SEO Backlink Building - 101

What is backlink?and why it matters

A backlink is a link that comes to our site from an external website. Backlinks are one of the ranking factors in SEO because they work like a voting system after a certain point in rankings.

For example, our content may rank in the top 3 positions. But what if 10 other websites also publish good content targeting the same keyword? In such cases, Google uses backlinks as one of the deciding ranking factors. The more backlinks a page has, the higher its chances of ranking better in the SERPs.

How do we build backlinks for LowCode Agency?

Currently, we build backlinks using only one method: link exchanges. This includes exchanging link insertions or guest posts in return.

There are three types of exchanges we use:

• Link Exchange
  We link to Site A, and Site A links back to us.
  

• ABC Link Exchange
  We link to Site A, and Site B links to us in return.
  

• Guest Post Exchange (GP Exchange)
  We publish their article on our site, and they publish our article on their site.

We do not accept guest posts on our site. Instead, we sometimes give a link to other sites and receive a guest post in return.

What Sites Do We Give Links To?

We do not give links to every site or all types of websites. We only give links to sites that are relevant to our content and make sense from an SEO and topical perspective.

Sites We Do NOT Give Links To ❌

• If an essay writing site asks for a link, we reject it immediately because it is not relevant to our content in any way.
  

• If a site offers the same services as us, such as MVP development or mobile app development, we reject the request. These sites compete with us for the same keywords in the SERPs.

Sites We MAY Give Links To ✅

• If a cybersecurity site asks for a link, we may give it only from a relevant section, such as a Security or Compliance section within an article.
  

• If a site asks for a link to a page that is relevant, contextual, or beneficial to our content, we accept it.

You can see some examples in the images below.

What Link Requests Do We NOT Accept?

We do not randomly accept link requests. The following guidelines must always be followed.

Link Requests We Reject ❌

• We do not add links in the introduction or conclusion sections, unless the link is used strictly as a statistics or reference source.
  

• We do not accept naked links, meaning links without anchor text.
  Example: https://xyz.com
  

• We rarely accept branded anchors.
  Example: “According to XYZ site, this is the right way.”
  

• We do not accept generic anchor texts such as “click here” or “read more.”
  

• We do not accept homepage links. We do not link from our homepage or from any service landing page.
  

• We do not link to service pages.

Link Requests We Accept ✅

• We accept only contextual anchor texts for link insertions that are relevant to the content section or topic.
  

• We only do blog-to-blog link exchanges (our blog to their blog).

Avoid These Sites for Return Links

This is an important part of our backlink process. Many link builders may try to mislead us by offering PBN links, profile links, deindexed sites, or sites that were hit by a core update. These must be avoided.

Sites We Must Avoid ❌

• PBN Sites
  PBNs are networks of websites created mainly for selling backlinks or doing link exchanges. These sites usually have random content, no specific niche, and no proper keyword research.
  While high-quality PBNs can exist, they are rare and expensive to manage. In most cases, we are offered low-quality PBNs, so we avoid them.
  

• Profile Sites
  These include social profile sites and “link in bio” platforms. Most of these links are no-follow and free to create, which provides little to no SEO value. We do not accept these as return links.
  

• Sites Hit by Core Updates
  Always check whether the site has pages indexed in Google. If the traffic graph is flat or shows a sharp decline after a core update, avoid that site.

What to Check Before Accepting a Return Link ✅

• The site should have indexed pages

• The site should show healthy or growing organic traffic

• The site should be topically relevant to our content

How to Choose the Best Site for a Return Link

First, remember that LowCode Agency has a DR of 60, so in most cases, link builders need our link more than we need theirs.

1. DR and Traffic Minimum Requirements

• Preferred DR Range ✅
  We usually accept return links from sites with DR 50 to DR 75 in exchange for one link.
  

• Conditional Acceptance (Lower DR) ⚠️
  We rarely accept sites with DR 30 to DR 40. If we do accept them, we follow a 2:1 or 3:1 exchange, meaning we give one link and receive two or three backlinks in return from a real, relevant site.
  

• Rejected DR Range ❌
  Do not accept sites with DR 0 to DR 30.
  

• Traffic Check ✅
  Always check organic traffic. If a site has 2,000+ monthly traffic, it can be accepted.
  

• Low Traffic + Low DR ❌
  If a site has both low traffic and low DR, skip it.

2. Find Relevant Sites

It is very rare to find pure no-code or low-code websites for backlinks. Because of this, we focus on the general tech niche. Most tech websites publish content related to software development, MVPs, AI, and automation, which aligns well with our content.

Steps to Find Good Link Placement

• Check rankings in Ahrefs ✅
  Check the site in Ahrefs. If the site has a relevant page ranking in the top 10, send a link request with a relevant anchor pointing to our target keyword or page.
  

• Check URL Rating (UR) of internal pages ✅
  If the site does not have a relevant page ranking in the top 10, check its internal pages for UR (URL Rating).
  Choose a relevant page with good UR. A higher UR means more pages are linking to that page, which helps pass strong link juice even if the page is not ranking well.
  

• Find relevant indexed pages with low external links ⚠️
  If you do not find the above two options, look for a relevant indexed page, regardless of rankings, that has very few external links.
  Placing our link on such a page helps pass more link juice to our page.
  

• Use guest posts when no relevant page exists ✅
  If the site does not have any relevant page, request a guest post. We then publish a relevant article on their site with our backlinks.
  

We use this fourth option very often. Even when we publish guest posts on general or news-based sites, the link is still valuable because Google evaluates the relevance of the source page, not the entire website. You can see examples below where we obtained strong links from general sites.

Listicle Exchange Guidelines

Listicles are a trending and increasingly competitive type of content. Since listicles help drive rankings in LLMs, many sites publish self-promotional listicles and request placements in external listicles.

The following guidelines must be followed.

Listicle Exchange Rules

• 1:1 Exchange for Listicle Placement ✅
  We follow a 1:1 exchange. If we add their company to our listicle, they must add our company to their listicle.
  

• Position Matching Rule ✅
  If we give them the 2nd position in our listicle, they must also give us the 2nd position in their listicle.
  

• Alternative Exchange if Placement Is Not Possible ⚠️
  If they are not willing to give us a listicle placement, ask for a 3:1 or 4:1 link exchange.
  This means we give them a listicle placement, and in return, we receive three or four high-quality guest posts or backlinks.
  

• Direct Competitors ❌
  Do not accept direct competitors for listicle placements. Currently, we include only traditional agencies in our listicles.
  

• Placement Rules Based on SEO Strength ❌
  If a site has strong SEO, place them below the 4th or 5th position. Do not add such sites in the top 3 or top 5.

Important Things to Consider While Building Backlinks

The following points must always be followed while building backlinks for LowCode Agency.

• Do-follow links only ✅
  We do exchanges only for do-follow links. Always check the live link to confirm whether it is do-follow or no-follow.
  

• Use relevant and varied anchor texts ✅
  Use relevant anchor texts for our target keywords. Maintain variety in anchors and avoid repeating the same anchor again and again.
  

• Prioritize ranking pages ✅
  Focus on building backlinks for pages ranking between top 3 to top 10 first. After that, build links for other pages.
  

• Avoid service pages ❌
  We currently avoid building backlinks to service pages. Google is ranking content-heavy pages even for service-related keywords, so building links to service pages does not make sense unless we plan to build hundreds of backlinks to them.
  

• Check DR, traffic, and ranking keywords ✅
  Always check the site’s DR, traffic, and ranking keywords. Some sites rank mainly for gambling or casino keywords. We avoid such sites.
  

• Get our live link first ✅
  Always ask for our live link placement first before giving them a backlink. This helps avoid wasting time on follow-ups.
  

• Avoid PBN networks ❌
  Many link-building agencies rotate the same set of 40–50 fake sites. This results in us giving high-quality links and receiving low-quality ones in return, which is not acceptable.
  

• Use ratio exchanges for lower-quality sites ⚠️
  Do not always chase high-quality sites. If a site has decent DR but low traffic, ask for a 2:1 or 3:1 exchange and get guest posts. This helps keep our backlink profile mixed.
  

• Multiple links from the same site are allowed ✅
  Do not build multiple backlinks from the same site to the same page.
  However, you can build up to 300 backlinks from the same site as long as they point to different pages.
  Unique domains help increase DR, while links from the same site help boost rankings for multiple pages.
  

• Track everything ✅
  Collect and organize all built backlinks in a Google Sheet so they can be tracked and reviewed in the future.

That’s it. Build good backlinks and keep the process clean and organized.