LINK EXCHANGE (OR LINK SWAP) RISKS AND BENEFITS

Summary from the TLDR Marketing newsletter

Link exchanges are a link-building tactic where you link to a website, and they link back to you. Google's link spam guidelines say “excessive link exchanges” are against its policies, but reciprocal linking is natural and not bad for SEO. Thoroughly check the website's quality and relevance and avoid link networks or PBNs. Conduct link exchange outreach by pitching post ideas or proactively mentioning the site in a post.