In reality, it's different. Guest posts, despite Google's mixed messages on the matter, are not inherently problematic. For instance, imagine that you have a guest post featured on some trusted resource. Could it negatively impact my site? More likely, NO.
The challenge with guest posting, or any strategy for building links, lies in the sources from which you obtain those links. Last year, Google implemented a spam update. These updates involve improving the system's capability to disregard specific link sources.
Upon analyzing many our sites, We noticed a correlation: the older the website, the more significant the loss in traffic. In contrast, our newer websites showed no decrease in traffic.
This suggests an essential criterion for selecting sites to acquire links from is effective. However, the older sites suffered because the links, which were once acceptable, either deteriorated or the websites started excessively selling links, turning them toxic.
In general, crucial criteria for choosing sites for backlinks are pretty straightforward.
1. The website should have at least 1000 or more monthly visitors, as Google tends to prioritize sites contributing significantly to internet traffic.
2. Try to consider the inbound versus outbound link ratios.
3. Ensuring that the website does not engage in selling links to grey niches.
Surprisingly, relevance is less important than we are used to. And the explanation here is simple. While having relevant links in your profile is essential, it's not a strict requirement. For instance, a lawyer blog doesn't necessarily have to obtain links exclusively from other lawyer-related websites.
Lastly, when executed correctly, guest posting should seamlessly blend in and not be easily identifiable as a guest post.