Yep, guest posting can still work well?if it?s done right.

The key is quality over quantity. You?re spot on?many sites are just glorified link farms. If the site has no real audience, thin content, and exists purely for backlinks, then Google won?t value that link much (and it might even hurt your profile long-term).

Personally, I still use manual outreach for guest posting, but I focus on:

Niche-relevant sites with actual traffic

Sites with engaged readers (real comments, social shares)

Contributing valuable content?not just dropping a link

Platforms like HARO, Terkel, or even niche-specific communities can also be useful if you're short on time, but manual outreach gives you more control over quality.

It?s definitely more work than it used to be, but for small businesses like ours, a couple of high-quality placements can make a real difference?both for traffic and authority.

Would love to hear how others here are approaching it in 2025!