Are backlinks still worth building for AI search? Seems like the rules are changing

I’ve analyzed over 150,000 domains across AI platforms. Here’s what the data shows:

Backlinks still matter - but differently:

Key findings:

1. Threshold effect is real - Small link gains don’t move the needle. You need to break through authority plateaus.

2. Quality > Quantity - 10 links from top publications beat 100 from low-authority sites.

3. Brand mentions matter MORE - 0.66 correlation for mentions vs. 0.28 for total backlinks.

4. Referring domain diversity - Number of unique domains linking matters more than total links.

The surprise: Sites with 32,000+ referring domains see citations nearly double. Below that threshold, incremental improvements have minimal impact.

What this means: Keep building quality links, but don’t ignore brand mentions and industry presence.

Old-school SEO perspective here. Yes, I’m adapting.

What’s changed:

Before (Google-centric):

• More links = better rankings
• DR/DA was the goal
• Nofollow links were “useless”
• Link building was mechanical

Now (AI era):

• Quality links = credibility signal
• Authority thresholds matter
• Nofollow from high-authority still helps
• Mentions and context matter equally

What hasn’t changed:

• Links from authoritative sites help
• Relevance still matters
• Link spam still doesn’t work
• Quality content attracts better links

My evolved strategy:

1. Still pursue quality links (won’t hurt either way)
2. Add brand mention campaigns (PR, thought leadership)
3. Focus on industry presence broadly
4. Track both links AND mentions

Link building isn’t dead - it’s just not sufficient alone anymore.

The nofollow finding deserves more attention:

Research shows:

• Follow links: 0.334 correlation with AI citations
• Nofollow links: 0.340 correlation with AI citations

Essentially the same!

Why this makes sense: AI systems analyze web content, not PageRank graphs. A mention from Wikipedia (nofollow) is valuable because:

• Wikipedia is authoritative
• The context is educational
• AI sees the content, not the link attribute

Platform differences:

• Gemini/ChatGPT: Slight nofollow preference
• Google AI Overviews/Perplexity: Slight follow preference
• Difference is marginal

What this means: Stop discounting nofollow links. A nofollow link from:

• Wikipedia
• Reddit
• Major news sites
• Industry publications

…is potentially as valuable as follow links from lesser sites.

Shift your outreach: Don’t avoid opportunities just because they’re nofollow. Evaluate based on source authority, not link type.

Underrated finding: Image backlinks outperform text links for AI

The data:

• Image links: 0.415 correlation
• Text links: 0.334 correlation

Why: AI systems recognize images as reliable reference signals. When your infographic, chart, or product image is embedded and linked across the web, it’s a strong authority signal.

What works:

• Original research visualizations
• Infographics with unique data
• Product images used in reviews
• Charts that get embedded in articles

How to leverage:

1. Create shareable visual assets
2. Make them embeddable with attribution
3. Distribute on platforms where content creators source visuals
4. Track image mentions and links

The opportunity: Most link building focuses on text content. Image-based link building is less competitive and potentially more impactful for AI.

The E-E-A-T connection to links is evolving:

What AI seems to evaluate:

1. Experience - Links from sites where author has real-world experience
2. Expertise - Citations from academic/professional sources
3. Authoritativeness - Links from recognized industry leaders
4. Trustworthiness - Links from verified, secure, transparent sites

Beyond just links:

• Expert quotes linking back
• Case study features
• Industry publication mentions
• Academic paper citations

Our evolved approach: Instead of “link building,” we do “authority building”:

• Guest posts for expertise positioning
• Expert quotes for credibility
• Industry reports for data authority
• Case studies for experience demonstration

Links happen as a byproduct, but the goal is broader authority.

Practical strategy changes for clients:

What we still do:

• Quality link building from relevant sites
• Digital PR for authoritative links
• Guest posting on industry publications

What we added:

• Brand mention campaigns (no link required)
• Industry presence initiatives
• Competitor co-citation opportunities
• Wikipedia/knowledge graph development

What we stopped:

• Chasing low-DA links at volume
• Prioritizing follow over nofollow
• Ignoring unlinked mentions

Client reporting changes:

• Track mentions alongside links
• Report on authority thresholds, not just DA
• Monitor AI citations as outcome metric
• Show brand presence across contexts

The pitch: “Links are a subset of authority signals. We’re building comprehensive AI visibility, not just backlink profiles.”

Small business reality check:

We can’t compete on link volume. Big competitors have thousands of links. We have dozens.

But here’s what’s working for us:

1. Niche authority - Best source in our specific subcategory
2. Local relevance - Links from regional publications
3. Industry specificity - Featured in trade publications
4. Original data - Research nobody else has

AI seems to recognize:

• Category leadership in niches
• Specialized expertise
• Unique contribution to topics

Our strategy: Don’t try to out-link the giants. Out-specialize them. Own a narrow space completely.

Result: We get cited for our specific niche while big competitors get cited for broad topics. Different games.

You can’t optimize what you don’t measure:

What to track:

1. Backlink profile (traditional metrics)
2. Brand mentions (linked and unlinked)
3. Co-citations with competitors
4. Authority threshold progress
5. AI citation frequency

Tools we use:

• Ahrefs/Semrush for link metrics
• Mention/Brand24 for unlinked mentions
• Am I Cited for AI citation tracking
• Custom dashboard combining all sources

Key insight from monitoring: Our most-cited pages aren’t always our most-linked pages. The correlation exists but isn’t 1:1.

What moved the needle: Breaking the 10,000 referring domain threshold. Below that, incremental links barely affected AI citations. Above it, citations increased significantly.

Recommendation: Measure AI citations directly, not just link metrics. They’re related but not identical.

This thread reshaped my thinking. Key takeaways:

Links still matter, but:

• Quality over quantity (always was, but more so now)
• Threshold effects mean incremental gains don’t help until you level up
• Nofollow from authoritative sources is valuable
• Image links may be underrated opportunity

Brand mentions are equally important:

• 0.66 correlation vs. 0.28 for total backlinks
• Mentions without links still signal authority
• AI reads context, not just links
• Industry presence in any form helps

Strategy evolution:

Old approach: Link building campaign -> More links -> Better rankings

New approach: Authority building campaign -> Links + Mentions + Presence -> AI visibility

Specific changes:

1. Track mentions alongside links
2. Value nofollow from high-authority sources
3. Invest in visual asset link building
4. Focus on breaking authority thresholds
5. Monitor AI citations as the outcome metric

Link building isn’t dead - it’s part of a broader authority strategy now. Thanks everyone!