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A competitor has moved above you for a valuable commercial term. Their site has more referring domains, stronger-looking authority metrics and a steady stream of new links. The question soon follows: should brands buy backlinks to close the gap?
The straight answer is that brands should not buy links purely to manipulate search rankings. That approach creates avoidable risk, especially when the links are irrelevant, scaled in bulk or placed on websites built mainly to sell SEO value. But that does not mean every link acquisition investment is wrong. Businesses can, and often should, invest in the work required to earn credible editorial coverage, relevant placements and digital PR links.
The distinction matters. One is a shortcut intended to game rankings. The other is a legitimate marketing and authority-building activity that happens to produce valuable backlinks.
Should brands buy backlinks for SEO?
Google’s position is clear: buying or selling links that pass ranking value breaches its spam policies. A followed link added because money changed hands, rather than because an editor independently considers it useful, is the problem.
In practice, the market is less tidy than the rule suggests. Many publishers charge for sponsored content, contributors pay for production and outreach, and agencies charge for the time and expertise involved in securing coverage. Payment alone is not the deciding factor. The real questions are why the link exists, whether the placement is transparent, and whether it is intended to pass ranking signals.
If a brand pays a website owner for a dofollow link to a product or service page, with no real editorial standard, that is a paid link scheme. The site might show an impressive domain metric, but the number does not remove the risk. Google assesses patterns, relevance, quality and intent, not just a third-party score.
By contrast, paying a specialist team to research prospects, create an expert-led asset, pitch journalists or manage a digital PR campaign is paying for marketing work. The coverage must still be earned. An editor should be able to decline the story, amend it or publish it without a link if that is appropriate.
The hidden cost of cheap links
Cheap link packages usually sell certainty: a set number of links, on sites with a promised authority score, delivered by a fixed date. That can sound efficient to a business under pressure to grow organic traffic. It is also where quality often disappears.
A placement can look acceptable at first glance while offering little commercial value. Common warning signs include websites covering every possible industry, articles written around exact-match anchor text, pages packed with outbound links, weak organic visibility and content that exists only to host guest posts. These sites may be indexed today, but that does not make them trusted publications or useful referral sources.
The damage is not always immediate. Some poor links simply do nothing. Others can leave a clear footprint when they arrive in volume, share similar wording or point repeatedly at the same pages. In more serious cases, a brand may face a manual action or spend significant time auditing and disavowing historic links. Even without a penalty, a low-quality backlink profile can make future SEO work less efficient.
There is also a brand issue. A respected company should be comfortable with a prospective customer, journalist or partner finding every website that mentions it. If the answer is no, the placement is unlikely to be worth the fee.
Metrics are filters, not proof
Authority metrics can help narrow a prospect list, but they cannot tell you whether a link will strengthen a brand. A site may have a high score because of old links while receiving little relevant traffic. Another may have a more modest score but a highly engaged audience in your sector.
Look beyond headline metrics. Consider topical relevance, editorial standards, estimated organic traffic, the quality of existing content, the number of commercial outbound links and whether the audience matches your potential customers. Most importantly, assess the specific page and context in which your brand would appear.
A contextual citation in a well-researched article on a trusted industry publication is more meaningful than a link buried in an unrelated contributor post. The former can support rankings, referral traffic and credibility at the same time. The latter is often just a line in a spreadsheet.
What brands can pay for safely
Link building is labour-intensive. Good campaigns require research, prospecting, content development, outreach, follow-up, relationship management and reporting. It is entirely reasonable to pay for those services.
A professional campaign might involve analysing the pages that need authority, identifying the publications and communities that influence your market, then developing angles worth covering. For a local service business, that could mean data or expert commentary tied to a regional issue. For an e-commerce brand, it might be original product insight, seasonal research or a genuinely useful buying resource.
Press releases can play a role when there is real news: a substantial hire, funding, expansion, research finding, product launch or partnership. They are not a substitute for editorial link building when there is nothing newsworthy to say. Publishing thin announcements repeatedly will not create the authority that strong organic rankings need.
Sponsored placements can also have a valid place in a wider marketing plan, provided they are clearly labelled and use appropriate link attributes where required. The value may be brand exposure, qualified referral visits or access to a relevant audience. Do not buy one and present it internally as a guaranteed SEO win.
A practical test before approving a placement
Before committing budget, ask the provider to explain the acquisition method in plain language. Vague promises of “premium publisher links” are not enough. You need to know whether the link is earned through outreach, included in paid content, inserted into an existing page or obtained through a private network.
Ask who controls editorial approval and whether the publisher has a genuine reason to cover the topic. Request examples of relevant previous placements, not just the biggest authority figures on their list. You should also understand how anchors are chosen. A natural profile contains branded mentions, URLs and descriptive phrases, not a repeated commercial keyword.
Transparency is a useful quality test. A credible provider can explain its process, discuss limitations and say when a prospect is not suitable. No one can honestly guarantee a particular publication will link to you before an editor has reviewed the pitch.
For established brands, it is sensible to set written guardrails. Exclude adult, gambling, coupon-heavy and clearly irrelevant websites where appropriate. Define the sectors and markets that matter. Agree that placements must have a clear editorial rationale, and require reporting that shows the live page, target URL, anchor text and the reason each site was selected.
Build links around business value, not volume
The strongest link acquisition programmes do not begin with a monthly quota. They begin with a business objective. Are you trying to improve a category page that is close to page one? Build credibility in a new market? Earn coverage that helps customers discover a specialist service? The answer changes the sites, assets and outreach approach that make sense.
This is why relevant links often outperform larger volumes of generic ones. A handful of earned mentions from publications, trade sites and organisations trusted by your audience can create a stronger foundation than dozens of low-cost placements. The results are rarely instant, but they are more likely to hold as algorithms and competitors change.
Track performance accordingly. Rankings and organic traffic matter, but also monitor referral visits, assisted conversions, branded search growth and the quality of conversations generated by coverage. A link that sends the right visitors or gives your sales team a credible media mention has value beyond its SEO effect.
The question is not whether to spend money on links. It is whether your investment creates genuine visibility and authority, or merely rents a fragile ranking signal. Put budget behind manual outreach, useful content and credible editorial opportunities, and every placement has a better chance of earning its place in your long-term growth plan.
