A backlink is a link from another site to yours, and it's one of the oldest signals Google uses to understand how trustworthy and valuable a page is. In e-commerce, the goal of a backlink strategy isn't to collect lots of links but to earn links naturally from sites that are relevant to your sector and have real readers. Bought or swapped links violate Google's spam policies, and the price of a short-term boost can be a serious loss of rankings.
In this article we explain why backlinks still matter today, which links Google treats as problematic, and the ways an e-commerce brand can earn links safely.
Do backlinks still matter today?
Yes. Although Google uses hundreds of signals in ranking, links from other sites remain one of the main ways it assesses the authority of a page and a site. The presence of a site-level authority measure in the Google documents leaked in 2024 supports this; we cover the details in our article on the Google leak.
What has changed is the quality of links. Today the main factors that determine a link's value are:
Relevance: the linking site is related to your sector or product.
Real traffic: the site has real readers and organic traffic.
Context: the link sits within the content, in a sentence related to the topic.
Diversity: links come from different domains, not a single source.
AI-powered search results also favour brands mentioned on trustworthy sources. That's why earning links matters not only for Google rankings but also for visibility in AI assistants' answers.
Which links does Google treat as problematic?
Under Google's spam policies, links created to manipulate rankings count as "link spam". The most common examples:
Buying or selling links: links given in exchange for money, products or services that aren't marked with rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow".
Excessive link exchanges: bulk reciprocal links along the lines of "you link to me and I'll link to you".
Automated link building: using software to create links in bulk from forums, comments or directory sites.
Low-quality directory and bookmark sites: links from sites that exist only to give out links.
Keyword-stuffed anchor text: unnatural, exact-match keyword links in guest posts or press releases.
Getting a link by sending a product to an influencer or buying sponsored content isn't forbidden; what matters is that these links are marked rel="sponsored". Although such links don't contribute directly to rankings, they're valuable for traffic, brand awareness and brand mentions.We explain the difference between link tags in our article on nofollow and dofollow links.
7 safe ways to earn links in e-commerce
1. Retailer, stockist and supplier pages
If you sell other brands' products, contact those brands to be listed on their "where to buy" or "authorised retailers" pages. If you have stockists selling your own brand's products, ask them to link to you from their sites. These links are both relevant and natural.
2. Turning unlinked brand mentions into links
Find news and blog articles that mention your brand without linking to it. Setting up a Google Alert or using the brand mention tracking in SEO tools helps. A short, polite message asking the writer to add a link is one of the highest-converting ways to earn links.
3. Data-led content and digital PR
Journalists and bloggers link to original data. Anonymised trends from your own sales data, a survey about your sector or an annual report are among the strongest ways to earn links from news sites. For example, a fashion brand could share the most searched colours of the season or shopping habits by city.
4. Evergreen guide content
Content such as size guides, care guides, comparison tables and calculators naturally collects links over time. These are the kind of resources other sites point their readers to "for more information".
5. Expert comment and interviews
Appearing as an expert source in news and magazine articles about your sector is an effective way to earn links from authoritative sites. If your founder or product expert stays in regular contact with journalists, this becomes a steady source of links over time.
6. Partnerships and sponsorships
Partnerships with local events, sector associations, university clubs or social responsibility projects bring natural links from relevant sites. Although some of these links will be marked as sponsored, their contribution to brand awareness is significant.
7. Broken link opportunities
Finding links that no longer work on sites in your sector and suggesting your own content on the same topic as a replacement is laborious but effective. Broken link reports in SEO tools make these opportunities easier to find.
How do you track your backlink profile?
Google Search Console: the Links report shows the domains linking to your site and your most-linked pages. For setup, see our Search Console guide.
SEO tools: tools such as Ahrefs, Semrush or SE Ranking show new and lost links, anchor text and your competitors' link profiles.
Metrics: rather than the total number of links, look at the number of unique linking domains and the quality of those domains.
Links from low-quality sites are usually already ignored by Google. The disavow tool is recommended only if you've received a manual action or deliberately built spam links in the past.
Frequently asked questions
Is buying backlinks forbidden?
Buying links to influence rankings without marking them rel="sponsored" or rel="nofollow" violates Google's spam policies. You can buy sponsored content, but the link must be marked accordingly.
How many backlinks do I need?
There's no fixed number. What matters is how many relevant and trustworthy domains link to you compared with your competitors. A few strong, relevant links are worth more than hundreds of low-quality ones.
Are nofollow links of any use?
Yes. Although nofollow links don't contribute directly to rankings, Google may treat them as a hint. They also bring traffic and brand awareness.
Let's plan your link strategy together
Backlink work gives the best results when planned together with content, digital PR and technical SEO. If you'd like to review your brand's link profile and SEO strategy together, get in touch through our SEO and GEO consulting page.
