How to Get Backlinks for a Small Business Website

By Neha·Published October 5, 2026

Sooner or later every business owner with a website gets the message. "Sir, 500 high DA backlinks, only ₹1,999, guaranteed ranking." It arrives on WhatsApp, on email, sometimes on LinkedIn.

Delete it. Then read this, because backlinks do matter, and the honest ways of earning them are well within reach of a shop, a clinic or a freelancer. They are just slower and less exciting than the message promises.

What is a backlink, and why does Google care?

A backlink is a link on somebody else's website that leads to yours. If the local newspaper writes about your bakery and links to your site, that is a backlink. If your supplier lists you as an authorised dealer with a link, that is another.

Google has treated links as recommendations since its earliest days. A site that many trusted websites point to is probably worth showing. The key word is trusted. One link from a real newspaper, a college, a trade association or a well-known local blog is worth more than a thousand from websites that exist only to sell links.

Two terms you will hear:

• Dofollow and nofollow. A normal link passes on credit. A link marked "nofollow" or "sponsored" tells Google not to count it as a recommendation. Social media profiles, most directories and all paid placements should be of the second kind. They can still bring visitors.
• Domain authority, or DA. A score from 0 to 100 invented by SEO tool companies to estimate how strong a website's links are. Google does not use it. It is a rough guide for comparing sites, nothing more. Our bulk authority checker shows the score and the number of linking domains for up to 100 sites at once, which is handy for comparing yourself with competitors.

How many backlinks does a local business need?

Far fewer than you fear. A national online store competes on links with giants. A physiotherapist in Mysuru competes with other physiotherapists in Mysuru, most of whom have a handful of links at best.

Check the sites that outrank you for your main search. If they each have links from 10 to 30 different websites, that is your target range. For local searches, your Google Business Profile, your reviews and the accuracy of your listings usually count for more than links anyway. If those are not sorted, start with local SEO for small business and come back.

Seven honest ways to earn links, ranked by effort

1. Business listings (easy, do this first). Justdial, Sulekha, IndiaMART, Google Business Profile, Bing Places, and the directories specific to your trade. Most give nofollow links, but they confirm to Google that your business exists at that address with that phone number. Keep the name, address and phone identical everywhere. The business listing tracker is a checklist of 47 Indian and global listing sites, filtered by business type, so you can tick them off.

2. People you already do business with (easy). Suppliers often have a "where to buy" or "our dealers" page. Brands you stock may list retailers. A client you built something for may be glad to credit you. Your CA, your architect, your packaging vendor might have a clients or partners page. Ask. This is the most overlooked source there is, and the success rate is high because the relationship already exists.

3. Associations and memberships (easy). Chamber of commerce, trade bodies, your local traders' association, alumni groups, a professional council. Most have a member directory online. If you pay a membership fee, make sure the listing includes your website.

4. Local news and community (medium). Local news sites and city blogs need stories every day. They will not write about "shop sells things". They may write about a free health camp, a scholarship for a local student, a record order, a shop that has been in the same family for fifty years, or a new service nobody else in town offers. Send a short note with a good photo to the reporter who covers your area.

5. Sponsorships and events (medium). A school sports day, a college fest, a charity run, a housing society's Ganesh festival. Organisers usually thank sponsors on their website. Sponsor because you want to support it, and ask for the link as a courtesy.

6. Being genuinely useful online (medium to hard). Publish something other people want to point to. A clear price guide for your city. A checklist. A free calculator. Original numbers from your own business, such as "what 200 home renovations in Indore actually cost". Pages like these attract links for years without asking. Our guide on how to write a blog post that ranks covers the writing.

7. Guest articles and expert quotes (hard). Offer a useful article to a respected site in your field, or answer journalists who are looking for expert comments. This takes time, and most requests will be ignored. One good placement can be worth months of easier work.

How to ask for a link without being annoying

Most link requests fail because they are obviously copied and ask for a favour from a stranger. Three things improve the odds:

1. Write to a named person. Not "Dear webmaster".
2. Give a reason that helps them. A dead link on their page that you can replace, a missing resource, a fact they got wrong, a local story.
3. Keep it to five lines and make one clear request.

If you find a broken link on a site that should be pointing to something like yours, tell them. People are grateful for that, and it is a natural moment to suggest your page as the replacement. The broken link checker checks all the links on one page.

For freelancers and agencies who write these messages for clients, the cold outreach message writer drafts an email, a WhatsApp message and a follow-up.

Links to avoid, and why they backfire

• Paid link packages. Buying links meant to boost rankings is against Google's spam policies. The "500 links" are placed on junk sites or hacked pages. At best Google ignores them and you have wasted the money. At worst your site receives a manual action, which means a person at Google has flagged it, and it drops out of results until you clean up.
• Private blog networks. Groups of fake blogs created only to link to customers. Same outcome.
• Link exchanges at scale. A friendly swap with a real partner is fine. Trading links with fifty strangers is a pattern Google recognises.
• Comment and forum spam. Dropping your link under random blog posts. These are nofollow, irritating and useless.
• Fiverr-style "DA 90 profile links". Hundreds of empty profile pages. Worth nothing.

A simple test before accepting any offer: would this link exist if Google did not? A supplier listing its dealers passes. A list of 300 unrelated businesses on a page called "resources" does not.

If someone has already bought links for your site, do not panic. Google ignores most low-quality links without any action from you. You only need to worry if Search Console shows a manual action under Security and Manual Actions.

Do not waste the links you already have

Before chasing new links, make sure old ones still work. If your site was redesigned and addresses changed, links from other websites may now land on an error page, and their value is lost. Set up redirects from the old addresses to the new ones. The guide to broken links and redirects explains how.

Then make the most of the strength you have. When a page receives a good link, the benefit flows on through your own links to other pages. That is why internal linking and link earning work together.

Frequently asked questions

What is the fastest way to get backlinks?

Ask businesses you already have a relationship with: suppliers, brands you stock, clients and associations you belong to. These links are genuine, relevant and often arrive within days of a polite request.

Are backlinks from social media useful?

Links from Instagram, Facebook and similar profiles are nofollow and do not directly improve rankings. They are still worth having, because they bring visitors and help people confirm your business is real.

Is it safe to buy backlinks?

No. Buying links to influence rankings breaks Google's rules. Most purchased links are ignored, and a pattern of them can lead to your site being demoted. Money is better spent on something worth linking to.

How do I see who links to my website?

Google Search Console has a free Links report showing which sites link to you and which of your pages they point to. It is the most reliable source, because it comes from Google itself.