What SEOs Get Wrong About Backlink Quality

Backlinks have long been a cornerstone of search engine optimization (SEO). They're one of the most powerful signals search engines use to determine the authority, relevance, and trustworthiness of a website. Yet, despite the wealth of information available today, many SEO professionals still misunderstand what constitutes a "quality" backlink. This misalignment often leads to wasted time, poor outreach strategies, and even penalties from search engines.

In this article, we'll unpack the most common misconceptions about backlink quality and provide a clear roadmap for identifying and securing backlinks that genuinely move the needle.

Misconception #1: Domain Authority (DA) Is Everything

One of the most prevalent errors in backlink analysis is the overreliance on metrics like Domain Authority (DA), Domain Rating (DR), or Trust Flow. While these third-party metrics can be useful for surface-level filtering, they are not used by Google in any official capacity. 

Google does not use Domain Authority or Domain Rank, these are proprietary scores developed by Moz, and DR by Ahrefs. These metrics are approximations and can be gamed.

The Reality:

What matters more than a high DA or DR is the contextual relevance of the linking site. A backlink from a small, niche-relevant blog can be more impactful than a link from a high-DA generalist site. Always consider the link's placement within a relevant ecosystem.

Misconception #2: More Backlinks Always = Better Rankings

Many SEOs still chase quantity over quality. Building thousands of links, especially through automated or low-quality directories, can do more harm than good.

The Reality:

Google's algorithms are much more sophisticated now. It's not about how many links you have, but about how many of them are trusted and contextually relevant. In fact, a large number of poor-quality links can trigger spam signals and lead to ranking drops or manual penalties.

There’s a common belief that as long as a link is embedded in content, it must be a good one. This is false.

The Reality:

Contextual links are generally better than those in sidebars or footers, but the quality of the content surrounding the link matters immensely. Google evaluates the entire page to determine its value. If the surrounding content is thin, AI-generated, or irrelevant, the link loses its potency.

Some SEOs entirely ignore no-follow links under the impression that they carry no value because they don’t pass PageRank.

The Reality:

No-follow links can still drive traffic, build brand visibility, and contribute to your overall backlink profile. Google also uses no-follow links for discovery and may still factor them into its algorithms in certain cases. A healthy backlink profile includes a natural mix of follow and no-follow links.

There’s a long-standing myth that links from .edu or .gov sites are inherently more powerful.

The Reality:

The domain extension means nothing on its own. What matters is the page’s content quality, topical relevance, and trust signals. A student blog on a .edu domain filled with spam links won't help your site—and might even hurt it.

Some SEO strategies overly focus on acquiring backlinks to the homepage.

The Reality:

Deep linking—earning links to internal pages—is vital for strengthening specific content and improving topic authority. Product pages, blog posts, and resources should all be part of your backlink strategy. It also creates a more natural link profile.

Misconception #7: Anchor Text Should Always Be Exact Match

Aggressive use of exact-match anchor text (e.g., using "best SEO software" every time) was once common. Today, it's a red flag.

The Reality:

A varied anchor text profile looks more natural and avoids triggering spam filters. Use a mix of branded, partial-match, generic ("click here"), and long-tail anchors. Diversity is key.

To separate the wheat from the chaff, use these criteria:

1. Relevance: Is the linking site topically aligned with your site?

2. Placement: Is the link embedded in meaningful content, not hidden in footers or sidebars?

3. Traffic: Does the linking page or domain get organic traffic? Use tools like Ahrefs or Semrush to check.

4. Link Profile: Is the linking site reputable, or does it link out to spammy websites?

5. Indexing: Is the linking page indexed in Google? If not, it may not pass value.

6. Anchor Text: Is the anchor text natural and varied?

Red Flags to Avoid

  • Links from pages with hundreds of outbound links
  • Link farms or private blog networks (PBNs)
  • Sites with duplicate or scraped content
  • Pages that aren't indexed
  • Paid links that aren't disclosed or marked with rel="sponsored"

Final Thoughts

Backlink quality isn't about chasing high numbers or obsessing over DA scores. It's about building meaningful, relevant connections across the web. Focus on getting links that offer value—not just in SEO terms, but in visibility, authority, and trust.

Backlink Monkey was created to help SEOs and marketers not just build backlinks—but keep the good ones and weed out the bad. If you’re spending time acquiring links, make sure they’re the kind worth keeping.