Content is the foundation of all marketing activities. But content cannot stand alone. To help your content rank in search results, you need links (also called “backlinks”). There are two types of links: external links and internal links. Both play a vital role in contributing to a website’s search engine rankings.
Let’s start by looking at the definition of internal links:
What are internal links? Internal links involve adding hyperlinks connecting pages on the same website. In simple words, an internal link connects one page of a website to another on the same website.
These links help Google a well as your users to navigate your site and find the content they want. Internal links distribute PageRank throughout a site, and this helps the page to better rank in search. To set up a strong internal linking strategy for SEO success, make sure to approach an experienced digital marketing company.
In this post, we will discuss the following.
- Different types of internal links
- 5 internal linking best practices
There are different types of internal links, like the links on a site’s homepage, menu, etc. You can also add contextual links within your content. Contextual links lead your users to interesting, related content. Along with that, search engines can find what content on your site is related and determine its value. Search engines value a page that receives more links.
Good internal links are critical to boost SEO.
They
- Help in website navigation
- Define site architecture and hierarchy
- Distribute page authority and ranking power throughout the site
Setting Up the Internal Linking Strategy
Here are 5 internal linking best practices:
Carefully planned internal linking strategies can make a big impact on Google. Make sure to create a strategy customized for your website. Moreover, you need to evaluate and update the strategy on a regular basis. There are many things to consider when setting up an internal linking strategy.
- Determine the Best Structure for Your Site: According to Yoast, website owners should imagine that their website is a pyramid. At the top is your homepage; below that there are sections or categories, and further down, are the individual pages and posts (subcategories could appear in between). Ideally, your website menu should reflect this structure.
- Create Lots of Content: To create lots of internal links, you must create many internal pages. This will provide a lot of linkable content. The more links you have, the better your linking strategy will be. To create content that is keyword rich to link pages naturally, you need a proper strategy. Ubersuggest can help you find appropriate keywords to create high-quality content.
- Enter your keyword and click search
- Click keyword ideas in the bar on the left side
- From the keyword choices, focus on keywords that have a high search volume. This would improve your chances of being ranked on the first page.
Opportunities for internal linking should happen naturally, but you can help things by using long-tail keywords in your content.
- Use Links that are Natural for the Reader: To add value and information to the internal-linking, a user-focused approach is vital. Internal linking improves user engagement on your site. When a reader sees an informative link that exactly matches the context of the content, they probably click on that link. This link can be an external link or an internal link. If that link is an internal link, the site visitor stays on your website for a longer period.When you place links in your content, you are telling the search engine that the link is relevant and important. You want your users to click on that link and go to that link directly. What you are linking should be so relevant that your user may want to stop what they are reading and go to that page. Content links signal to both search engines and users that the content you are linking is good. It helps readers and also your SEO.
- Link Hierarchical Pages: If you have hierarchical pages on your site, link parent pages to their child pages and vice versa. You should also link sibling pages to each other. On a well-organized site, these pages should be related and linking them in this manner will make perfect sense.
- Use Anchor Text: When you have decided which links should be on a page and which pages should get link value, it is essential to use the correct anchor text (the clickable text visitors see). In the following example provided by Yoast, the anchor text of the two internal links are ‘link schemes’ and ‘paid links.’
Source:
If you are over-optimizing (keyword stuffing) anchor text, it might hurt your website. Earlier, it was possible to give the same keywords for all anchor text and Google would rank your site higher for that keyword. Google has now become smarter and can understand that content around the anchor text says more about the keyword’s relevancy than the anchor text itself. So, when you use anchor text, make sure it is natural. Use keywords but don’t add the exact same keywords to the anchor text of every link.
Good internal linking offers many benefits for SEO. As much as possible, link to relevant content in your internal linking. Consistent internal linking can result in a more robust link profile and better SEO. Check your old content to ensure that it has sufficient internal links. Internal linking allows you to show related content and content that is more informative and valuable. Thus, both Google and users will understand your site better, which will, in turn, increase your chance of ranking higher. A professional SEO company can help you implement the right internal linking strategies to boost your SEO.
