5 Ways to Improve Your Website’s Internal Linking

Internal linking is one of the backbones of search engine optimization. It’s one of the things that separates a mediocre website from a truly stellar one. Providing links that connect the different pages of your website is a small and simple thing you can do that could yield big results.

Internal linking is significant for a number of reasons. One is that it makes it easier for Google search bots to crawl your pace. Another, just as important reason is that it makes it easier for your customers to find the information they want. Internal links keep people on your page, which reduces your bounce rate, and they can also boost the SEO value of the pages you’re linking.

The bottom line? Spending some time on an internal linking strategy is certainly prudent, and can certainly pay off. The question is, what can you do to get internal linking right?

Here are five tricks of the trade.

Link to Content-Heavy Pages

Let’s say you write a 1,000-word blog post. You definitely want to insert a couple of internal links, but you don’t want to waste them on parts of your website that are low on content value—like a generic “Contact Us” page.

Think about it this way: The pages you link to should be resources for your reader, providing them with additional information that enhances their experience. As such, it’s best to link to pages that provide further details or delve into related topics… pages that actually provide enriching, value-adding content, not just boilerplate.

Use Descriptive Anchor Text

The anchor text refers to the actual words on the page that you make into a hyperlink—and choosing the right anchor text can add real value to those links. That’s why you never want to link to bland, boring, or valueless text like click here.

Consider this: You want to provide a link to a recent blog post about the best Instagram strategies. You can make the words blog post into your anchor text, or the words best Instagram strategies. Which of these do you think offers more link value? The more descriptive option is always going to be the better one. Be wise in including good, colorful anchor text with every link.

Include a Couple of Internal Links on Every Page

How many internal links should you feature in each post, or on each page? There’s no hard and fast rule here, and different SEOs will tell you different things, but we’d recommend at least a couple. Remember that each link boosts the “freshness value” of the page you’re linking to, so you might as well take advantage of each opportunity.

Be Logical with Your Links

With that said, we also recommend being wise: You don’t want to appear like you’re spamming your reader, or bombarding your website users with links. Make sure the links you include are relevant. For example, a Grammar Chic blog post about Facebook ads probably shouldn’t link to a separate post about resume writing. That’s just not a logical connection.

Update Your Links Often

Remember that broken links decrease your site usability and its SEO value. Meanwhile, when you write a really good piece of new content, you may want to include links to it from older, relevant posts. Routine link audits and updates are essential.

Of course, linking is an integral part of your broader content marketing strategy—and that’s something the Grammar Chic team can help you put into place. Learn more by calling us today for a free consultation. Reach Grammar Chic’s content marketing team at 803-831-7444, or www.grammarchic.net.