How to Get Backlinks for a New Website, Honestly
The honest way to get backlinks for a new website is to be listed where people already look for new products, and to make something worth linking to. In practice that means launch listings that give you a followed link, pages for the tools and partners you integrate with, a few useful resources people cite, and articles on sites your users read. It’s slow. It also stays within Google’s spam policies, which is the point.
This guide is for makers with a new product and no links yet. We run LaunchGP, a launch directory, so we have a stake in launch listings and use ours as one of the examples. The other sources apply whatever platforms you use.
What is a backlink, and which ones count?
A backlink is a link from another site to yours. Search engines read links as a signal that a page is worth something, but not every link passes that signal:
- A normal link, with no rel attribute, is a followed link. People call this “dofollow,” although no such attribute exists.
- A link with rel=“nofollow” asks search engines not to pass credit.
- A link with rel=“sponsored” marks a paid placement. Google asks for it on links someone paid for.
- A link with rel=“ugc” marks user-generated content like comments and forum posts.
Google explains these values in its guide to qualifying outbound links. If you’re building links for search, followed links from relevant sites are the ones that matter. The full explanation is in rel sponsored vs nofollow vs dofollow.
Nofollow links aren’t worthless. They bring visitors, and visitors are why you launched. They just pass little ranking credit.
Where can a new site’s first links come from?
| Source | Why it’s relevant | Effort |
|---|---|---|
| Launch listings | A page about your product on a site people browse for new tools | Low per listing |
| Integration and partner pages | Related to your product by definition | Low, once the integration works |
| Pages people cite | Others link because the page saves them work | High, but it lasts |
| Articles on other sites | Written for readers in your field | Medium to high |
| Communities and profiles | Where your users already are | Ongoing, mostly nofollow or ugc |
| Unlinked mentions | People already wrote about you | Low |
Check the link type on each one yourself. It varies by site and can change.
1. Launch listings that give followed links
Launch directories are one place a new product can get its first links. Check what kind of link each one gives and for how long, because it varies a lot.
On LaunchGP (ours), links work like this:
- Every free car has a dofollow link from its product page during its race week.
- The top three of every Grand Prix keep a permanent dofollow link.
- The top 10 of each Endurance class have a dofollow link while they hold the spot.
- Paid placements always link with rel=“sponsored”.
A free seat needs the LaunchGP badge on your site, which is a link back to your product page on LaunchGP. If you’re wondering whether that kind of exchange is risky, we wrote about it in are reciprocal links bad for SEO.
2. Integrations and partners
If your product connects to another tool, that tool may list integrations on its site or in a marketplace. Those pages are relevant to your product by definition. Ask once you have a working integration, and make it easy: send the description, the logo and the link.
3. Pages people want to cite
People link to things that save them work. For a small product, that might be:
- A free tool or calculator that does one job well.
- A template, checklist or spreadsheet your users would otherwise build themselves.
- Original data you actually have, like results from a survey you ran or what you learned from your own launch.
- A clear explanation of a topic that’s badly explained elsewhere.
Don’t publish numbers you can’t back up. If a cited number turns out to be wrong, the correction is public too.
4. Articles on sites your users read
Guest posts, interviews and podcast appearances on sites that cover your field. The bar is the same as for anything you publish: write something useful for that site’s readers. A post written only to place a link tends to read like one, and careful editors turn those down.
5. Communities and profiles
Your profiles on code hosts, maker communities and social networks can link to your site. Posts in forums and comments usually carry nofollow or ugc. They’re worth it for the people who click, not for rankings.
6. Mentions without a link
Once people start writing about your product, some will mention it without linking. Search for your product’s name now and then. A short, polite note asking for a link is fine.
What should you avoid?
Google’s spam policies name link schemes that can get a site demoted. The ones new makers run into most:
- Buying or selling links for ranking purposes. Paid links are fine if they carry rel=“sponsored” or rel=“nofollow”.
- Excessive link exchanges. “Link to me and I’ll link to you” at scale, or partner pages made only for cross-linking.
- Automated programs or services that create links to your site.
- Low-quality directory or bookmark site links. Mass submissions to directories that list anything.
The pattern is the same: links that exist for search engines rather than for people.
How do you check what you got?
- Look at the link itself. Right-click the link to your site, inspect it and read the rel attribute.
- Use Search Console. The Links report lists the sites that link to you. New links can take a while to show up.
- Keep a short list of where you launched, the date, the link type and how many visitors it brought. After a few launches, you’ll know which places are worth repeating.
A realistic first month
- Launch on two or three platforms that give a followed link, spread over different weeks. Our launch platform comparison helps you choose.
- Ask the tools you integrate with to list you.
- Publish one genuinely useful resource for your users.
- Pitch one article to a site your users read.
That’s slow. In our view, links that come from real relevance are the ones worth having, because they don’t depend on a loophole staying open. When you’re ready for the first one, add your product on LaunchGP.
FAQ
How many backlinks does a new website need?
There’s no fixed number. In our view, a few relevant links from sites your users trust are worth more than many from unrelated ones. Focus on relevance and keep going.
How long do backlinks take to help a new site?
It varies, and nobody can promise a timeline. New links first have to be found and crawled. Keep publishing useful pages while you wait.
Are directory backlinks still worth it?
Links from moderated, relevant directories can be. Google’s spam policies call out low-quality directory links, so mass submissions to directories that accept anything aren’t worth the time.
Should I buy backlinks for a new website?
No. Buying links that pass ranking credit breaks Google’s spam policies. If you pay for a placement, the link should carry rel=“sponsored” or rel=“nofollow”.
Do nofollow backlinks help at all?
They bring visitors and can help search engines discover your pages. Google treats nofollow as a hint, but don’t count on it for ranking credit.