At the same time, you\u2019ll also have to put in some work for each backlink you do <\/em>end up building. If you\u2019re using guest posting for link-building, for example, you\u2019ll need a completely fresh blog post written for every single backlink you want to build.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the end of the day, all this work ends up making link-building a costly and time-consuming strategy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So you might wonder, what can you do to rank without backlinks?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, for one, here\u2019s a bit of good news: it IS possible to rank without backlinks. And in this article, we\u2019ll teach you just what you need to do to make that happen!<\/p>\n\n\n\n The best tactic for ranking without backlinks is targeting low-difficulty keywords. The reason that targeting such keywords is so effective is because of two reasons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Finding such low-difficulty keywords is actually pretty straightforward. Pick out your seed keywords and run them through Ahrefs keyword explorer:<\/p>\n\n\n\n You\u2019ll get a very comprehensive list of keywords associated with the keyword you just input.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Start going through this list and extract any keyword that has a low difficulty level. Anything below 30-level-difficulty should be good, but the lower it is, the easier it will be to rank for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, once you start publishing content, prioritize the lower-difficulty keywords over the rest of them, and you\u2019re good to go!<\/p>\n\n\n\n This one\u2019s a very popular tactic for ranking without backlinks in 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A zero-volume keyword is a keyword that shows no search volume on Google Planner or Ahrefs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So you might be asking, why would you want to target a keyword that has zero volume?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Well, primarily because:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sometimes, you\u2019ll find that a keyword has zero search volume on Google, but your website is actually driving hundreds of clicks every month from the very same keyword!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now, you\u2019re probably wondering how <\/em>can you tell whether a zero-volume keyword is worth targeting or not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The best way to go here is to decide whether you\u2019d benefit from ranking from such a keyword in the first place. E.g. is it associated with your business\/website topics?<\/p>\n\n\n\n If so, the second step is to think whether this keyword, logically speaking, is something that people might be Googling.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you answered \u201cyes\u201d to both of these questions, then the keyword is likely worth pursuing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On-page SEO is essential if you want your web pages to rank without backlinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Fortunately, the process here is relatively simple. If you\u2019re using WordPress, simply install RankMath or Yoast and follow their optimization checklist for each of your pages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re not<\/strong> using WordPress, here\u2019s a simple checklist for on-page SEO optimization:<\/p>\n\n\n\n This one\u2019s very important – your blog content should match the search intent<\/a> behind the keyword you\u2019re targeting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re targeting the keyword \u201cbenefits of marketing,\u201d for example, you\u2019re not going to rank with an article on \u201ctop tips for effective marketing,\u201d and vice versa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n An effective method for discovering what\u2019s the right angle to focus on for a given keyword is to simply look it up and see what ranks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Then, go for the same exact angle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If we Google \u201cmarketing tips,\u201d for example, you\u2019ll see that all top-ranking posts are about \u201cX Marketing Tips,\u201d so you should go with this same angle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Want to outrank competitors with quality backlinks? You\u2019ll want to beat them with superior blog content<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If your competitors are ranking with \u201c11 marketing tips,\u201d for example, you can include 21+ tips in YOUR post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Similarly, if all the top-ranking posts are pure text, you can spice things up by including visuals such as illustrations or infographics in your post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While no two articles are alike, some of the most important characteristics of high-quality articles are:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Interlinking is a very effective technique for ranking without backlinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Interlinking is useful for two main reasons:<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, this begs the question<\/strong> – how can you do internal linking effectively?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here are our top tips on the topic:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The more content you publish, the sooner each of your blog posts will rank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the main factors Google considers when evaluating who ranks is topical authority.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If Website A has 200 blog posts about SEO, for example, and Website B only has ten, then site A is a lot more likely to rank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Google views Website A as an authority on the topic, and as such, is a lot more likely to grant it better rankings than site B.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, the takeaway here is this: the faster you publish content on your blog, the faster you\u2019ll build up your authority, and the faster\/better you\u2019ll rank.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If link-building is not something you can focus on at this stage, then content publishing velocity is the next best thing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes, backlinks are still important for SEO.<\/p>\n\n\n\n While it IS possible to rank without backlinks, the quantity and quality of your backlinks can still determine:<\/p>\n\n\n\n At MintSEO, we do link-building for all of our client websites<\/a> and we recommend you do the same.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ranking without backlinks is possible, but if you DO have the option\/budget to build links, then you should definitely go for it. With link-building, you\u2019re going to rank both better and faster.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes, you can rank without backlinks in 2022, all you have to do is follow the tactics we covered in this article. Namely, you should:<\/p>\n\n\n\n This depends on the keyword you\u2019re targeting. If you\u2019re targeting a low-difficulty keyword with not a lot of results, then you can rank without any backlinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re targeting a more competitive keyword, though, then you\u2019ll need anything from two to 100+ backlinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A good way to check the number of backlinks you\u2019ll need to rank for a certain keyword is to run it through Ahrefs and see how many backlinks your competitors have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If, for example, you run \u201cremote work taxes\u201d through Ahrefs, you\u2019ll see this:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The top-ranking articles have eight and 36 backlinks respectively. These pages also have extremely high domain ratings – 89 and 74.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So, if your website has around the same domain authority, then you can likely rank with around the same number of backlinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If your website is very fresh<\/a>, though, with a non-existent backlink profile, then you\u2019ll need a LOT more backlinks if you want to rank for this keyword<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yes, you can<\/strong> build backlinks for free. One effective way to do so is to focus on publishing quality guest posts. Here\u2019s how this works:<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you reach out to the average website with a guest post pitch, they\u2019ll get back to you asking for a sponsorship fee, anything from 100 to 1,000 USD depending on the niche. <\/p>\n\n\n\nHow to Rank Without Backlinks – 7 Effective SEO Techniques<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
#1. Prioritize Low-Difficulty Keywords<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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![\"ahrefs](\"https:\/\/mintseo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image3-10-1024x465.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"rank](\"https:\/\/mintseo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image4-9-1024x681.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n#2. Target Zero Volume Keywords<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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#3. Optimize Your Content for On-Page SEO<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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#4. Make Sure Your Content Meets Search Intent<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"google](\"https:\/\/mintseo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image1-16.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n#5. Create Exponentially Better Content (Than Your Competition)<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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#6. Interlink Your Blog Posts<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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#7. Focus on Content Velocity<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Are Backlinks Still Important for SEO?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Can I Rank my Website Without Backlinks in 2022?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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How Many Backlinks Do I Need to Rank on Google?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
![\"competitor](\"https:\/\/mintseo.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/image2-13-1024x446.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nCan I Build Backlinks for Free?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n