I got backlinks from 4 sites with DA 85+ and my rankings haven't moved an inch. Here's what nobody tells you about "high authority" links.

Confession: I spent the last 2 weeks chasing "Domain Authority" like it was a video game score. Here's the embarrassing truth about what actually happened.

Quick context if you missed my last couple posts: I'm building YourAIFinder, an AI tools directory, on evenings and weekends while working full time at an HRMS company in Mumbai. My last post (a deep-dive on a comparison feature) landed flat — barely any engagement. Lesson learned: data alone isn't a story. So let's try this differently.

The backlink chase, ranked by how good it sounds vs how it actually felt:

1. Crunchbase — DA 91
   Created a full company profile, founder bio, the works. Felt very official. Filled me with a completely unearned sense of legitimacy.

2. Wellfound (AngelList) — DA 85
   Same thing. Added a "Founding Engineer" placeholder job posting even though I'm not hiring, because apparently that's a trick to look more "active." I am one guy. There is no founding engineer. There is just me, at 11pm, after my day job.

3. G2 — DA 91
   This one got approved faster than expected. Then I checked my "Top Alternatives" section and found YourAIFinder — an AI tools directory — listed as an alternative to Miro, Creately, and Alteryx. Three tools that have nothing to do with what I built. G2's algorithm apparently thinks I'm a whiteboarding tool.

4. Capterra — DA 92
   Still pending. They called to verify I'm a real human running a real company. I am, but I had to explain myself like I was being interviewed for a loan.

So here's the part that should annoy "SEO guru" Twitter:

Four backlinks. Combined domain authority north of 350 if you add the numbers like that means anything. And my rankings have moved... barely. Maybe a position or two on a couple of pages. Nothing dramatic.

What I think is actually happening:

These are all nofollow or partial-weight links from profile/directory pages, not editorial links from someone who actually wrote about YourAIFinder. I think the SEO industry talks about "DA 90 backlink!!" like it's a cheat code, when in reality a single genuine mention from a smaller, topically relevant blog might do more than four directory profiles combined.

I don't know if that's true yet. I'm 2 months into a domain with zero history, so maybe these links just need more time to compound. But right now, sitting here, four "high authority" backlinks later, I have nothing to show for it except a G2 profile that thinks I make whiteboards.

Genuine question for anyone who's been through this stage:

Did profile/directory backlinks (Crunchbase, G2, Capterra, etc.) ever actually move your rankings for you? Or did you only see movement once you got an actual editorial mention or a link from someone's real blog post?

Trying to figure out if I should keep doing more of these, or stop and go chase one real journalist/blogger link instead.

youraifinder.com if anyone's curious what a directory mistaken for a whiteboard tool looks like.