What are Backlinks and how do they help your SEO rankings
Before I go on I quickly want to sum up Backlinks. A backlink is a link from one website to another, acting like a vote of confidence in the eyes of search engines. When a reputable site links to your content, it signals that your site is trustworthy and valuable, which can boost your search engine rankings. Backlinks are a key factor in SEO because they help increase visibility, drive referral traffic, and build domain authority — especially when they come from high-quality, relevant sources.
Why I need Backlinks.
My name is Phillip Donnelly, which is annoying because there is also Phil Donnelly who is an Irish Musician, another who is a Guitarist, and then the Writer, the Artist, and the Lawyer and they are all called Phil, Philip or Phillip.
Now the problem is, they’re more popular than me and have backlinks all over the place, on many websites like Sound Cloud or LinkedIn. I have to do the same, but from a later date, but unless I’m popular for some reason I will still be far down the list. So I am going to explain backlinks, what they are and how they help you and your website.
So my name is both a bonus and a problem. Well, when you search for my name you’re going to be presented with results for Philip Donnelly as well. When I was at school my teachers taught me to spell my name P H I L I P Donnelly. For years everyone called me Phil, often Phillip. It wasn’t until a needed to apply for a passport that I found out my name was spelt with two ‘L’. Two ‘L’ is son of Philip but my dads name was James, so why Phillip! I never got to find out as both my parents died before I could ask them
So when I set about building my website I thought Phillip Donnelly was a good name to have as people will search that name and find me, they will search for an Irish musician and find me as well. Well, so did another musician whos name is spelt with one ‘L’. So of course he had the same advantage I thought I had, most annoyingly not. To make matters worse, Google delivers results for Philip Donnelly along with Phillip, pushing me down the search results.
Anyway, how do I get found among all these Philip Donnelly’s? They’re on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and a whole lot more. Unfortunately everyone loves a musician and a guitarist. I’m learning to play the piano. Which I will tell everyone about one day. So what ever I do, he’s always ahead of me with his misspelt name. So to compete I have to have an Instagram account, a Facebook account, a YouTube account and videos, and more. Then there’s the guys on LinkedIn, always ahead of me too even though I’m on LinkedIn. Then there’s Philip Donnelly the Football player, he’s also more popular than me.
So what do I have to do. More Posts. Like this one. Search engines love Blogs, so everyone has one, including those other blokes with my name. The thing is, how do we get found on the web in a search.
Backlinkss. A backlink is a way for one website to notify another website that it has linked to their content. It’s a form of acknowledgment, and it’s also great for SEO and networking.
So I can have backlinks, I could have 10k and still not be top of the search. Why, because it’s not how many that counts it’s the quality of them. So Google needs to see my website as a valuable resource. Now that is going to be hard work, my name doesn’t have enough sway.
Now I’m begining to repeat what is already available on the web. So, let’s take a look at another site that describes the same need that all websites have. Most of all, find your niche and stick to it. Don’t cover too many subjects, cover a subject or build another website. So I suggest you also look at what RankingCoach has to say on the matter. And if you want to know even more ask an AI. But before you go, comment, don’t spam, comment and leave a link.
Don’t forget to read the rest and comment please.
What Backlinkss or Backlinks do and how do they work.
🔗 What is a Backlink?
A backlink is a way for one website to notify another website that it has linked to their content. It’s a form of acknowledgment, and it’s also great for SEO and networking.
There are a few types of backlinks, including:
1. Backlink (most common usage)
- When you link to another site, that’s a backlink for them.
- When someone links to your site, you receive a backlink.
- Google loves this — backlinks from reputable sites can improve your ranking in search results.
2. Pingback / Trackback (technical types)
- These are automatic notifications sent between blogs (mainly WordPress) when one post links to another.
- They show up in the comments section or dashboard saying, “This post linked to you.”
✅ Why Backlinks Matter
| Benefit | Explanation |
|---|---|
| SEO Boost | Google uses backlinks as a sign of authority and relevance. |
| Traffic Increase | A link from another site can send their visitors your way. |
| Credibility | Being cited by others builds trust with both people and search engines. |
| Networking | Bloggers and site owners often build relationships by linking to each other. |
🧠 Simple Example:
You’re writing a blog post titled “Best WordPress Hosting in 2025”, and you mention a review article from another site. That link you give them is a Backlink (or outbound link for you, inbound link for them). I’ve just created a Backlink on one of my own pages, which is also a necessity.
If they notice and link back to your post later — that’s a Backlink to you, and a win-win!
Just so you know. Check out my about page, you’ll be surprised.
So, that’s why you should link to my posts, create an account and Backlink to me in your posts and notify my of a post when ever possible.
I started my journey in IT back in 1983 when I learned my 1st Programming Language which was called APL. Guess what that stands for?
That was followed by SQL, SQL for databases and analysis. I worked with SQL from 1983 until 2003. I still practice today, which is pretty well pointless.
Then in 2003 I decided I wanted to code for websites. Well, that sounds easy doesn’t it! Well, it wasn’t, resources were few and the most usual way was by learning Microsoft Front Page.
Leave a Reply