Lower quality new domain link vs higher quality repeat domain link

[mat2015]

First time poster here with a dilemma that head scratching and spreadsheets can't solve!

I'm trying to work out whether to focus on getting links from new domains or to nurture relationships with the bigger sites in our business and get more links. Of the two links below which does the community here think would be more valuable a signal to Google? Both would be links from within relevant text/post copy.

Link 1. Site DA 30. No links currently from this domain.

Link 2. Site DA 60. Many links over last 12 months already from this domain.

I suspect link 1 but given the enormous disparity in ranking power am I correct?!

Thanks for any considered opinions out there!

Matthew

[Wayne76]

Hi Matthew,

Great question. And your hunch is correct. If you already have links from the other domain, and you're confident that the DA 30 is a credible site that isn't engaging in bad practices, then do the work to earn that link!

Best,

Wayne

[KempRugeLawGroup]

I agree with Wayne. Link 1, definitely!

• Ruben

[max.favilli]

Given you are after page juice only, as far as I know after the third link from a certain domain, no matter it's DA, the incremental page juice transferred is negligible. Only exception in my experience is when 1) the additional links are deep-links, 2) content targeting heterogeneous keywords and 3) you work on to get exceptional PA for that linking page.

[mat2015]

Thanks for the quick responses! Much appreciated. Matthew

[SamuelScott]

I would forget about Domain Authority -- it's about as useful as PageRank.

On which of those two sites should you get links? The one that is more prominently read among your target audience. If I have a website about basketball, I'd prefer a link from another big basketball site with a DA of 20 over a site on, say, cooking that may have a DA of 60.

In the age of "earning" links, the best links comes as natural by-products of just doing good marketing and public relations. And involves the process (which I outline here and here on Moz) of KPI setting, audience identification and research, messaging and positioning, channel research, content creation, and campaign execution. Do this process well over and over again forever, and the best links will come your way without you even needing to think about it.