Glossary

What Is Backlink?

A backlink is a link from one website to another. Backlinks are a major ranking factor in search engines — the more quality backlinks a page has, the higher it tends to rank.

Why It Matters

Backlinks are one of the most important SEO signals. When external sites link to your domain, they’re effectively voting for your content. This accumulated authority is one of the main reasons to properly redirect old domains rather than just letting them expire.

When you change domains (rebrand, merge, consolidate), your old domain’s backlinks don’t disappear — but they become worthless unless you redirect:

ScenarioBacklink StatusSEO Impact
Old domain with 301 redirectPasses link equity to new domainPositive — authority transfers
Old domain expired404 errors for everyoneNegative — all value lost
Old domain parkedVisitors see adsNegative — no value transfer

Use Cases

  • Brand migration: old-brand.com has 500 backlinks → 301 redirect to new-brand.com preserves all value
  • M&A: Acquired company’s site has authority → forward to parent company domain
  • Domain consolidation: Multiple domains → forward all to primary, concentrating backlink value
  • Vanity URLs: Short domain gets shared on social media → backlinks on short URL pass value to main site

How Domain Forward Handles This

Domain Forward uses 301 redirects by default, ensuring backlinks pointing to your forwarded domain transfer their link equity to the destination. Enable path forwarding to maintain page-level backlink value.

Related Terms

Related Features

Frequently
asked questions

With a 301 redirect, the link equity from backlinks passing through the old domain is transferred to the new domain. The backlinks still work — visitors and search engines follow the redirect.

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