Outbound Links: Is Linking Out To Authority Sites Good For SEO?

Many SEO practices have been considered as rank boosters. Most people are aware that internal links are one of the ways to rank higher and improve visibility. But what about outbound links? It is one of the link-building tactics that have the SEO community divided. Some believe it contributes to better rankings, while others emphasize that linking out to an authoritative website has nothing to do with SEO. Many search engine optimization services in Bahrain continue to include it in their link-building practices. But why? Let’s look at what outbound links are and whether they actually affect SEO and influence rankings. 

What Are Outbound Links?

Outbound links, also known as external links, direct visitors from the page where you have included the link on your website to the website you have linked to on the internet. External links send visitors to a completely different website, while inbound links take them to another page on the same website.

It doesn’t matter if your website has a link to another website or another website has linked to yours- both are external links.

Search engines are said to value external links more than internal links since what someone else says about you is considered more important than what you have to say about yourself. So, if more websites link to your site, you will be deemed as a credible source. Search engines use external links to popularity and relevance since they are harder to manipulate. Both external and internal links are part of most SEO packages in Bahrain, but does it make a difference? 

Do Outbound Links Affect SEO?

It is a well-known tactic that linking to authoritative websites will help a website rank better. But does it really? This practice is not based on anything Google has ever said or published. So how did it come to be? It’s based on practice from a 1998 algorithm research paper and a seminal document of SEO practices by Brett Tabke. The ranking algorithm research paper used a new form of link analysis called HITS, which was based on the idea of hub score and authority score. This caught the attention of the SEO community, who evolved and adopted the concept later as part of SEO best practices. If you hire an SEO company in Bahrain, outbound links may be part of their services.

However, Google never used the HITS algorithm, yet the practice of outbound links became integrated into SEO in the hopes that it will be used in their algorithm soon. Many believe that outbound links help achieve authority in the same way as providing a reference for the source of information, leading to a better user experience. This is why outbound links are a part of many SEO services in Bahrain and the rest of the world.

According to John Mueller, Webmaster Trends Analyst at Google, outbound links don’t make sense since spammy websites can link to reputable sites to gain authority and appear credible. But, linking out can be a good practice if you have relevant content on your site that refers to content on other websites. 

Conclusion

For Google, outbound links don’t make a difference. There is no statement from Google, a patent or research paper that explains why it's a good practice to link out to an authoritative site. But, it is still a good user experience practice and has been continued to be regarded as useful by the SEO community. If you are looking for an SEO agency in Bahrain that can successfully implement known SEO best practices for your website, get in touch with us at Adaan GCC.