customers leave in comments on your blog |
| rel=”nofollow” | Links you do not want associated with your site when the other values do not apply | A link you have to include but cannot vouch for |
Google’s documentation on qualifying outbound links (updated December 2025) says buying or selling links is acceptable when they are qualified with rel=”sponsored” or rel=”nofollow”. A paid link without one of these values risks being treated as link spam.
How Do You Guest Post Without Breaking Google’s Rules?
Google’s Webspam Team wrote on May 25, 2017 that it does not discourage guest articles that inform users, educate another site’s audience or raise awareness of a cause or company. It named four factors that, taken to an extreme, can indicate a link scheme:
- Stuffing keyword-rich links to your site into the articles.
- Publishing the articles across many different sites, or a large number of articles on a few large sites.
- Using or hiring writers who are not knowledgeable about the topics.
- Using the same or similar content across the articles, or duplicating articles from your own site (where Google advised rel=”canonical” together with rel=”nofollow”).
Google also suggested questions that host sites should ask: Do I know this person? Does the message fit my audience? Is the article useful? Has the author used rel=”nofollow” on links of questionable intent? A new business owner whose pitch passes those questions is offering the right kind of guest post. For more on striking the balance, see link building versus content creation.
A Step-by-Step Link Building Plan for New Business Owners
- Set up Google Search Console. Its Links report shows your top linked pages, top linking sites and top linking text. Each table shows up to 1,000 rows, and the export button can download up to 100,000 rows.
- Fix your own pages first. Make sure the pages you want linked load correctly and use clear titles; structured data can help, as explained in this guide to improving SEO with schema markup.
- List relevant sites in your niche. Look for industry blogs, local news sites and trade associations whose readers match your customers.
- Pitch useful guest articles. Offer an original article written by someone who knows the topic, with at most a natural link back to your site.
- Run broken-link outreach. Use a link checker on relevant sites, find links to pages that no longer exist, and suggest your matching page as a replacement.
- Earn local and community links. Customers, suppliers, events and local organizations often link to businesses they work with; local search is covered in why local SEO matters for your business.
- Qualify anything paid. If you pay for a placement, ask for rel=”sponsored” or rel=”nofollow” on the link.
- Review the Links report regularly. Check new linking sites and anchor text, and investigate any unfamiliar or spammy sources.
Should a New Business Use Google’s Disavow Tool?
Usually not. Google’s Search Console help says most sites will not need the disavow links tool, because Google can assess which links to trust without extra guidance. Google advises using it only when a site has a considerable number of spammy, artificial or low-quality links that have caused, or likely will cause, a manual action.
A disavow file must be a UTF-8 or 7-bit ASCII .txt file of up to 100,000 lines and 2MB, with one URL or domain per line. Google warns that incorrect use can harm a site’s performance in Search.
Common Link Building Mistakes to Avoid
| Mistake | Why it is a problem | Safer alternative |
|---|---|---|
| Buying unqualified links | Listed as link spam in Google’s spam policies | Buy ads only with rel=”sponsored” or rel=”nofollow” |
| Mass guest posting with keyword-rich anchors | Named by Google in its May 2017 warning | Fewer, relevant articles with natural anchors |
| Automated link creation tools | Listed as link spam in Google’s spam policies | Manual, personalized outreach |
| “Link to me and I’ll link to you” schemes | Excessive link exchanges are link spam | Link to partners only where it helps readers |
| Disavowing links without a reason | Google warns misuse can harm performance | Use the tool only for manual-action risk |
Link building also sits inside a wider search strategy; this explainer on SEO versus SEM shows where paid search fits alongside earned links.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best link building strategy for a new business?
The best link building strategy for a new business combines relevant guest articles, broken-link outreach and local or partner links. These methods earn links from sites whose readers match the business’s customers, and they stay within Google’s spam policies.
Is guest posting still allowed by Google?
Yes. Google said in May 2017 that it does not discourage guest articles that inform or educate readers. Guest posts become a problem when their main intent is building links at scale, for example with keyword-stuffed anchors across many sites.
Can I pay for backlinks?
Paying for links that pass ranking credit is link spam under Google’s spam policies. Paid placements are acceptable when the link carries rel=”sponsored” or rel=”nofollow”, which tells Google the link is qualified rather than an endorsement.
How can I see who links to my website?
Google Search Console’s Links report lists your top linked pages, top linking sites and top linking text for free. Each table shows up to 1,000 rows, and an export of up to 100,000 rows is available.
What is the difference between nofollow and sponsored links?
Rel=”sponsored” marks advertisements and paid placements, while rel=”nofollow” is a general value for links a site does not want associated with it. Google introduced sponsored on September 10, 2019 and treats both as hints.
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