Can You Rank Content Without Building Backlinks?

[@dasbogdasbog886]

Timestamps: 0:41 How to find pages with no backlinks but decent traffic 2:10 Types of low authority websites with traffic 4:20 Types of mid-tier pages with some traffic and no backlinks 6:14 Topic opportunities for high-authority websites

[@-millionaire559]

If by doing everywhere and no keyword entry with 0-30/31-60 DA, how on earth millions of websites manage to get backlinks? It means people are doing equal or more work on backlinks arrangement than creating blog posts? Now this is double triple work.

[@AhrefsCom]

Not sure what you're talking about? - SQ

[@MartyM.]

I've done it numerous times for longtail keywords I found in AHRefs. Although the estimated monthly search volume is typically shown as being very low, quite often my visitor traffic to these posts is much higher, especially as I supplement them with secondary keywords (See the other related videos Sam did for tips).

[@davidcharlesworth6831]

Hey Marty, what sort of discrepancy did you find? I'm looking at some keywords and they estimate 100-200 monthly. Trying to decide if its worth writing an article over. Thanks.

[@MartyM.]

@@davidcharlesworth6831 Because my main niche is competitive I'll go for some showing 40-70/month at times, but end up bringing 3x - 4x that in traffic in some cases. I try to make the best judgement call, but mainly I currently do it based on opportunity first since it's so tough to find good ones.

[@AhrefsCom]

Our monthly average search volume is slightly lower in most cases. David, it depends on your goals. If if you feel like extra couple hundreds visits is a good result, then why not? Additionally, as Marty said, try to cover some secondary keywords within one article to bring even more traffic. - Max

[@Walkingstreetswithmatt1989]

Where do you find secondary keywords

[@randommood6393]

Yes am also getting 150k visit without backlinks

[@mattschwarz6593]

Wow, impressive!

[@MattSigmaX]

Unlikely.

[@tabichoubrian4144]

Wow, how are you doing that

[@randommood6393]

Content in structure with relatable interlinks

[@AhrefsCom]

What is your niche? Would love to learn a bit more about your case! - Max

[@todaypreneur]

It is really good to see many websites ranking for their focused keywords without backlinks so building backlinks is a big business and it is growing every day but focusing on content is more important than building backlinks

[@AhrefsCom]

Content is in the first place, while backlinks help you to spread a word about your good piece of content. There are lots of topics you will have a hard time ranking for without backlinks. - Max

[@alladdine9800]

Don't forget that Credit Karma is super authoritative in that niche, even if they had no backlinks for certain keywords, they still have thousands of other valuable links that helps their google rankings no matter what.

[@geniusmind7777]

There are a lot of myths about "good content" and this is quite an over used phrase that "content is king". But in the first place, you would need to ask to yourself "what" defines "so-called good content"?? Being a good content is just personal, that's not even objective. One may feel somthing is a good content, but another one may feel that wasn't a good content. "Good content" that people say is definitely too vague to mean anything. And above all, what ranks pages on google is a bot. It's not even humans with a sense of determining whether or not one is a good content off of a "human sense" like you have when you judge if a content is good. What ranks your pages on google by the bot is its built algorithm that indirectly evaluates a page's popularity based on mamy factors such as "the number of backlinks", "bounce rate", CTR, engagement rate etc.

[@sarejahaseacha]

Sir it is too costly to buy ahrefs tools for beginners in India

[@caporalwisdom12]

You look positive in any video love your voice and you are a good teacher

[@AhrefsCom]

Thanks!

[@sanjayhota4051]

i am eagerly waiting for this video, thanks a lot sam for this awesome video.

[@AhrefsCom]

You are welcome!

[@JackSheo]

Hey Sam, I have a non-SEO related question. How do you achieve the glow behind you?

[@AhrefsCom]

There’s a light behind Sam. So you can do something similar and just stand in front of it😉 - Max

[@BenjisDad]

What about creating quality content that get links naturally over time?

[@unmiss-com]

correct strategy, bro )

[@AhrefsCom]

This is probably the best option🙂 - Max

[@SarumanBang]

I can say yes! I got a Blog with DR 0. I just have 9 articles, started in January. And now i am with some keywords in place 4-9 on Google and its going up. You just have to know how to write an article so: YES you can rank without backlinks. I got no backlinks.

[@AhrefsCom]

Awesome! Thanks for sharing! -Helen

[@timothyfrancisuichico2096]

Wonderful video, never thought of using the content explorer that way.

[@ecommercemastermind6836]

Timothy Francis Uichico its very help ful

[@AhrefsCom]

Here are some additional videos on how to benefit from Content Explorer ;) kzbin.info/www/bejne/j2HIl4hpd65ni6s kzbin.info/www/bejne/hHzYo4SKfamWesU kzbin.info/www/bejne/oKOsZ6dqjpJsfbs - Max

[@timothyfrancisuichico2096]

@@AhrefsCom Hi Ahrefs team I was wondering if there was a country filter for this feature? I understand the language filter but what if I want to see English content that is ranking for the Philippines only? How would I go about that?

[@AhrefsCom]

There is no option to filter pages with just traffic from Philippines =\ - Max

[@debojitghosh477]

Sam, can tou please make a video on how to place keywords in article separately so that placement is proper and site ranks in google? Please? Love your content.

[@AhrefsCom]

Just create your content naturally, readable and understandable. Do not do keyword staffing all over the place. - Max

[@debojitghosh477]

@@AhrefsCom thank you for your help!

[@AhrefsCom]

😉

[@ecommercemastermind6836]

Its better to go with other keywords which are no competitive and easy to use. i have one question is keyword difficulty matters while doing keywords research and one more questions if we purchase lsi domain than google will effect it?

[@AhrefsCom]

I do not think domain name will influence your rankings. As for KD, it is a metric that helps to measure your chances, so if you have a new website, you will have low chances to rank for competitive keywords. That is where KD can help you to find some space on SERP for your new site with lack of authority. - Max

[@MukeshPatel-zc1of]

Of course, we can rank without backlink but depand on what we want to rank

[@jaleedwasi]

depend*

[@rabyhasan654]

?

[@night1wind]

Awesome video! if the filter was 500 monthly searchs, our agencies website would have probably been featured in the video

[@AhrefsCom]

Did you manage to get lots of traffic without backlinks? Share your case with us ;) - Max

[@waseemsaifi5580]

I have tried it once... But with your help I got it well.. thnx max

[@AhrefsCom]

Always ready to help😉

[@sani386]

Hi Sam, I have a question. As you said the DR tells about the backlink strength. Then how does, the sites with no referring domain or backlink. Have DR

[@Techjackie]

He means to say pages that don't have backlink. DR is referred to the overall website's backlink. So these pages don't have backlinks but their domains have.

[@unmiss-com]

more DR = more authority = more interlinkg between pages = more traffic

[@AhrefsCom]

Thank you, Techjackie ! That is exactly what Sam meant. SEO Tools TV good point. Authoritative websites pass 'link juice' from pages with strong backlinks profile with the help internal links, helping its new pages to rank better. - Max

[@himanshusingla4055]

Will there be Ranking increase or decrease change for taking a .net or .com domain. Something like if i taken Himanshusingla.net or .com then which will rank fast?

[@unmiss-com]

Google representatives highlight a lot - it doesn't matter. However, it's essential for CTR where people trust more .com Googly only considers what people click. )

[@AhrefsCom]

I guess it will not influence your rankings when choosing between .net and .com. But it might be a good idea to use .uk in United Kingdom and .fr in France to position the audience for your website. - Max

[@himanshusingla4055]

@@AhrefsCom Thanx dear Max, but .fr etc. are country specific and i want to target it Globally. 😊

[@backlinksbacklinks5356]

Great content. Good job. Thanks for the info.

[@AhrefsCom]

Glad it was helpful!

[@shahzaibkhan5867]

Great! I saw your same video in 2018 but the different title "how to find low competition keywords with a ton of traffic" and now you have change the title but content is the same.

[@AhrefsCom]

Not sure which video you're talking about, but the content would be completely different. Maybe the filters were the same? -Sam

[@shahzaibkhan5867]

@@AhrefsCom the content is partially different, due to language part but the filters are the same with little bit tweak.

[@hassangillaniiii]

Hey, Max great Content if you don't mind can you tell me one SEO related question which is confusing me actually I've created some backlinks on blogpost sites and on business listing sites before I create some backlinks my keyword is on its 31st position and it shuffles sometimes between 30, 31, 32 but after I create some backlinks on business listing sites and web 2.0 sites the keyword is gone forms google searches I mean I can't found my keyword on any position of google pages after another day the keyword come back but now it's on its 46th positions why this happens? Can you plz an accurate answer? cause I search this question on the internet but I can't found the right answer and btw my keyword is custom cake boxes.

[@meysambarekatein9848]

A million thanks, one of the best, honestly I am a newbie and I do not know much about SEO but I have a question, do you believe auto ranking machines and their backlinks? can anyone get rank a focused or mid-competition niche? stay safe

[@AhrefsCom]

I do not believe in automated backlinks.... - Max

[@vayadolorosa4498]

Hello People... Is it advisable to save exact product images & DESCRIPTION/NAME exactly as your supplier & other competitor retailers ? Or is it wise to save them & market them with different DESCRIPTIONS FOR SEO reasons ?

[@AhrefsCom]

You probably want to save it in a way people will search for it. Maybe this video will help you a bit - kzbin.info/www/bejne/qnXEn3RjbtycbLM - Max

[@argiebacalso5552]

I'm very eager to learn Seo. Thank you for sharing.

[@AhrefsCom]

You're welcome!

[@bostjantanko]

This is a super helpful video Sam. Secret tactic lol. Thanks

[@AhrefsCom]

And it is pretty unique for Ahrefs😉 - Max

[@IRIXAZERBAIJANTECHNOLOGYCENTER]

Could you also explain how to get that high domain scores without backlinks? Which factors required for this?

[@AhrefsCom]

High DR is based on a strong backlink profile. But Sam should samples of pages that do not have any backlinks but which still rank well and get some traffic. Meaning that there is some free space for you, where competition is not that strong and you can rank your content with a relatively weak backlink profile. - Max

[@jaleedwasi]

Wow, Sam Love the way you describe everything!

[@AhrefsCom]

Thank you for a positive feedback!

[@juelzkid3954]

You don’t show “social shares” in filter anymore :( when’s it coming back

[@unmiss-com]

use other tools that provide this metric

[@AhrefsCom]

It was removed with a recent Content Explorer update. We do not plan to return these metrics back. You may still use Who tweeted data though ;) - Max

[@katef4]

Yes Ahrefs, please bring it back

[@veernarzary635]

Hello sir, I saw your website Ahrefs.com Do you maintain it alone or you have a team?? Are the tools inside it built by you??

[@AhrefsCom]

We have a team, about 50 people, who develop, support and promote the tool. - Max

[@earnmoney615]

You have taken a name of Pakistan OMG I can't believe really enjoying your content

[@tastybyife]

Super helpful content and quite informative

[@AhrefsCom]

Glad you enjoyed!

[@abhishekpadhi65]

Google is focusing on links rather than actual content. I have seen high DR Sites have lots of garbage repeating same line again and again , still they are rankings in search results...This is strange...

[@AhrefsCom]

It would be interesting if you can share the SERPs you're referring to. - SQ

[@MarcP5267]

What about long tail keywords?

[@AhrefsCom]

What about it? 🙂 - SQ

[@Purwantondv]

I love your hoodie

[@AhrefsCom]

😄

[@rohitmehra87]

good to find easy topics through content explorer

[@AhrefsCom]

Glad you enjoyed ;) - Max

[@randomtalkswithabhinesh5327]

Hi Sam sir, How to create backlinks in a smart way that generate more traffic? And What is best for ranking an affiliate website? Please reply sir!! Thanku 😊

[@unmiss-com]

start from content marketing first, provide value and help people, then jump with creating backlinks for getting traffic... then your affiliate site will work

[@AhrefsCom]

We have lots of useful techniques and tips on how to improve your backlink profile in this playlist - kzbin.info/aero/PLvJ_dXFSpd2tjUTuAHpHidz5e2hAedP_m - Max

[@SuperZari123]

Disagreed, DA is one of main ranking factor associated with backlinks and a major factor of Google rankings!

[@AhrefsCom]

I would say Google cares about backlinks. But every company name comes up with its own name of 'backlink metric' - Page Rank, DA, DR, etc. - Max

[@motivate_k3766]

how many backlinks to rank a medium/high competion keyword

[@AhrefsCom]

There's no sure number someone can point you to. It depends on the keyword. - SQ

[@ayoubchaoui9488]

yes but it is hard to get backlinks I use all methods in your video but I can't get any backlinks

[@AhrefsCom]

Did you have a chance to watch our linkbuilding tutorials here - kzbin.info/aero/PLvJ_dXFSpd2tjUTuAHpHidz5e2hAedP_m - Max

[@employmentnews8990]

PBN backlinks worth in 2020?

[@unmiss-com]

no way, bro, ignore this old fashioned technique

[@AmanKumar-od3mj]

Why it is showing me on my blog... In my search console.. "discovered currently not indexed" Error Pls give me a solution

[@unmiss-com]

Google doesn't see value there. Improve content.

[@AhrefsCom]

You might want to check the meaning of this error within support articles provided by Google. - Max

[@AmanKumar-od3mj]

@@AhrefsCom I've checked but there is no solution giving... Help me pls to figure out this issue

[@AmanKumar-od3mj]

@@unmiss-com it's a better content on the web out there... I've checked but there is no solution giving... Help me pls to figure out this issue

[@unmiss-com]

@@AmanKumar-od3mj send me the link

[@NeoSizeOfficialSite]

Regarding page in top with "debt" keyword... I listen that some webmasters from very high competetive niches (payday loans, debt, etc) use black hat methods where you can't find them links. They use sql injections, backdoors and many other hackers methods and can hide links that any program cant crawl it. Even Google shows - zero backlinks or few hundred old backlinks which don't enough to get top10 for this keywords. So, what you thinks about this? Is it true? Are you sure that if you see 0 backlinks this is the real or maybe they can hide it?

[@AhrefsCom]

There is always some black hat SEO around us. We recommend to use methods that do not violate Google guidelines - Max

[@313mss]

How to increase DA and DR of a domain? in easy way, please must reply.

[@AhrefsCom]

There is no easy way, a hack that will magically make it happen. You need to improve the strength of backlink profile. We cover the best practices in this playlist - kzbin.info/aero/PLvJ_dXFSpd2tjUTuAHpHidz5e2hAedP_m - Max

[@RussMichaels]

So it seems that what he is saying is that you don't need backlinks as long as your own domain has high authority. So how are you meant to achieve that exactly?

[@AhrefsCom]

My main message was not "you don't need backlinks as long as you have a high DR." Here's the tldr; - more authoritative websites tend to rank more easily even if they don't have links. - their "website authority" is built because that *have links* - so how are you meant to achieve that exactly? Build links throughout your website, which in turn is going to help you rank. - don't just focus on just low-competition topics because you will run out. Competitive topics require links. They're also likely to be more commercial. -Sam

[@M00SAKHAN]

I have paid ahref account but I don't know how to use properly?

[@AhrefsCom]

So looks like you just learnt some hints on how to use Content Explorer ;) Watch some more videos on our channel to learn more techniques and possible way of using Ahrefs in your marketing activities - Max

[@AbhishekKumar-wo4zd]

Any discount on Ahrefs ?

[@unmiss-com]

If you pay for a year, then you'll get 20% off

[@AhrefsCom]

Sometimes I feel like SEO Tools TV is our employee 😂 - Max

[@unmiss-com]

@@AhrefsCom a little help with my goals, Max.

[@mikeh.4503]

AHREFS Domain Rating and other domain rankings are so useless these days (as well as backlink building). My website (English!) has over 100k page views per month and a poor ahrefs DR of 27. I couldn't care less about this number :D

[@Ulvis_B]

i have rate DR 31 but less 5k in month

[@unmiss-com]

of course, Google doesn't consider it. However, if you have better authority = you have more traffic

[@mikeh.4503]

@@unmiss-com No, not necessarily. Google doesn't care about domain authority at all. There is a reason why Google abandoned such a metric a long time ago.

[@AhrefsCom]

High DR does not mean high traffic. High DR means you have more chances to rank your content, than those who have smaller DR. Marketers need a tool, a ruler, to measure chance of rankings. This is where DR can help. You may have DR 30 and get a ton of traffic in a low competitive niche, while get a lack of traffic with DR 70 offering content for a high-competitive industry. In other words, the more content on the market - the harder to stay out of the crowd. Where you will get all of the traffic if you are the only one to talk about a specific topic. - Max

[@unmiss-com]

@@mikeh.4503 Yes, I know that Google doesn't care, however, Ahrefs and similar tools studies show that higher DR = more traffic

[@markototev]

Easy, just get a DR80+ topical relevant site. :>

[@ecommercemastermind6836]

osi agree bro

[@alladdine9800]

easier said than done

[@fromdjangoimport__help__3585]

Sorry i didn't get it..

[@markototev]

@@fromdjangoimport__help__3585 I'm being sarcastic.

[@bimagency8832]

Building links to go for the whole darn thing ;)

[@AhrefsCom]

👍

[@knowledgebase858]

Isn't that the domains age does matter on these rankings. I beleive da and age does matters a lot to rank on top without backlinks unless you have a super strong keyword and awesome content.

[@AhrefsCom]

Domain age still matter, as newly created domains have lack of authority. It is just not something you can improve manually, that is why we do not mention that within our videos. - Max

[@knowledgebase858]

@@AhrefsCom I will recommend it to please mention because newbies just try to invest money in tool which is no doubt important but initial they should learn on basics. The information via your video was very good and I loved it and it made me search on some topics but the domain age stopped me at a point. Partial knowledge for newbies can be harmful. Just a suggestion and nothing offesive against anyone. I am a ahref user myself and trust me it's the best tool for seo.

[@AhrefsCom]

I doubt it it such an important ranking factor. If you have good content with some backlinks - you are still able to compete for your top rankings. - Max

[@hridoyrehman]

The only issue I have is I followed some mentioned sites and they have backlinks from authority sites... 😃 - SEO Lab

[@AhrefsCom]

Of course these domains have backlinks, but not specific pages that were mentioned in the video. - Max

[@rohiitkumar5915]

How to rank zero content websites like Dictionary websites, Calculator , etc.

[@patrykkosik9729]

THe same as other lol

[@DeepakKumar-ox5ti]

For my site no, it is not happening. It is very rare to rank, & even if you do so you can't maintain for a long.

[@AhrefsCom]

I guess it depends on your competition and niche. It is not always a simple thing to do. - Max

[@MukeshPatel-zc1of]

Yes, we can

[@andrewkamoha4666]

[Title] *Can you rank without backlinks?* Can you go to the moon without a rocket?

[@AhrefsCom]

Nice metaphor! -Helen

[@andrewkamoha4666]

@@AhrefsCom > "Helen" Didn't know there were more people working there ...

[@aliassaputra6567]

I think it might be get little piece of pie and gathered them to a big one.

[@Goatsontheroad]

Please tell me your middle name starts with “E” Mr. Sam Oh!

[@AhrefsCom]

How did you know that? 😁😉 I guess Sam only dreams about it =P - Max

[@ReadWithAvnii]

@@AhrefsCom 😂😂 you nailed it!

[@hitechpopcorn]

I want a job i AHREFS its my dream , what shall i do!?

[@AhrefsCom]

You probably need to apply for an open position, if you meet the requirements =) - Max

[@mom13_5]

@@AhrefsCom you are very nice persion becuse you gave All qouestion answer

[@agencyskip]

thanks Sam

[@AhrefsCom]

You're welcome!

[@sanu1231000]

So in the end, you have to beg from email to email for links.... The thing I hate the most!

[@AhrefsCom]

Thinking of it as "begging for links" is defining it too narrowly. While a link is ideal, it's perfectly okay if you don't get it. You should think of it as building relationships. - SQ

[@steelshot4325]

God!

[@salahuddin1759]

I don't have ahrafs tool. :')

[@AhrefsCom]

You should get one as soon as possible ;) - Max

[@javiercarlos5403]

EMD + Article 1000 words ´+ website one page + menu #link. 1 month gg

[@katef4]

I have ranked pages with NO backlinks

[@AhrefsCom]

Great job!

[@katef4]

@@AhrefsCom thank you..and yes, using Ahrefs! Super helpful 😍

[@saifaliofficals.a7072]

Focus on schema and rich snippet you will surely rank. Thanks me later.

[@rohitsoni274]

Schema is not a ranking factor

[@seosea1569]

Yes, we can rank higher without backlinks.

[@fromdjangoimport__help__3585]

yaaa but getting backlinks for free are not a easy deal right !

[@AhrefsCom]

That's why we have tons of link building tutorials on this channel. - SQ

[@khaled_markting878]

1:24 lol only arabic content

[@AhrefsCom]

It is on top due to low competition for Arabic keywords, so we were not surprised. But traffic potential is lower as well. - Max

[@mattschwarz6593]

So how can i create arabic content to rank in this countries? haha :D

[@unmiss-com]

just do it

[@mattschwarz6593]

@@unmiss-com Yeah, thx for this golden nugget!

[@unmiss-com]

@@ijojan You're right. It's my goal and I provide value if you check it out

[@phadelix7455]

Oh Sam Oh is so hot