Hello everyone, I found a niche key words (actually a phrase) and notice that all the websites on top results have only 20 - 40 incoming links. So my question is if on-page optimization will be enough to be on the first page? Thanks!
It really depends on the competitors in those keywords. It's possible but it would be a lot better if you can tell us the keywords so we can see the top results.
It could be, but as Traciedam says, a lot depends on the competition. You could rank quite easily for a low competition keyword with an exact domain name match and some on page optimisation.
What tool are you using to see the incoming links to those sites? If you're using the Google toolbar, then you're not getting an accurate count on the inbound links. Google and Yahoo both take links to your site very seriously when it comes to ranking. In the end it's a big popularity contest. You want to have as many people voting for your site (by way of links) as you can get, and you want many of them to be high ranking sites, not for the Page Rank that they pass, (because it's a useless metric) but instead because a high ranking site carries a more powerful vote. If they link to you, then it shows that a site with high authority endorses you, so you must be a worthwhile site. So, to answer your question...no, on page will not be enough. Proper optimization of your site is a great start, and it may even get you to the first page, but links will keep you there.