# Off-page SEO basics: the 9 link-building precautions (/docs/local-seo/off-page-growth-and-clients/off-page-basics-and-link-building-precautions)

---
type: Document
title: "Off-page SEO basics: the 9 link-building precautions"
description: Sir Khurram Malik's off-page SEO basics, the 9 precautions for safe link building (spam score bands, bad neighborhoods, link farms, OBL, anchor text shares and more), and link velocity, relevance and indexing.
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added: 2026-10-15T18:48:19Z
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sources:
  - id: khurram-notes
    title: "Local SEO, AEO & GEO: AI-Powered Ranking Notes, Sir Khurram Malik"
    resource: "Course notes PDF compiled from Sir Khurram Malik's lectures, July to September 2026, chapter 5 (lecture of 21 July 2026), supplied by human:ahmedraza"
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*Chapter 5 of the Local SEO, AEO & GEO course notes, from Sir Khurram
Malik's lecture of 21 July 2026.*

## Sir's tip

- You do not need to follow everything 100%: implement 60% consistently.
- Follow Sir's methods sincerely for 90 days.
- After 90 days you will be at a new level.[^khurram-notes]

## What is off-page SEO?

Google does not only look at your website. It asks: **"Are other websites
giving you a vote of confidence?"** Off-page SEO is also known as off-site
SEO, link building, or backlink creation.[^khurram-notes]

## The 9 precautions (every one matters)

### 1. Low spam score (Moz)

| Range | Verdict |
| --- | --- |
| 0 to 10% | Safe, the ideal range |
| 10 to 30% | Acceptable, evaluate carefully |
| 30 to 60% | Risky, mostly avoid |
| 70%+ | A time bomb, never |

### 2. Bad neighborhoods

Gambling, casino, betting, adult, drugs, weapons: taking a link from these
damages your own site.[^khurram-notes]

### 3. Link farms

Sites built only to give backlinks, with zero real content. Risk of a
Google Penguin penalty.[^khurram-notes]

### 4. Auto-approval sites

Forum and blog comment links: fine if relevant, but avoid spammy
use.[^khurram-notes]

### 5. High-OBL sites

OBL = outbound links. On a page with 500 links, your link's value is
1/500.[^khurram-notes]

### 6. Paid / commercial sites

"1000 backlinks for $5" is 100% harmful. Evaluate quality
first.[^khurram-notes]

### 7. Penalized sites

A link from a Google-penalized site risks a negative association for your
site as well.[^khurram-notes]

### 8. Over-optimized anchor text

> [!IMPORTANT]
> **No exact-match keyword at all in your top 5 anchors.** This is Sir's
> most important point.

| Anchor type | Recommended share |
| --- | --- |
| Brand name | 40 to 50% |
| Naked URL (e.g. fiverr.com) | 20 to 30% |
| Generic (Read More, Learn More) | 15 to 20% |
| LSI / variations | 10 to 15% |
| Exact-match keyword | 5 to 10% maximum |

### 9. Same type of backlinks

Diversify: citations, foundational, social, Web 2.0, blog comments,
forums, niche edits, guest posts, podcasts, article
marketing.[^khurram-notes]

## Extra important points

- **Dofollow + nofollow mix**: a natural profile.
- **Link velocity**: gradual building earns Google's trust; a sudden spike
  is a Penguin flag.
- **Niche relevance**: same-niche links have the highest value.
- **Index your links**: an unindexed backlink has zero value, so get them
  indexed by Google.[^khurram-notes]

## Quick revision

- [ ] Low spam score (under 10% ideal)
- [ ] Avoid bad neighborhoods
- [ ] Avoid link farms
- [ ] Quality-check auto-approval sites
- [ ] Avoid high-OBL pages
- [ ] Evaluate paid sites before using them
- [ ] Never use penalized sites
- [ ] A natural anchor text profile
- [ ] Diversified backlink types

[^khurram-notes]: Local SEO, AEO & GEO: AI-Powered Ranking Notes, Sir Khurram Malik, chapter 5.