Stop trying to get on Forbes. A backlink from a DR 40 industry blog can be worth 10 times more than Forbes.
“How can I get a backlink on Forbes?” — every SEO newbie has asked this. But Forbes links are nofollow, and the link may be in the footer, with context completely unrelated to your industry. A DR 40 industry blog gives you a dofollow link in the body — value far exceeds Forbes.
📅 September 20, 2026 · ⏱️ ~3 minute read · 📂 Backlink · Cognitive correction
Forbes, Entrepreneur, Inc. — these names shine in the SEO community.
“If I could get a backlink on Forbes…”
Wake up.
Most of Forbes’ outbound links are nofollow. The link may appear in a list of 2,000 contributors. The context may be completely unrelated to your industry. The page may not have been updated for three years.
DR 95 domain × almost zero page authority × nofollow × unrelated context = almost no SEO value.
A comparison
| Forbes link | Industry blog link | |
|---|---|---|
| Domain DR | 95 | 40 |
| Link type | nofollow | dofollow |
| Page UR | very low (list page) | medium (article page) |
| Link location | in list | in body |
| Context relevance | low | high |
| Page traffic | very little | medium |
| Overall value | ⭐⭐ | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
A DR 40 industry blog link has 2–3 times the overall value of a Forbes link.
Why people still want Forbes
Because of “vanity metrics.”
Saying “I have a backlink on Forbes” in your social circle sounds way cooler than saying “I have a backlink on a DR 40 industry blog.”
But Google doesn’t care about how cool you think it is. It cares about the actual signal strength of the link.
A body link from a respected blog in your industry conveys a much stronger signal than a nofollow list link on Forbes.
How to find high‑value “small” blogs
Method 1: Search your industry keywords + “blog”
"AI writing tools" blog
"SaaS marketing" blog
"freelancer tools" blog
Method 2: See which blogs your competitors have guest posts on
Use Ahrefs to check competitors’ backlinks, filter for blogs with DR 30‑60.
Method 3: Search “write for us” + your industry
"write for us" "SaaS"
"guest post" "AI tools"
These blogs actively accept submissions. Contacting them is 100× easier than contacting Forbes.
Bottom line
Don’t chase “name”. Chase “value”.
DR 95 Forbes link < DR 40 industry blog link.
The latter is easier to obtain, has more SEO value, and is more likely to bring targeted traffic.
Spend the effort you would put into “how to get on Forbes” finding 10 good blogs in your industry instead. Then submit to them.
ROI 10× higher. Difficulty 10× lower.
BackLinkSubmit Team — We help you find the most worthwhile directories and platforms in your industry. No name‑chasing, just value. Learn more →
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