A link exchange means that two websites link to each other. Website A places a link to website B and receives a link back in return.
The aim of a link exchange is usually to achieve more visibility, traffic or better rankings in search engines.
How does a link exchange work?
Link exchanges are often carried out between websites that fit together thematically. For example, a photographer could link to a wedding venue and the wedding venue could link back to the photographer.
Links like these can make sense if they offer genuine added value for users.
Typical forms are:
- direct link exchange between two websites
- indirect link exchange across several domains
- links in guest posts
- links via partner pages
It becomes problematic when a link exchange is used only for SEO and there is no topical relevance or added value for users.
Why can a link exchange be risky?
Google often recognises unnatural link patterns very well. If websites link to each other on a large scale purely to manipulate rankings, this can be assessed negatively.
Individual, sensible links between partners or suitable businesses are usually unproblematic. Pure link exchange networks or large volumes of artificial links, on the other hand, can lead to ranking losses.