What a good backlink looks like
High-value backlinks for dealers
- NC dealer associations (NCIADA, state chamber, county chambers)
- Local news sites covering your dealership or community events
- Local nonprofits you sponsor
- Auto industry directories with real editorial standards
- Business partners (body shops, finance companies, etc.)
- Regional auto-focused sites (UsedNC, CarDealersNC, area code sites)
Low-value or harmful backlinks
- Random generic directories
- "Submit your site" pages
- Link farms or paid link schemes
- Sites unrelated to your industry or geography
- Spammy comment links
Why local matters
Google's local ranking algorithm weights:
- Links from sites Google already recognizes as local
- Links from sites in the same industry
- Links with relevant context (not just a random mention)
A single backlink from your local chamber of commerce beats 50 links from generic directories.
How to earn good backlinks
- Sponsor a local event or youth sports team
- Donate to a local nonprofit (most link back on their supporters page)
- Participate in your chamber of commerce
- Join NCIADA
- Get featured in local news with a community story
- Submit real customer success stories to local media
What to avoid
Paid link services. Link schemes. Private blog networks. Google catches these and penalizes. Not worth the risk.
What this looks like in North Carolina
NC has lots of local backlink opportunities independent dealers often miss. County chambers, local nonprofits, regional business associations, and community event sponsorships all offer natural backlinks.
A dealership in Burlington sponsoring the local 5K, with their name on the event website, gets a better backlink than they'd pay hundreds of dollars for through any service.
Where UsedNC.com fits
UsedNC.com, CarDealersNC.com, and the six area code sites all provide quality backlinks to your dealership website. Three high-quality NC-specific links come automatically with listing.
That's part of the SEO value of the KGI Network that isn't always obvious at first glance.
Learn more about listing on UsedNC