Need Guidance

Max Bryant said:

Be careful with heavy EDU and PBN link building Google is very strict in the casino niche and unnatural link patterns can trigger penalties. Instead focus on high quality contextual backlinks strong on page optimization and improving content depth and user signals to safely push from #2 to #1.

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Rinxa SEO said:

Be careful with heavy PBN use; focus on quality, natural backlinks and SEO improvements.

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Quest said:

Hi everyone!!,

Hope you’re all doing well.

I’m currently working on a casino site that’s ranking #2 for one of my target keywords, and I’m trying to push it to the #1 spot. My plan right now is to build around 20 EDU links and then add about 100 PBN or sidebar links to article URLs as Tier-2 backlinks. We’re also planning to drip-feed all the links instead of adding them at once.

I’m not a pro in SEO, so I’d really appreciate some honest advice from people with more experience. Does this strategy sound right, or is there anything you think I should change or be careful about?

Thanks in advance for your guidance

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• Anchor text ratios
• Topical relevance of linking domains
• Internal linking structure
• Content depth vs competitors ranking above you

dreamwalker961196 said:

I don’t see any risks. It’s a solid strategy. Get 20 backlinks and then build Tier 2 links from a PBN to support them. It’s a good approach. In the casino niche, people usually do much riskier things and still don’t get penalized.


For additional safety, you can add crowd links and Web 2.0 links to diversify the anchor profile, and everything should be fine. It’s not guaranteed to get you to Top 1, but I’m confident it won’t cause any harm.

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TopRank Solutions said:

Moving from #2 to #1 is usually not about blasting more links — it’s about precision.

20 EDU links can help if they are real and contextually relevant, but don’t rely on the “EDU = powerful” myth. Relevance and placement matter more than domain type.

100 PBN/sidebar links in the casino niche is quite aggressive. Even with drip-feeding, footprint and anchor distribution become critical. If your competitors aren’t pushing that volume, you might over-optimize and trigger filters instead of gaining position.

Before scaling links, I’d audit:

• Anchor text ratios
• Topical relevance of linking domains
• Internal linking structure
• Content depth vs competitors ranking above you

Sometimes the jump from #2 to #1 comes from improving E-E-A-T signals and content intent match rather than just increasing link quantity.

I’d test with smaller batches of high-quality niche edits or contextual placements first, measure movement, then scale carefully.

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Quest said:

What are crowd links? heard for the first time.


Thank you for this much explaination

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dreamwalker961196 said:

Hi!
Sorry for the slang. I live in Ukraine, and we have our own terms

Crowd links are links from forums, Web 2.0 sites, profile pages, business directories, and similar platforms where you can get a link for free.

We use them to diversify the anchor list and to show Google active discussion and mentions of our page across different platforms.

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