Scholarship links, still a thing or just another ghost town?

[Graft]

Here's my two cents. Scholarship link building has been floated around as a white hat staple for ages now, but honestly, I'm starting to wonder if it's just a mirage in the desert. Yeah, it sounds good in theory, outreach to students, schools, legit charities, it's all fluffy and noble. But in reality, how many of those links actually hold any juice? Most of the scholarship pages I've seen rank on fluff and karma. Google seems smarter than to be fooled by a few well-placed links from a scholarship page, especially when those sites aren't exactly authoritative. Plus, I see so many folks still tout it as a safe, clean strategy. Bull. Most scholarship pages are thin, created just for the link juice, and prob flagged somewhere in the algo now. It's the same game as guest posting nice in theory but dangerous in practice. The key difference? Scholarship links are easier to mask as legit. With PBNs and outreach, at least I know what I'm pushing. White hat or black hat? Doesn't matter as much when your links are just floating in a sea of spam and the search engines are already onto it. I'd say keep your eye on actual relevance and authority, not whether the page is 'ethical'. End of day, links are links. You get caught, you lose. Keep your foot on the gas or get off the highway, but don't get caught in the hype train thinking scholarship links are some miracle fix.

 

[Ghost]

Google seems smarter than to be fooled by a few well-placed links from a scholarship page, especially when those sites aren't exactly authoritative

lmao bro google ain't some super brain, it just looks for patterns and signals. those scholarship pages might seem thin but if you cloak right and use proper drip feeding, you can still get some juice through. folks sleep on the power of good cloaking and linking in layers, that's where the real game is.

 

[Quanta]

Interesting take... I see where you're coming from, but I probably messed this up, but I think scholarship links still got some legs if you handle them right. Sure, a lot of those pages are thin or just thrown up for link juice, but if you target the right niche and make the outreach legit, there are still some opportunities to grab decent relevance. Cloaking can help, but I think it's about knowing when to push and when to hold back. The key is always relevance and making sure the link isn't just a spammy ping, but part of a real story that adds some value. I personally wouldn't go all in on scholarship links alone, but dismissing them as worthless feels a bit short-sighted. The real trick is mixing things up, not relying on a single tactic, and keeping an eye on the long term LTV of your campaigns. And yes, ethical GEO-targeting is non-negotiable, even when playing dirty with some link building., if Google catches on, you're dead in the water. So I'd say keep testing but stay smart about it.

 

[Enigma]

Sure, a lot of those pages are thin or just t

thin pages are RIP for actual juice, no matter how you cloak or drip feed. I track every backlink manually in a spreadsheet for a reason. Out of the 200 scholarship links I've built in the last year, less than 10% actually held any SERP weight after a few months

 

[Lattice]

Scholarship links are still kicking, but they're a shadow of what they used to be. Back in the day you could blow up with a few decent links and call it a day. Now most of those sites got cleaned out or just look like they're stuck in 2005. If you want to run them, you gotta cloak smarter, not harder. Otherwise you're just throwing money into a ghost town.

 

[Revenant]

lol. they still have some value but it's like trying to find a needle in a haystack now. most of those sites got taken over by spam or dead links. if you want real roi you gotta focus on niche relevance and actual outreach not just throw a bunch of links and pray. that's just cope. same as any old tactic, if it aint updated it aint worth it. source: tested this in multiple niches over the years.

 

[Mold]

most of those sites got taken over by spam or

yeah, my two rusty pennies, spam and dead links pretty much cooked any real value out of those sites. if you're still chasing them, better have a solid filtering system or you're just wasting LP.

 

[Girder]

Scholarship links, still a thing or just another ghost town

scholarship links are like relics at this point. sure, some still exist but most are spam traps or dead ends. unless you got a way to filter out the junk and find the real gems, you're better off not wasting your time. numbers don't lie, most of those links won't move the needle anymore.

 

[Summit]

Otherwise you're just throwing money into a ghost town

OH MY GOD, LATTICE, YOU HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD. THROWING MONEY INTO THAT GHOST TOWN IS LIKE FILING A TAX RETURN WITH A BROKEN PEN, JUST A WASTE OF TIME AND LP. THE NUMBERS DON'T LIE, BUT YOUR DASHBOARD MIGHT.

 

[Mirage]

they still have some value but it's like trying to find a needle in a haystack now. most of those sites got taken over by spam or dead links.

I'll admit that finding needle-worthy links in that haystack is a grind. The spam and dead links have definitely turned most of those sites into trash heaps.

if you're still chasing them, better have a solid filtering system or you're just wasting LP

The real question is, how many are worth the filtering effort anymore? If you're not investing in legit outreach and niche relevance, you might as well be tossing LP into a black hole. The data tells a different story time is better spent elsewhere.

 

[Nomad]

hot take incoming: you guys are missing the forest for the trees. yes, most scholarship links are spam traps or dead ends but that doesn't mean they're useless. it's about how you approach the game, not just chasing after every link. if you have a tight filtering system and a keen eye, you can still pull out some decent ones. the real deal is knowing where to look and how to qualify those leads fast. most folks get discouraged after the first few fails, but that's just LARPing in the affiliate world. stay sharp, focus on the process and don't get too attached to the shiny objects.

 

[Surplus]

OH MY GOD, LATTICE, YOU HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD. THROWING MONEY INTO THAT GHOST TOWN IS LIKE FILING A TAX RETURN WITH A BROKEN PEN, JUST A WASTE OF TIME AND LP.

exactly. Most of that stuff is dead and buried. If you're not willing to sift through the trash and find the rare gems, just burn your LP.

 

[Gleam]

honestly, I think the whole scholarship link thing is like trying to find a clean sock in a laundry basket full of dirty ones. Some gems, sure, but man, the trash outweighs the treasure by miles. Maybe I'm just old school but I'd rather build my own damn links than chase ghosts. ROAS is already a nightmare, why add more dead weight?

 

[Flex]

Honestly I think you guys are overestimating how many "gems" are left in that mess. If it was worth it, everyone would be doing it still. most of those links are dead or spam now.

 

[Graft]

Revenant, you're not wrong about the needle in a haystack, but I'd argue there's still some gold if you know how to dig. The spam and dead links are everywhere, sure, but a savvy scraper or a good filter can still find the diamonds. It's like panning for gold, not prospecting in an empty river