Outsourcing link building cheaply can work well for a while before it goes south and you're exposed. So the question is, do you want to save a few euros to get some short-term results, but risk having to exploit spam later, or would you rather spend a bit more and go for FEWER backlinks, but higher-quality promotion that generates brand mentions, targeted traffic (leads), and lasting results? Watch this slideshow to the end to discover how link building should be applied in 2026 to achieve good results with SEO, GEO/AEO (AI Search).
Slide 1
Have you bought a lot of backlinks in the past and are they now yielding little results?
In 2026, it's no longer about the number of links, but about quality and relevance! There are also a few other things to consider, which we'll explain in this slideshow. Grab your popcorn and settle in, because this is important!
Slide 2
Beware of Google penalties!
Google penalizes websites with spammy links and duplicate AI content. Therefore, ensure unique, valuable, and naturally generated content and a natural link profile: links from various A-, B-, and C-Class IP addresses, domains with unique WHOIS data, preferably from your niche, or with high Domain Authority & Trust Scores. Don't just focus on the authority score, as homepage-like link farms and spammy links often mislead this. Link velocity and varied anchor text are also crucial for a secure, sustainable SEO strategy.
Slide 5
Have your Google rankings dropped dramatically?
A drop in your Google rankings can have several causes. We'll now explain some key risks so you can avoid them.
Slide 5
Link networks often fall through easily because they are not set up properly!
Link builders who sell you links from multiple sites on the same IP address or Class C IP addresses, or even more pointedly, with the same WHOIS data, signal to Google that the same person is continuously linking to your site. Do you think this will have a long-term positive effect? A spammy link-anchor-text ratio (links with your main keyword), too many links from sites with the same layout, identical text, and images, and sites registered with Google Analytics and/or Search Console are also easy to spot.
Slide 4
Do you or your link builder buy backlinks from guest blogging platforms?
We're not saying it will happen, but it has happened many times in the past that blog networks like BuildMyRank, where you could buy guest posts, have been completely deindexed. All sites that had links from those networks subsequently plummeted, and many sites and businesses didn't survive the blow. This could also happen to all the guest post networks you see so often these days, which only host link-building sites that Google can wipe from its map with a single click. All sites that bought links from those sites will feel the impact.
Slide 4
Is sharing link building sheets with Google a good idea?
Do you or your link builder share all your link options or placed links via a Google Sheet? Didn't you know that Google owns Google Sheets? All Google Sheets shared with link-building blog lists can be wiped off the map with the click of a button. We're not saying this will happen, but we are saying it could.
Slide 4
Talking about buying links in your Gmail account?
Do you or your link builder use Gmail as your email client? Do those emails ever mention buying backlinks? It might be wise to stop doing that, since Google also owns Gmail. It's better to keep these kinds of conversations in your business email account; you never know.
Slide 4
Bought a Start Page clone link? Big risk of a Google penalty!
Did you know that start page (startpagina) clone links are the epitome of link farms and pose a significant risk of Google penalties? These types of links are widely used by Dutch link builders to boost the Domain Authority of link-building blogs and, in the worst-case scenario, to link to their clients' sites. Really want to take the risk? Then buy startpagina clone links and links from sites that have a lot of these types of links!
Slide 4
Using AI-written spam content for your site or link building?
AI content isn't unique content. It's rewritten content based on information the AI bot extracts from Google results. This is content written by others. By using this content, you're essentially guilty of plagiarism, even though you won't be penalized. Google doesn't want the internet cluttered with rewritten content. This is another example of choosing the easiest route. We're already seeing sites that publish increasingly more AI content on their sites fail to rank or continue to drop in Google results. A well-known example of this is AIInvest.com, which lost 95% of its rankings because it used too much AI content. This is good news for skilled content writers, as they won't lose their jobs to AI.
Slide 4
Doorway Spam Pages - Local service pages without a real presence
Doorway pages are pages specifically designed to rank for local keywords and niche keywords, even though the business doesn't actually have a physical location in that region. This is a simple, spammy strategy still widely used by SEO agencies and can harm your rankings.
They add no value for the visitor and often have almost identical content.
Google considers this deceptive behavior and can penalize it with lower rankings or a penalty.
Slide 4
What works for local SEO?
True relevance and visibility by region
Instead of spammy doorway pages, local SEO only truly works if you offer added value by region:
-> Real locations or demonstrable presence
-> Unique content per region (case studies, photos, reviews)
-> Local partnerships and listings
-> Clear contact information and transparency
Google rewards pages that genuinely help users instead of misleading them.
Slide 4
What Is E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness)?
Doorway pages are pages specifically designed to rank for local keywords and niche keywords, even though the business doesn't actually have a physical location in that region. This is a simple, spammy strategy still widely used by SEO agencies and can harm your rankings.
They add no value for the visitor and often have almost identical content.
Google considers this deceptive behavior and can penalize it with lower rankings or a penalty.
Slide 13
Link building is dead, long live link building!
The difference between success and failure lies in the quality of online promotion. For example, backlinks are no longer the most important ranking factor, and AI has taken over all the traffic for solution-oriented keywords, meaning you'll see little traffic from those. We'll now explain how to achieve long-term results in 2026, so you can still generate valuable traffic from Google and AI search.
Slide 6
But which backlinks actually work in link building?
Slide 7
Ranking Top for Local Searches & Google Maps
With strong local citations and targeted links to your Google Business Profile, we increase your visibility in Google, Google Maps, and AI Search. Thanks to consistent name and address listings in relevant business directories and smart Google Maps embeds, you'll be at the top of the list when customers search for businesses in your niche or region on their mobile devices or computers.
Slide 8
Easily Score By Optimizing Your Google My Business Page
One of the easiest ways to quickly achieve results for local businesses is to optimize their Google My Business profile. Being visible for local searches is crucial for local businesses, and simply optimizing the GMB for SEO with content, keywords, and images will lead to significant increases in local search rankings. Regularly adding images and automatically syncing blog posts is also very effective for improving your ranking for local search terms.
Slide 9
The Goal: Get into the Local 3-Pack
For local searches, Google shows three businesses that appear ABOVE ALL OTHER search results: the Local 3-Pack. The example above shows what this looks like for the search query "flower shop Amsterdam." A spot in this top 3 means maximum visibility, more clicks, and more customers.
Slide 9
Social Listening: Respond quickly to posts related to your business
Negative messages about your company, product, or service demand immediate action. By responding quickly, you prevent discussions from escalating and maintain control over your reputation.
👉 Reputation can make or break your business!
With smart alerts (such as email and keyword notifications), you can respond immediately when:
-> Someone is searching for your product or service
-> Someone mentions a problem for which you have the solution
If you appear first in a post, you'll quickly attract a lot of relevant and valuable traffic to your website.
By consistently listening to the questions and problems of your target audience:
-> Improve your content, offer solutions (blog & social media)
-> Optimize your offering
-> Improve your Product-Market Fit
Listening = creating opportunities!
Slide 10
Videos are easier to rank
YouTube videos appear not only in the YouTube search engine but also among regular search engine results in Google and AI search, making them easier to rank because there's less competition. Video also works incredibly well on social media, where you can also generate traffic and backlinks. Video sells best and is readily consumed by your customers. Your message is conveyed effectively and clearly, building trust. In 2026, video will be an indispensable tool in your online marketing strategy, especially now that creating good video content has become much easier thanks to AI, high-quality mobile cameras, (mobile) video editing apps, and automatic distribution to various platforms. Publishing videos also earns you valuable backlinks from these high-authority sites and can be embedded on other sites, linking to those videos, boosting their ranking!
Slide 11
Posting Press Releases on Strong Media
We distribute your press release specifically to journalists and media outlets in your industry who actively receive press releases. If the news resonates with their target audience, it will be published on authoritative websites. According to Google guidelines, links on press release sites must be nofollowed. However, this doesn't matter because these days, brand mentions are much more important than backlinks, and Google trusts them more because they're less susceptible to manipulation. These publications generate more exposure, and news stories from these sites are often reprinted by other media outlets. This promotion generates valuable, high-quality traffic and helps build your brand, which is precisely what Google is looking for these days. You gain more visibility, trust, and better customers.
Slide 12
Meer Verkopen door Slimme Linkbuilding
Door gestaag en langzaam aan te linkbuilden, continuïteit erin te houden en goede stukken op de juiste plaatsen online te publiceren gaan we goede resultaten zien. Snelle spammy methoden worden altijd op den duur afgestraft of hebben geen resultaat en zijn verspeelde energie. Met inzet op kwaliteit en hoogwaardige publicaties zorgen we voor langdurig resultaat. Klaar om jouw online aanwezigheid naar een hoger niveau te brengen? Plan dan een gratis en vrijblijvend kennismakingsgesprek in!
Many companies invest months in link building and SEO. They buy links, publish content, sometimes see a bit of result at first and then soon see their results slowly disappear. Not because link building and SEO don’t work, but because they’re applied incorrectly.
Google has become much smarter since the advent of AI and their investment in large data centers. AI Search looks beyond numbers. What used to work can now work against you.
The biggest mistake: optimizing for keywords and not for solutions your business can provide
Most agencies focus on metrics that look good in reports: keywords with high search volumes, high authority scores, many backlinks, fast growth predictions. But Google looks at something else: Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness and Trustworthiness, or E-E-A-T. But besides EEAT, verifiability, relevance, consistency, online reputation and brand authority are also important.
As soon as a link profile becomes unnatural with, among other things, the same (Class) IP link references, the same Whois data, links from sites with AI content, duplicate content, low quality content, hacked sites or references to the dark corners of the internet, poor relevance and anchor text over-optimization, your visibility drops or you get stuck without growing.
Local visibility comes from mentions in the right places, not from volume.
Local searches convert extremely well: often people search on mobile phones in Google Maps with the intention to buy NOW. Many local businesses are poorly optimized for local search terms.
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External mentions that confirm local expertise (business directories, social media pages, press releases)
Those who combine this well, consistently appear in places where competitors simply don’t show up.
Why ‘cheap link building’ always turns out expensive
Cheap link building sometimes works. Just long enough to make you think it’s going well.
Until:
Rankings no longer increase
Traffic drops without clear reason
New pages are no longer indexed (major problem!)
At that point you still pay, but then in recovery, lost revenue and wasted time. Try figuring out which link or which duplicate content is causing the drops. An almost impossible task. Sometimes it’s better to start all over again.
What does work: controlled growth in places that matter
Sustainable SEO isn’t about more, but about better-placed signals.
Think of:
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Publications on platforms Google trusts
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Relevant context around your niche
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Natural timing and build-up
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Content that also has reach outside Google
Video plays an increasingly important role in this, not as a trick, but as an amplifier of authority and visibility.
This is not a quick fix, and that’s exactly the point
If you’re looking for:
Quick ranking tricks
Bulk cheap backlinks
“Quick SEO fix”
Then we’re not a match.
But if you want to:
Be found better structurally
Dominate locally and organically, also in AI Search results
Build something that won’t collapse at the next update
Then it makes sense to talk further.
Ready for the next-level Link Building and SEO approach?
No standard packages. No automatic processes. But an approach that fits your market, your region and your ambitions.
Schedule a non-binding introductory call to discover if this is something for you.
![Google local 3-pack - bloemenwinkel amsterdam - Google Search - [www.google.com]](http://linkbuildingspecialisten.nl/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Google-local-3-pack-bloemenwinkel-amsterdam-Google-Search-www.google.com_.jpg "Google local 3-pack - bloemenwinkel amsterdam - Google Search - [www.google.com]")
