Alright so I just spent two months and about two grand testing a link building agency that cold emailed me with some crazy case studies, figured I'd run my own experiment to see if it's worth it or just a total scam, the pitch was 10 guaranteed DR 70+ links for a money site in a finance niche, they sent over their portfolio and everything looked clean. So here's the raw numbers, they delivered 12 links actually, average DR 72, but the traffic on those sites was basically zero, like sub 100 monthly visits according to Ahrefs, after 60 days I'm seeing a grand total of 14 referral visits and my target keyword moved from position 42 to 39, that's a three spot bump for two thousand dollars, anyone giving advice on this stuff without posting a screenshot of their own GSC or rank tracker data is just guessing and wasting everyone's time, correlation isn't causation but I'm pretty sure the links did nothing. My take is if the sites they're placing you on have no real traffic or audience, the DR is just a hollow metric, you're paying for a number in a database not actual authority, I'd rather spend that budget on one legit guest post on a site that people actually read, feels like most of these agencies are just resellers for crappy PBN networks with fancy reports
Link agencies, ran the numbers myself after a test spend
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Link agencies, ran the numbers myself after a test spend
Honestly this is why I don't waste my time with DR metrics alone anymore, I learned that the hard way a few years ago when I was chasing numbers instead of quality links and saw no real lift in rankings or traffic, you gotta look at the postback and the actual user signals to know if the links are doing their job and that's what separates the winners from the wannabes, I've had legit tier-1s that barely moved the needle but brought in solid CR and conversions because the audience was relevant, that's what tracking and real engagement tell you not some hollow DR score on a site nobody visits, anyone still relying on those metrics is just throwing money down the drain and wonder why their campaigns are inconsistent.
Yeah man I feel ya, these DR numbers are like the new clickbait headline but for links, sounds shiny but in reality its just a fancy badge on a dead site most of the time I mean two grand for a three spot bump and less than 20 visits total thats like throwing a coin in the fountain hoping for a lottery ticket I swear these
Swell
New member
This is exactly why I say most of these link agencies are just glorified PBN resellers with a fancy bow on top. DR is a vanity metric, but it's like putting lipstick on a pig. You're paying for a badge that doesn't translate to real authority or traffic. I'd rather spend that cash on a single legit guest post on a site with actual eyeballs than chase the hollow numbers. This whole game is about quality, not shiny metrics, and if you're still fooled by the hype, you're just throwing
Script
New member
hard agree with this. DR is just a vanity metric most of the time. shows how shiny the site looks, not how much real authority or traffic it gets
Honestly I think people are too hung up on metrics like DR and traffic numbers. I tried that with my garage site, I bought links from agencies with shiny portfolios but it didn't move the needle. The truth is, most of these so called 'authority' sites are just dead zones, and you're paying for a badge not real influence.
Two grand and two months? Man, that's just a fancy way to throw money at shiny numbers and call it a day. I mean, DR and backlinks are nice to have but if it's not moving the needle, you're better off burning that cash on legit content or actual outreach. You wanna see real results? Stop chasing vanity metrics like DR and start focusing on traffic, engagement, and conversions. Otherwise you're just playing a game where the scoreboard means nothing. Sorry to say but most of these agencies are just reselling PBNs or fluff sites with a bunch of BS metrics that look good in reports but do squat in real life. It's like buying a sports car that doesn't run, all looks no go
you know what this reminds me of? Back in the day I used to watch these black hat gurus hawk their shiny PBNs as the ultimate authority hack. Only to find out later most of those sites were ghost towns or had no real traffic. Same thing here, folks get hypnotized by DR and shiny portfolios like they're gold. Newsflash - if the site has no audience, the DR is just a trophy in a glass case. You're not building trust, you're just collecting vanity stats for a report. I've seen this movie before and it always ends the same way. You spend a pile on links that look good on paper, but the traffic doesn't follow. It's like watering plastic plants and expecting a garden. The truth is, you want authority? Build real relationships, get actual guest posts on legit sites people read, and focus on the traffic. Metrics like DR are just the new fake Rolex, meant to impress but worth nothing if the audience isn't real. If your tracker isn't hosted on your own server, you're just donating data to someone else's vanity fair. Stop wasting money chasing metrics and start focusing on real signals. Anything else is just smoke and mirrors.
I get where you guys are coming from but honestly I think DR can still be a useful initial filter if you look at it the right way like it's not about the number itself but about the trend and quality of the link profile behind it I've seen DR 70+ sites with dead traffic but also with decent link profiles that can help a site over time if combined with other signals it's not the whole story but definitely not just a vanity metric either
So you ran the numbers after a test spend but did you really get a clear picture of the influencer's trust and engagement or just the initial click? Because those numbers can be misleading if you don't factor in the back end stuff lifetime value, repeat biz, the true moat. It comes down to trust and relationships, not just the spreadsheet.
Yeah u gotta look past the click, smh. Numbers only tell part of the story, and if u think a quick test is enough ur just fooling urself. Back end stuff is where the real cash is made or lost
yeah, doing a quick test spend and thinking you got the full picture is just cope. i ran those numbers myself after some initial wins and it turned out the true value is in the long tail, not just the initial click. those influencer pushes that seem cheap and easy usually got hidden costs or low quality traffic that tank conversions down the line. you gotta dig deeper, look at the backend data, lifetime value, retention, all that stuff. otherwise, you're just running around chasing short term wins while the real money sits in the backend. learned that the hard way, TBH. most guys don't wanna see it but it's all about that backend lifetime profit, not just the upfront numbers.
Nexus
New member
Exactly, numbers only show a snapshot but the real juice is in the long game the lifetime CR, the re-engagements, the back end conversions all that stuff if you only look at the initial click you might be chasing shadows data doesn't lie but it can whisper sweet nothings if you're not digging deeper
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