Content and Backlinks, both are equally important for any website. Both of them should be focused equally if you have to rank well in search results.
Quality Content
When we start making a website, or start promoting one, the first thing we have to focus on is the content. It is one of the most important aspect of SEO. The better the quality of the content, more are the chances of your better ranking. And that is because search results prefer showing quality content to its readers.
And hence, if your quality would be good, your SEO would improve and you might get a good rank in the google searches. You can visit any skilled seo expert in your town, or approach them online, this will be the foremost advice you will get from anywhere. Building the quality content is the first step towards success.
Backlinks
But content creation is only 40% of the work done. If you need to make a mark, you need to actively promote that. And when you start talking about promotion, backlink building is the first step. And there are very good metrics, such as DA and PA, that help find out how good your backlinks are till now. They help you predict where your website will stand in search results by calculating the number of backlinks you have and their quality.
So, while many people are tempted to increase the number of backlinks, do not fall prey to cheap techniques. Many people are tempted to create backlinks from any random website, good or bad, just to increase the number.
BUT remember, quality of backlinks, like getting links from niche edits, is also counted to measure your score. So even if you have number of backlinks, poor links will only help in decreasing your authority. And there are some websites like the link building agency OutreachMonks that assist you in linkbuilding using good techniques.
So, a safe tip: Always focus on building great quality links. Build lesser links, but of excellent quality. This would improve your SEO front better than more number of poor quality links.
Hence, when we talk about content vs. Backlinks, both of them go hand in hand. Without 1, you cannot survive for long and are doomed to fall!
