There are tactics that were once widely used and abused that have come under scrutiny in recent years. This is usually because they don’t result in earned links, rather those where the link builder has an active involvement in the placement of the link.
Now don’t get us wrong, these tactics won’t necessarily result in toxic links pointing to your site, far from it.
You just need to understand how to use each one and at what point you should stop scaling the number of links built in this way, as well as considering other benefits that these links can bring.
Directory Submissions
There was a time when directories were set up solely as a way to build links.
They look something like this:Pretty spammy, right?
There is no value here for users, and this site obviously exists just to link out to others. You don’t want to be building links from directories like these.
But, you shouldn’t dismiss the tactic as it is still a great way to land some great links, especially if you operate in a tight niche or are a local business.
Look for regional specific directories or those that exist within a niche where the primary purpose is to help users to find a suitable business — common sense will usually tell you whether it is worth being featured on.