Internal Linking For Search Engine Optimization

Internal links is one of the most neglected link-building strategies in SEO marketing.

Everyone is very quick to focus on tactics that help us build external links, which are called backlinks, but we forget about or underestimate the importance and impact of developing an optimized internal linking strategy, this is a mistake. 

In this article I am going to explain to you in simple terms what they are and how to leverage internal links on your website to improve your on page SEO and de-mystify the conundrum around internal linking. 

Internal Links are hyperlinks within website content that point at other content on the same domain as the domain that the link exists on. In simple terms an internal link is one that points to another page on the same website.

Internal links help navigate users through your digital content and give search engine crawlers information about how your website works. Internal links are found on almost every page on the internet. You’re probably already using them, even if you don’t know it. (Hint: there’s a few included in this intro,) 

In order to optimize your content for SEO, you need to understand what people think is a Internal Link Mystery. Really it’s not, all you need to know is how they work. 

Internal linking is simply about site design and architecture, it’s what search engines expect. All websites have a design and architecture that keeps them structured logically, such as this common silo model. Keeping it simple is a key strategy and easy of use for your visitors, and search engines alike. 

Have a look at this great blog article by Boomandbucket.com on perfect technical SEO. 

The simple approach allows you to have a strong internal linking structure so your website can be crawled, indexed, and ranked by search engines easily and efficiently.  Internal linking is also an important part of your user experience, as it allows users to uncover related information or find what they are looking for, which improves dwell time which is rewarded by search engines. 

Why do you think that is? 

Well because it is efficient, effective, enhances the user experience when done properly and the bottom line is it works well. 

Google has had a machine-learning algorithm for a long time now, and it has come a long way since it’s early conception and the invent of SEO. 

1.) It Provide Value to Your Users

This is the most important point of all. Internal linking is an SEO technique, yes. But, it’s more than that. Ultimately, internal linking is useful for users and their digital experience.

Think about it this way: When you’re researching a topic, do you check one source or multiple? Of course you check multiple and this linking strategy helps you do that.

Do you enjoy exploring other content that reinforces your understanding of the topic?

Maybe, you just like the writing style of the article you’re reading and want to read more work by the same author.

Internal linking on a site increases the value of each piece of content by backing up claims and leading the user to related information.

While it may not drive conversions directly, internal linking does have a place within the marketing funnel—carrying people to a target destination.

2.) Internal Linking with Optimized Text is Good for SEO

An internal link is text that has been hyperlinked to another webpage on the same site. This text is call the “Anchor Text” The trick here is to have that anchor text to be descriptive. This improves the value of the link by adding keywords ad content to the linking process. It will also increase your click through which search engines value in the ranking process. 

Anchor text that flows well with the overall content, versus over-optimized anchor text, is best. 

3.) Internal Linking Spreads the Strength of the Site to Internal Pages

When your website receives a link from an external source to the homepage, some of the link value is transferred to the internal pages. This is commonly referred to in the industry as “Link Juice” . 

Therefore if Page 1 then links to Page 2, the “link juice” flows from Page 1 to Page 2, helping it rank higher in the search engine results page (SERP).

The more connected a website’s structure  is through internal linking, the better the overall site will perform in searches and thus in the Search Engine Ranking process. 

4.) Increases Backlink-Earning  Potential of Deep Content Pages

Check out the backlinks that are coming to your website. You may find that a lot of them link to your homepage. This is usually the case, the majority of the backlinks go to your homepage. 

This is not the best for SEO and for high Google ranking. 

Why? 

Well unfortunately too many of these types of links are not good for SEO. This an over-optimization of your homepage. Historically 75-80% of backlinks go to your homepage with is the cause of the over-optimization. 

The homepage typically doesn’t include the in-depth information users are looking for. 

If you are not actively publishing and promoting new content your pages will run out of Link juice and fall off the Search Engines radar and you take a big SEO hit. 

What you want is for that to be the opposite with 75-80% of those links going to deeper pages within your website structure. 

By creating a strong  internal linking structure, you can boost the link juice earning potential of the internal pages, by creating clear click paths and indexation throughout the website, because this increases the overall crawl priority throughout the site with better distribution of your links and the user value it links to. 

5.) It Helps Google Index Your Site

Google’s crawler follows link paths throughout the internet to find and index and rank websites.

If your website has strong internal linking, the Google crawler has an easier time finding new content you publish. Keep in mind that your content also needs to be well written, have value to the users and is optimized with keywords.  .

I hope you enjoyed reading this article and you got something out of it. If you want my team at My Webpros Digital to help you get massive amounts of traffic just book a call.