Forum backlinks SEO still exists, albeit not popular among many SEO experts. For obvious reasons, like spam and quality issues, most forum backlinks are no-follow links, which means most of the links from forum sites don’t transfer link juices. However, there is a grey area regarding the SEO benefits of forum backlinks.
You can learn all about forum backlinks here. It’s non-SEO benefits, how to build them ethically, and the stance of search engines like Google.
What are Forum Backlinks?
Forum backlinks are links from online forums, communities, and discussion boards. These links include forum posts, comments, profile descriptions, and user signatures.
Anyone can create an account in a forum like Reddit and drop website links. But you’ll be spamming the forum, and your account may be blocked.
However, there is a caveat to forum backlinks and a way to build backlinks ethically using online forums. Here are some examples of popular forums: Reddit, Quora, Digital Point, Warrior Forum, Stack Exchange, Black Hat World, and Moz community.
Is Forum Link Building Good for SEO?
Forum links have little SEO value, considering they are primarily no-follow links posted on user-generated platforms. Google clearly stated in its spam policy that it is against posting forum comments with optimized links or anchor text in the posts or signatures.
However, you may have observed that Google has often listed Reddit and Quora posts for many informational queries in search results.
This shows that Google prioritizes relevant threads and forum posts because they are from real users who will likely give unbiased advice based on their experiences.
Yes, forum backlinks are nowhere near Digital PR backlinks from authority websites, and Google doesn’t regard them. However, they can help to improve your SEO efforts with referral traffic and enhanced brand awareness.
Do-follow vs No-follow Forum Backlinks
Forum backlinks mostly have no-follow links, much like other UGC (user-generated sites), such as social media platforms.
Do-follow forum backlinks allow search engines to follow these links and pass link juice from the forum page to your website. They directly contribute to your site rankings and are a positive signal for authority and relevance.
No-follow forum backlinks tell search engines not to pass on SEO benefits to your linked site. Although they don’t add any SEO benefits, they can increase your site traffic, build credibility, and diversify your backlink profile.
Hence, adding a combination of do-follow and no-follow links would be best to maintain a natural backlink profile. Nonetheless, do-follow links should populate your backlink profile because that matters in SEO.
Follow the steps below to check if a forum link is do-follow or no-follow:
- Right-click on the link or anchor text
- Choose Inspect from the pop-up menu
- Check if there is a rel=”nofollow” tag in the code. This indicates that it is a no-follow link, and if there is none, then it’s a do-follow link
Non-SEO Benefits of Forum Backlinks
Forum backlinks have several non-SEO benefits that can indirectly improve your search engine rankings and attract more customers. Let’s take a look at them.
- Referral traffic: Forum backlinks can be a source of referral traffic to your site, especially if you’ve contributed valuable content to the forum. People will naturally want to learn more about your business.
- Acquire more customers: It can help you get more customers when engaging with an audience interested in your products or services. You can occasionally promote your business to attract leads and make sales.
- Brand authority: Forum backlinks can empower your brand authority when you’re a top contributor in the forum. Your posts will rank higher on search engines with massive engagements. People will see you as a subject matter expert in your niche
- Community building: Forums provide a platform to build a loyal audience. You can decide to convert them into leads with email sign-ups or get them to follow you on other social media channels
- Market research: Online discussion boards provide a means to carry out undiluted product research from user queries and comments. It helps you to get into real conversations with prospects and better understand their pain points, motivations, and desires
Furthermore, you could earn natural backlinks when site owners or writers visit your site and find valuable content resources.
How to Get High-quality Forum Backlinks
Here’s how you can build backlinks naturally without spamming discussion groups:
Join Industry Online Forums
The first step to creating forum backlinks is finding forums in your niche or industry. You can find niche forums with a simple Google search like “(niche) + forums,” “(niche),” + “community,” or “best forums for (your topic).” Example: If your niche is fitness, search for “fitness forums.”
Alternatively, search top forums like Reddit for relevant subreddits with the search bar or find niche topics on Quora. This will aid you to engage with an audience with similar interests and goals.
Check the Activity Level and Forum Posts
Before you join any forum, check the membership’s activity level and engagement. Are there recent posts, comments, views, and a good number of members?
There is no point in joining a forum where an admin only posts and comments. Some forums allow you to see the number of active users so you can check the activity level.
Additionally, make sure there are no spam issues or low-quality content in the forum and do-follow backlinks are optional but ideal for SEO.
Adhere to the Community Guidelines
Read through the forum guidelines so you don’t get banned or kicked out for spamming links. Also, spend time engaging, posting, and observing the type of content that resonates with the audience. Doing this will help you to place backlinks ethically without breaking any community rule.
Build Forum Backlinks
Below are some ways you can place relevant site links in forums:
- Create valuable posts or content and add SEO links for further reading
- Include a link in promotional forums or communities
- Comment on posts or threads and place contextual links for more information
- Link to your website only when it’s relevant and answers the questions of users
- Include your website and social media links in your forum profile
- Add links when someone requests it so that they can check out your business or content resources
- Place your site link in your signature if it’s available
Forum link building is a long-term game; you’re not there to promote your business, place links, and runoff.
You’re there to engage in meaningful discussions, share ideas with your prospects, and follow business owners. If you start with this mindset, you can get remarkable results from online forums.
Read More:
- What are SEO Links?
- What are Outbound Links in SEO?
- How to Build Quality Backlinks
- How to Build Local SEO Links
- How to Build Backlinks with Cloud Stacking
- How to Find and Fix Broken Links on Your Site
Final Thoughts
Forum backlinks are not as profitable as they used to be. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t benefit your site ranking and overall business success.
Ensure you track your referral traffic and backlinks from forums so that you can optimize your SEO strategy to achieve better results.
Want to learn how to build high-quality backlinks to your site? Then check out this post on authority-linking building strategies.
FAQs
What are forum backlinks in SEO?
Forum backlinks are external links in forums, communities, and discussion boards. These links can have a do-follow attribute but are mostly no-follows. Forum links can help you to get traffic to your website and enhance your brand presence.
How to create forum backlinks?
You can build links from relevant forums by doing the following:
- Find niche-specific, active forums relevant to your industry.
- Create a credible profile with a genuine name and photo.
- Add value to discussions by answering questions or sharing insights.
- Insert contextual links naturally in your posts or your forum signature, and adhere to community guidelines
Is forum posting good for SEO?
Forum posting has limited SEO benefits, but it can help you get referral traffic, increase your online visibility, and build a loyal audience that you can sell to.
What are forum links?
Forum links are simply links in forum posts, comments, or user signatures. They become backlinks when they are pointing to another website. However, the SEO benefits of forum links depend on the domain rating of the forum and if it’s a do-follow or no-follow link
What are forum website examples?
Here are a few popular forum websites include:
- Quora
- Stack Exchange
- Warrior Forum
- Digital Point
- Moz community
- Black Hat World
