Wherever you turn, you’ll see link-building companies promising to boost your online visibility and improve the domain rating (DR) of your website. Some of them are cheap, others are expensive, but they all guarantee quick results. Unfortunately, the majority of their promises remain just that — promises with no chance of becoming reality.
If you want to find the best link-building services, you need to compare the outputs of every company you’re interested in. Getting a great DR is good, but it’s return on investment (ROI) that truly matters. It’s time to learn how to compare different services and choose the most suitable one.
The Problem with Relying Solely on DR
Relying solely on DR is a mistake that can lead to serious losses for your business. Here is why.
DR Can Be Manipulated
DR is determined by measuring the strength of your backlinks. You can score from 0 to 100 points in this category, and the higher authority your website has, the more visible it will become to Google users.
Unfortunately, these days, DR can be easily manipulated. Let’s say you paid a link-building service, and now your DR is at 65. You feel excited and relieved, and you wait for this score to translate into higher organic traffic.
However, it doesn’t happen, all because your company has placed your links across a variety of low-quality websites like private blog networks and platforms that have nothing to do with your niche. In this case, your DR will be meaningless, as no customers will be interested in clicking on your backlinks.
High DR Doesn’t Equal High ROI
Even if your DR is genuine, it’s not a guarantee of success. With no extra traffic, there is no money, and with no money, there is no return on the investments you’ve made when you hired a link building service. This is why you need more than pretty numbers — nuance and context matter the most.
What Actually Drives ROI in Link Building
What drives ROI, and how to notice its effects?
Link Placement and Page Type
The first crucial factor you need to consider is where your link is located. Think about it: which websites are your potential customers more likely to frequent? Will it be a subpar site dedicated to academic writing, where every page features a mix of random links, or a quality platform with established editorial standards?
Obviously, the latter option is more lucrative, so this is the kind of website the best link-building services should target. The page type matters, too. Your links can go to:
- Guest posts. This is the most common type of pages for link building: as long as the themes of your link, chosen website, and guest post are related, you have a solid chance of getting traffic.
- Homepages. This is the most impactful page for your links, but sadly, getting a place there is next to impossible, at least as far as quality websites are concerned.
- Resource pages. Dictionaries, directories, and other useful pages are unlikely to create a flood of visitors to your website, but they can still generate a solid increase.
- Author’s bio. Mentioning your link at the end of the article in an author’s bio is a popular choice, but while it might look natural, it has low SEO impact.
The price of placing your links on one of these pages varies, but the end result is usually worth it.
Relevance, Traffic, and Context
To get your backlinks to actually work, you need to consider relevance, traffic, and context. The link must be placed on a website specializing in a niche identical to or similar to yours. Besides, the page with a link should be indexed and feature keywords you consider relevant.
The link should generate organic traffic, raising it by at least a small percentage. Importantly, the anchor and the context around it must be informative and relevant to your link. These are the factors that affect ROI, and they are something you need to focus on first and foremost.
How to Compare Link Building Vendors the Right Way
Now that you see why comparing link building services in terms of ROI is important, let’s figure out how to do it.
Metrics That Actually Matter
Evaluate different services based on the following metrics:
- Keyword rankings. Check the ranking of keywords of a company you consider hiring; there are enough tools that can help you do it, including Ahrefs.
- Organic traffic. Compare the services based on how much traffic they generate: if they themselves show dismal results, they are unlikely to help you.
- Link placement. Discuss the link placement strategy and compare the information you get in terms of ranking and overall quality.
- Domain diversity. If you see that a company is reusing the same dubious platforms for placing its clients’ links, that’s a red flag.
If you take these aspects into account, you’ll be able to calculate your potential ROI, not just DR.
Ask for Case Studies, Not Just Metrics
The best link-building services will always offer case studies to their new customers. Check them out; see how a company has improved the SEO of its other clients. Read reviews, too, and go for websites with the most impressive results.
When High DR Does Matter — And When It Doesn’t
DR remains a relevant factor, but it’s important to have a clear understanding of when it matters and when its relevance drops.
Brand Building and PR-Driven Campaigns
If you’re building brands or heading a PR-driven campaign, DR is everything. This is what target customers focus on first, so if your link is mentioned on sites like Forbes or Statista, it can give you a solid boost. Websites with the highest DR are considered the top dogs within the marketing industry.
Spammy High DRs: A Hidden Trap
DR won’t matter if the service you chose dropped your links on low-quality websites with no traffic or credibility. Some of them might have high DRs, but it won’t mean anything because, for all intents and purposes, these platforms are dead. No human beings actually visit them, so thinking that quantity will help you is a dangerous trap.
Choose ROI-First, Metrics-Second
DR is a useful metric; there is no doubt about it. However, it should never be a decisive factor for those comparing the best link-building services. The money you paid and the money you got in return — this is what should mean most to you. Choose platforms that focus on increasing your revenue rather than those that prioritize DR alone.