Backlink Strategy and Market Positioning: How to Align SEO to Reach the Right Customers by 2030

Background: Backlink Acquisition as the Foundation of Search Visibility

For more than 15 years, companies built their entire SEO strategy around a central pillar: backlink acquisition. Earning links from external websites — ideally from stronger, older, or more authoritative domains — was considered one of the most powerful signals in Google’s ranking algorithm. Each backlink functioned as a “vote of confidence,” a human-driven endorsement that helped Google determine which pages deserved to appear at the top of search results.

Within this logic, pillar pages played a complementary role. These long-form, highly structured pages acted as authoritative hubs within a website, while backlinks served as external proof of expertise. A classic strategy involved building a pillar page targeting a broad, competitive keyword, supporting it with cluster articles to reinforce topical depth, and securing backlinks to boost its external authority. This combination could dramatically shift rankings, sometimes within weeks.

Data consistently supported this approach. According to large-scale studies (Ahrefs, Backlinko), over 90% of all web pages receive zero organic traffic because they have no backlinks. Conversely, the pages that rank highest on Google typically have 3.8 times more referring domains than those positioned lower in the SERPs. The correlation between backlinks and visibility was so strong that it shaped SEO practices globally.

In competitive markets, backlink acquisition often acted as the decisive lever. On saturated queries — especially in B2B sectors such as consulting, engineering, or digital services — younger or smaller companies could compensate for their lack of historic authority by securing a targeted number of high-quality links. It was common to see a page move from page 2 to page 1 with as few as 15–30 authoritative backlinks, especially when those links came from industry-specific publications or recognized professional directories.

This performance-driven logic fueled an entire economy. By 2023, the global link-building market exceeded $5 billion, supported by the growing demand for authority signals in SEO. In the B2B sector in particular, more than 70% of companies identified link building as their number-one SEO priority. Agencies worldwide offered link-building packages, digital PR campaigns, guest posting strategies, and authority outreach — all built on the assumption that backlinks were a reliable engine for organic growth.

In short, for more than a decade, the playbook was predictable:

1. Create high-value pillar pages.

2. Strengthen them with consistent internal linking.

3. Acquire enough backlinks to outperform the competition.

The model worked because Google relied primarily on a ranking-first system: present ten blue links, let the user choose, reward the pages with the strongest authority profile.
More backlinks = higher authority = better rankings = more clicks.

This deterministic approach made SEO measurable, scalable, and relatively stable. Businesses invested because the rules were clear — and the ROI was trackable.

But this paradigm has been disrupted.
Backlinks and Pillar Pages: Essential but No Longer Sufficient in Highly Competitive Industries

Backlinks as a Foundation in Competitive Niches

In highly competitive industries such as digital marketing, hospitality and tourism, or spiritual jewelry, backlinks have long been considered a non-negotiable requirement for visibility. For years, strengthening a pillar page with authoritative links was enough to rank for broad, strategic keywords. Yet this approach, while still necessary, has become insufficient. Search behavior has evolved, and Google now evaluates far more than authority signals alone. In particular, engagement metrics and depth of content have become decisive factors in determining whether a page truly deserves visibility.

The Limits of Pillar Pages in User Engagement

Pillar pages play an important structural role within a website, but they tend to generate very limited engagement. Studies from SEMrush in 2024 show that users spend an average of only 20 to 20 seconds on these pages. Visitors often skim for key ideas, extract the essential information, and leave. This short engagement time is problematic at a moment when Google increasingly relies on “long-click” signals—an indicator that users found a page meaningful enough to stay. When engagement is low, even a technically well-optimized pillar page supported by quality backlinks may struggle to rise above the competition.

Long-Form Articles as a Response to User Intent

In contrast, long-form blog articles consistently demonstrate higher engagement, especially in content-driven industries such as marketing, travel, wellness, and artisanal jewelry. Studies from HubSpot reveal that articles exceeding 1,500 words generate up to 3.5 times more reading time than shorter pages or pillar pages. A well-developed article, enriched with context, examples, narrative elements, or sector-specific expertise, can retain readers for four to six minutes—sometimes more. These signals strongly reinforce Google’s perception of the content’s relevance and depth, giving long-form articles a strategic advantage even without backlink support.

Ranking Without Backlinks: When Depth Prevails

It is entirely possible for a long article to rank well without any backlinks when it aligns perfectly with search intent. This occurs frequently in hospitality niches, boutique fashion markets, and spiritual jewelry segments where competitors may publish thin or duplicated content. In these cases, depth, clarity, and narrative density allow the article to outperform more authoritative domains. However, backlinks still play an important role in expanding the semantic reach of a site. Pages with backlinks tend to appear on a wider range of related queries, a trend confirmed by Ahrefs, which notes an average increase of 28% in keyword visibility when authoritative links are present.

Authority from Backlinks, Depth from Editorial Work

In competitive sectors, pillar pages supported by backlinks remain a structural necessity. They signal legitimacy, reinforce thematic relevance, and improve overall domain authority. Yet they cannot, on their own, generate the engagement required to compete on modern SERPs. Long-form editorial content provides what pillar pages cannot: sustained attention, narrative depth, and emotional or practical resonance. Visibility today depends on the combined effect of both elements—authority built through backlinks and engagement driven by editorial quality.

The Backlink–Pillar Model Disrupted by AI Overviews, ChatGPT and the Decline of Traditional Search Visibility

A Structural Break Between the Pre-AI Search Ecosystem and Today’s AI-Driven Landscape

Until very recently, Google’s ranking system followed a stable and predictable logic. The first position on the results page captured 31 % of all clicks, and the top three organic links absorbed 65 % of total search traffic. Websites were discoverable because search engines encouraged exploration: ten blue links, several snippets, and a clear path inviting users to visit external sources. Visibility relied on backlinks, on-page quality, and an editorial ecosystem capable of competing on depth and relevance.

This architecture has shifted dramatically with the arrival of AI Overviews in Google’s SERPs and the widespread adoption of ChatGPT. Both technologies now aim to deliver immediate, self-contained answers directly within the interface. According to SimilarWeb’s 2024 analysis, informational pages exposed to AI Overviews lose an average of 38 % of their organic clicks because users no longer need to leave Google to obtain the information they were looking for. In certain verticals such as tourism or introductory marketing queries, the decline surpasses 60 %. Search has moved from a model of discovery to a model of synthesis.

AI Overviews and the Compression of Organic Real Estate

The most visible change concerns the number of websites that users actually see. The traditional results page displayed 10 organic links, offering real opportunities for emerging websites. AI Overviews, however, condense the SERP into a single block in which Google selects only a very limited number of sources. Public tests disclosed by the company indicate that 82 % of AI Overview responses show exactly three external websites or fewer, and 29 % display none at all. As a result, nearly 1/3 of AI-driven answers provide information without crediting any website.

This new format has a direct impact on industries where informational queries are central to user journeys. In hospitality, digital marketing, personal wellness, spirituality, and jewellery, AI Overviews are now triggered on 68 % of informational searches. These are precisely the queries that pillar pages used to dominate, and the spaces where backlinks once played a decisive role. Today, even a strong backlink profile does not guarantee visibility if the AI summary chooses not to display the site.

ChatGPT as a Parallel Search Engine Diverting User Intent Before It Reaches Google

ChatGPT has introduced a second layer of disruption by absorbing a significant portion of informational intent before it ever touches a search engine. A 2023 Pew Research survey shows that 27 % of U.S. adults aged 18 to 29 use ChatGPT weekly to retrieve information, understand concepts, or complete learning tasks. BestColleges reports that 55 % of university students consult ChatGPT every week for academic or explanatory purposes.

Before the rise of conversational AI, nearly 100 % of informational queries were processed by Google. Today, the landscape is markedly different: among students, 41 % of informational questions are asked directly inside ChatGPT; among freelancers and early-career professionals, 22 %; and among the general population, 11 %. These volumes represent millions of queries every day that never reach the open web.

Keyword Families Most Affected by AI-Generated Summaries

AI systems do not impact all searches equally. They target queries that are informational, generalist, and easy to summarise. In travel and hotel research, AI Overviews appear on 78 % of queries. In digital marketing definitions, the figure reaches 63 %. Wellness and spirituality questions trigger AI summaries in 71 % of cases, jewellery and product-care searches in 66 %, and general consumer “how-to” queries in 74 %. These are also the segments where pillar pages traditionally performed strongly, drawing sustained organic traffic.

ChatGPT captures similar query families. Based on declared usage patterns, 57 % of academic or student-level questions, 49 % of basic marketing or SEO queries, 44 % of lifestyle, fashion, jewellery and travel-planning queries, and 52 % of spirituality and mindfulness questions are now handled directly by the chatbot. All of these queries previously fed into organic traffic; today, they are largely absorbed by conversational interfaces.

A Direct Comparison Between What SEO Was and What It Has Become

In the pre-AI environment, a well-constructed pillar page with a solid backlink profile could rank on hundreds of long-tail keywords. The average click-through rate for page one was 27 %, and informational content represented 58 % of organic traffic for most blogs and content-based businesses. Users visited an average of 1.8 pages per search, giving websites meaningful opportunities to demonstrate expertise.

In 2024, the reality is profoundly different. Organic clicks on informational queries affected by AI systems decline by 38 %. 57% of informational queries are now absorbed by AI interfaces before reaching a website. AI Overviews display an average of only 1.7 external sources, and the click-through rate on queries that trigger AI summaries falls to 3 %. For many informational searches, the opportunity window simply no longer exists.

Is It Still Acceptable to Invest Thousands of Euros in Backlinks for SEO 2030?

This new environment raises a strategic question: is it still reasonable to invest significant budgets in backlink acquisition, especially when the links come from low-authority blogs, generic content networks, or private blog networks (PBNs) with no real expertise? Within the context of 2030 SEO, the answer is increasingly negative. These investments, once justified by predictable returns, have become costly, unstable, and fraught with risk.

AI systems do not reward artificial authority. A link purchased on a superficial blog may still appear in Search Console as a technical signal, but it does not guarantee visibility, influence AI-generated summaries, or enhance perceived expertise. Google’s SpamBrain model reduced the impact of harmful link networks by 45 % in 2023, and its capacity to devalue PBNs continues to strengthen. Paying thousands of euros for backlinks that algorithms may discount entirely—or that AI interfaces may never display—introduces a level of uncertainty that did not exist 5 years ago.

The underlying issue is conceptual. Backlinks were powerful because they influenced rankings in a world where users clicked on links. But when AI systems present the answer directly, without encouraging exploration, the economic logic behind large-scale link acquisition collapses. Backlinks still matter, but only when they come from genuine authority ecosystems: respected publications, established brands, industry experts, or real communities. In 2030, credibility must be earned, not fabricated through link-buying schemes.

A Market Where Authority Is No Longer Manufactured but Demonstrated

SEO is entering an era where visibility is no longer a product of volume but of legitimacy. AI systems elevate sources that demonstrate expertise, depth, and trustworthiness. A backlink is valuable only if it signals genuine authority. The strategies that will continue to perform are those built on real content quality, authentic citations, and true editorial relevance. The backlink economy is not dying, but it is being purified. Websites will succeed by proving expertise—not by purchasing it.

Rethinking Link Acquisition for the 2030 Search Ecosystem

Predicting with absolute certainty what the netlinking budget should look like in 2030 would be both speculative and intellectually dishonest. The pace at which AI is reshaping the search ecosystem makes long-term forecasting inherently fragile. Yet one conclusion is already clear: link acquisition must evolve. Instead of allocating large budgets to low-quality blogs or artificial networks, investment must be directed toward credible, sector-relevant sources — websites operated by actual companies, real professionals, and recognised experts. Authority can no longer be manufactured; it must be inherited from legitimate ecosystems.

In competitive industries, the logic is shifting. Link building will still matter, but its effectiveness will depend on strategic precision. A backlink earned on a high-quality blog article or within a less saturated segment of a complex market will deliver far more value than dozens of links obtained on generic domains. In sectors like digital marketing, hospitality, or spiritual jewellery — where AI Overviews absorb much of the informational demand — visibility will come from depth, expertise, and niche positioning rather than from sheer volume of backlinks.

On my own .com website, the data is unequivocal. The articles that perform best are not those with the most backlinks, but those with the longest reading time and the highest depth of engagement. Pieces on CSR vs RSE, Tesla, The Body Shop, LVMH, or the impact of AI on media and SEO consistently keep readers on the page for 1 to 3 minutes or more, with solid scroll depth and repeat views. Many of these articles have no backlinks at all, yet they are the ones most frequently surfaced by Google and increasingly consulted from countries already exposed to AI Overviews such as the United States, Spain and China, as well as by AI platforms like ChatGPT and Perplexity. In other words, the strongest signal in 2025 is not “who links to you”, but “how deeply humans actually read you”.

The implication is significant. Link building should no longer be treated as a mechanical exercise aimed at increasing domain authority through volume. It must become a selective, curated, high-quality strategy that mirrors the evolution of search itself. The era of buying dozens of links to boost a page is fading; the era of earning citations through meaningful content and genuine expertise is taking its place.