Grumpy SEO Guy – Episode 134: SEO Backlinks For Beginners

Host: Grumpy SEO Guy
Date: December 17, 2025

Main Theme & Purpose

In this episode, Grumpy SEO Guy demystifies backlinks for SEO beginners, drawing on 14 years of experience running an SEO agency. The aim is to clarify what backlinks really are, why they matter, how authority works, misconceptions about backlink building, and the only real ways to get effective backlinks for your website.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. What Are Backlinks? (05:00)

• Definition Differentiation:
  • Link: “A link is how you get from one webpage to a different webpage…that you clicked on.” (05:18)
  • Backlink: “A backlink is a link from a website to a different website…” (05:32)
  • Internal Link: “An internal link is a link on one website to a different place on the same website.” (05:40)
• Core Focus: This episode is about backlinks—links from other websites to yours.

2. Why Are Backlinks Important? (Authority Explained) (06:10)

• Authority Defined: “Authority is basically a measure of the trustworthiness of a website. Authority comes from backlinks. The only way to get authority is from backlinks.” (06:13)
• Authority’s Role: “Authority is one of the ways the search engine knows which website to rank in the results.” (06:35)

The Four Things Needed to Rank (07:10)

1. Don’t get a penalty.
   • Example: “A penalty is when you do something you shouldn’t do and the search engine…removes you from the results…” (07:17)
2. Have content (quality is not a ranking factor).
   • “Search engines can tell what content is about, but they cannot tell how good it is or how helpful it is.” (07:52)
3. Relevancy:
   • “Relevancy means what is the topic of your site? …Search engines can tell the topic…but not if it’s good or not.” (08:10)
4. Authority:
   • “Remember, authority is a measure of trustworthiness…it only comes from backlinks.” (08:20)

3. Authority is Relative—It’s About Surpassing Competitors (08:40)

• Weightlifting Analogy:
  • “You win a weightlifting competition by lifting more than your competition. So SEO is the same way…the way you get to the top…is by having more authority than your competition.” (08:54)

4. How Backlinks Share Authority (09:15)

• Distribution:
  • “When a website links to another website, it is sharing some of its authority…Most websites have differing levels…If you get a backlink from a site with a lot of authority, it’s gonna share with you a lot of authority.” (09:34)
• Only External Links Give Authority:
  • “There’s nothing you can do to your own website to create or gain authority. You can only get authority from other websites.” (10:28)

5. Myth-Busting: More Isn’t Always Better (10:50)

• Quality vs. Quantity:
  • “It is not about the quantity, all right? It is about how good the backlinks are.” (11:08)
  • “It’s possible to get one backlink and get to the top if it’s a really good backlink. It’s also possible to get a hundred worthless backlinks that will not help.” (11:23)
• Takeaways:
  1. You need backlinks to get authority, and you need authority to rank.
  2. There is a difference between good quality backlinks and bad quality backlinks. (11:40)

6. The Four Real Ways to Get Backlinks (13:20)

1. Do Nothing & Wait For Natural Links
   • “The problem with that advice: If your position is not good, people can’t find you…they’re not going to link to you.” (13:34)
2. Buy Backlinks
   • “Many search engines will tell you that buying backlinks is against their guidelines…People buy them sometimes.” (13:50)
   • Warning: “Before you buy backlinks…listen to the episodes about good and bad backlinks and make sure you understand the difference.” (14:05)
3. Guest Posting & Link Outreach
   • “Guest posting is when you write a post for someone else’s website, and in exchange, they give you a link…” (14:27)
   • “Link outreach is pretty much the same thing, except instead of writing a post, you’re emailing the site owner…‘Will you give us a link?’” (14:47)
4. Build Your Own Backlinks (Private Network)
   • “You build your own websites and use those to link to your site. Do not try this until you listen to those episodes.” (15:15)

Summary Quote:
“There’s not really any other ways to get backlinks.” (16:00)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Authority:
  • “Authority comes from backlinks…The only way to get authority is from backlinks.” (06:14)
• On Getting Authority:
  • “There’s nothing you can do to your own website to create or gain authority. You can only get authority from other websites.” (10:28)
• On Shortcuts:
  • “It is possible to get one backlink and get to the top…It is also possible to get a hundred worthless backlinks that will not help at all.” (11:23)
• On Quality vs. Quantity:
  • “It is not about how many backlinks you have. It’s about the quality of those backlinks.” (11:08)
• On Backlink Acquisition:
  • “Finding good quality backlinks is the hardest part of SEO.” (13:05)
• On Main Takeaways:
  • “You need backlinks to get authority and you need authority to rank. There is a difference between good quality backlinks and bad quality backlinks.” (11:40)

Timestamps for Important Segments

| Segment | Timestamp | |---------------------------------------|-----------| | Introduction and Definition | 05:00 | | Why Backlinks Matter (Authority) | 06:10 | | Four Things You Need to Rank | 07:10 | | Authority is Relative (Analogy) | 08:40 | | How Backlinks Share Authority | 09:15 | | Backlink Quality vs. Quantity | 10:50 | | Four Ways to Get Backlinks | 13:20 | | Episode Recap | 16:20 |

Episode Recap & Action Items (16:20)

• Understand what backlinks are and why they matter for authority.
• To rank, you need more authority (from backlinks) than your competition.
• Focus on getting high-quality backlinks; quantity won’t replace quality.
• Learn the difference between good and bad backlinks (future/recommended episodes).
• Four ways to practically get backlinks:
  1. Wait for natural links
  2. Buy them (with heavy caution)
  3. Guest posting / Outreach
  4. Build your own network (advanced, not for beginners)

Final Thoughts

This episode cuts through SEO myths, emphasizing practical realities: backlinks are essential for ranking, but only good quality backlinks truly deliver. Beginners are encouraged to focus on understanding the basics before attempting complex strategies, and additional episode recommendations for deeper dives are given.

For follow-up questions, audience participation is encouraged via Reddit or email. Episode-specific and advanced backlinks topics are referenced for those looking to learn more.