okay, so first you get a list of the major competitors in your niche for your keyword. Say the 1st 3 spots in Google. Then, run a backlink analysis on their websites.
Do your competitor's backlinks have juice? Yes, they do, and that's why they are at positions 1, 2 & 3.
Can YOU get a link on the same pages as your competitors?
Good question. Go find out.
Let's say you are on page 2. So you think, "Hey, if I had all the backlinks the #1 guy has, I'd be at #1." Right?
And if you had all the backlinks from the #2 guy, you'd be there also, right?
So, what if you got all the links from the #1, #2, #3 and #4 guys, and then kept on going ? All the links have obvious value; look at what they are doing for your competitors. They'll do the same thing for you, too.
Obviously, you won't get all, most or even a lot. But you WILL find some prime, juicy backlinks.
Another thing to consider:
So, say your major competitor buys spam backlinks. They've bought thousands and thousands of shitty backlinks, and over the weeks and months, less than 30% of them are still around.
Those are the strongest backlinks, the ones that DIDN'T get deindexed or deleted. They'll last a long time for you, too.