A very dumb SEO question incoming….My site is indexed but not ranking, it has no backlinks. Do I need backlinks to rank? (The keywords are very low comp)
Selected answers from the Dumb SEO Questions Facebook & G+ community.
Michael Martinez: Backlinks are nice to have but they don`t guarantee anything despite what all the link sellers tell you. In a very competitive space, yes, it helps to have backlinks.But if you`re confident these are low-competition queries and your content is indexed, then I would look for some other reason/resolution.MOST SITES do NOT need backlinks. EVER.
George Mulford: Michael Martinez thank you. What’s the benefit of backlinks then?
Michael Martinez: George Mulford Search engine algorithms may allow some backlinks to pass anchor text or PageRank-like value (a numeric indicator of "quality") through links. But Web marketers are so aggressive about building links that violate search engine guidelines it`s impossible to determine which links actually help (or hurt).
George Mulford: VJ Mahtani-RealEstate no, niche products for a niche market
Bert van der Meer: First look at the content. Links will not do a thing if you do not rankin the first place.
George Mulford: Bert van der Meer thats what I’m asking. The site has been indexed but not showing up for keywords.
Glenn Russell: Bert van der Meer CONCENTRATE on good content initially
Stephen Pickles: For your chosen keywords look at the sites that are ranking on the first page and go and look at their pages and identify how their page is better than yours. If it is a very competitive niche then you may be better choosing less competitive keyphrases to start with. Unless your site is brand new and is still in the sandbox period, you can definitely create content that will hit the first page. Google search console data will give you good guidance as well as to what to target next.
Andro Penaflor Meneses: Hi, George Mulford, yes you need backlinks for your new site, and you don`t need to wonder what links to go to, just check out the top 5 sites that rank on google. just make sure you are targeting the same keywords.
A very dumb SEO question incoming….My site is indexed but not ranking, it has no backlinks. Do I need backlinks to rank? (The keywords are very low comp) 
