Why do authority websites rank with so little backlinks!?

24 replies
  • SEO
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I was doing some niche research the other day and came across something interesting. The first domain name which was number 1 on Google UK had 1,000 backlinks so rightly came in at first but at second place a well established company ('tesco' in uk) managed to rank with only 9! Now the thing that makes this even more interesting was the fact an affiliate had an exact match domain name and had 134 backlinks of good quality and came below it!

Why is a tesco page ranked above this affiliate site when it has 10x less links!?
#authority #backlinks #rank #websites
  • I seriously doubt that the number of backlinks is the only factor here. And, especially without links to check out, it could be any of a thousand different things.
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  • Profile picture of the author BaltimoreDave
    I've noticed this hundreds of times, and sometimes it's a bit discouraging. Backlinks aren't the only factor. Domain age is another huge one. also, the links coming from tesco could be more relevant or of higher pr than the links going to the affiliate site. Also, If the tesco site has 20,000 backlinks or something...and then it refers to their specific url within that specific niche, That is a huge link. I know there are more factors. Just do some research. Look into both of their back links and page sources and you could learn some awesome seo tricks.
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  • Profile picture of the author JohnMcCabe
    Originally Posted by tedwood View Post

    I was doing some niche research the other day and came across something interesting. The first domain name which was number 1 on Google UK had 1,000 backlinks so rightly came in at first but at second place a well established company ('tesco' in uk) managed to rank with only 9! Now the thing that makes this even more interesting was the fact an affiliate had an exact match domain name and had 134 backlinks of good quality and came below it!

    Why is a tesco page ranked above this affiliate site when it has 10x less links!?
    I took a look at the Tesco website, and I've got news for you. That site has thousands of backlinks - dozens to every single page. What most people don't realize is that internal linking counts. Maybe not as much as the right external links, but in cases like this, it all adds up.
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  • Profile picture of the author Roy Carter
    Yes, could be a number of things but Dave mentioned one important one...

    'the links coming from tesco could be more relevant or <b>of higher pr</b> than the links going to the affiliate site.'
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    • Profile picture of the author WareTime
      Originally Posted by Roy Carter View Post

      Yes, could be a number of things but Dave mentioned one important one...

      'the links coming from tesco could be more relevant or <b>of higher pr</b> than the links going to the affiliate site.'
      True. They are probably not all in forum sigs and comment spam.
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  • Profile picture of the author tedwood
    I do understand about the aspect of higher quality links but being honest i'm still bewildered :S.
    Looks like I may have to take a few risks in a few niches especially when the big players are involved.
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  • Profile picture of the author journey7
    Maybe because they are already well established in the eyes of Google.

    This is what I read according to a guest post on Problogger.
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  • Profile picture of the author jhnbrwn
    Well, as you said, strange, yes, it is. the reason why is has got top ranking with lesser backlinks could be because of high quality links - possibly paid links.
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  • Profile picture of the author matheusgrafix
    What about the fact "authority"?
    Maybe they are so important that they deserve to rank high and the government make them like that.
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  • Profile picture of the author kiranraj19
    Because all these authority website are getting many visitors & link with other major authority websites
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  • Profile picture of the author webhostingrvw
    tesco is a uk company. emd affiliate may not be targeting uk.
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  • Profile picture of the author erazer
    Another factor is on-page SEO. But sites like Tesco (and Amazon, Walmart etc) may also rank temporarily for a particular product.
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  • Profile picture of the author freeson
    It is because their On page SEO is nice in the eye of Google also their link is quality!
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  • Profile picture of the author faceblogger
    That is why we call them "Authority Websites" Google trusts them more and give priority.
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    • Profile picture of the author dp40oz
      Because backlinks are just 1 factor in sites rankings. I think it's funny when people make posts like this. Example "why is wikipedia outranking my page and I have a gazillion more links?" Because Google is not completely dumb and they know that certain sites have earned and usually do deserve higher rankings despite links. The better question is why do u think Google would be so stupid as to solely use link counts as their only ranking factor?
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      • Profile picture of the author tedwood
        Originally Posted by dp40oz View Post

        Because backlinks are just 1 factor in sites rankings. I think it's funny when people make posts like this. Example "why is wikipedia outranking my page and I have a gazillion more links?" Because Google is not completely dumb and they know that certain sites have earned and usually do deserve higher rankings despite links. The better question is why do u think Google would be so stupid as to solely use link counts as their only ranking factor?
        * Backlinks are the number 1 factor in a sites rankings.
        Yes there are other factors but the most important is having links that have the anchor text for the key phrase which they are ranking for. I've seen tesco sites outranked with similar backlinks, i'm just curious to know why this one is different and why the affiliate isn't ranking higher.
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        • Profile picture of the author paulgl
          I have no idea where you people get that the number of backlinks
          means a #1 ranking. That is so far from the truth....

          Originally Posted by tedwood View Post

          * Backlinks are the number 1 factor in a sites rankings.
          The truth is out there.


          Paul
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          If you were disappointed in your results today, lower your standards tomorrow.

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          • Profile picture of the author tedwood
            Originally Posted by paulgl View Post

            I have no idea where you people get that the number of backlinks
            means a #1 ranking. That is so far from the truth....



            The truth is out there.

            YouTube - X Files Theme Tune

            Paul
            haha loved the theme tune but it wasn't necessary.
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  • Profile picture of the author Deepikarajpal
    because search engine consider many things when giving your site ranking it is not only link, content it also check hosting, domain etc
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  • Profile picture of the author chasnsx
    Domain age, number of indexed pages, pagerank of homepage and other indexed pages, on page SEO, and just plain "trusted domain." -- all these factors influence Google rank, especially after the latest algorithm updates.
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  • Profile picture of the author App Developers
    Links are only part of the puzzle. sometimes we must go deeper to try and figure out why a site is listed higher than the other sites!
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  • Originally Posted by tedwood View Post

    I was doing some niche research the other day and came across something interesting. The first domain name which was number 1 on Google UK had 1,000 backlinks so rightly came in at first but at second place a well established company ('tesco' in uk) managed to rank with only 9! Now the thing that makes this even more interesting was the fact an affiliate had an exact match domain name and had 134 backlinks of good quality and came below it!

    Why is a tesco page ranked above this affiliate site when it has 10x less links!?
    The quality, not the quantity, of links makes all the difference. The page with less backlinks probably has backlinks that originate from parent domains with a high PR.
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  • Profile picture of the author kennygoodman
    Ted this is because tesco have millions of backlinks to their actual domain (50 million according to Majestic SEO). They are a massively recognised brand in the UK - equivalent of Wallmart in the US - in fact £1 in every £8 spent in the UK is in Tesco.



    Kenny
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