Did you know that internal links are now integral to search engine optimisation? They’ve become a significant ranking factor. Internal links are now influencing how relevant and important your website’s pages are deemed by the likes of Google and other search engines.
So, how do we capitalise on this? What internal links SEO strategy do we need to implement to ensure we’re not falling short on our site’s visibility? The KIJO team has put together a 101 Guide on internal links for SEO. With it, you can ensure your internal linking game is fully optimised.
Internal links are hyperlinks that connect one page of your website to another on it. For example, the link within this sentence will take you to our Mastering a Website Audit blog. This is a contextual internal link. Other internal link examples include:
Internal links help search engines discover new pages on your site. They make it easier for them to easily find and appropriately index your site’s content. When you link to another page, you bolster that page’s authority too. So, it’s a great tool to use for this.
As mentioned above, internal links are also now considered an influencing ranking factor. So, by strategically placing internal links within your content, you’ll be better positioned in improving your overall rank on Google.
Here are KIJO’s top 6 tips that you can implement in your internal links SEO strategy.
Clarity is key with internal links for SEO. If you’ve written a sentence about best web design practices but then link it to a blog about typography trends, this is going to confuse search engines. It will also confuse your user. Be strict. If you only link to complementary content then this will indicate to Google that your site is reliable, comprehensive and an interlinking, well-plotted resource on specific topics.
If you’re looking to up your SEO internal linking game, make sure you’re only linking to content that adds value to your user. This means additional, complementary information that is definitely related to the topic of the content you’re linking within. You don’t want an internal link to look engineered; it should feel like a natural placement.
The top of the page is always the most visible. So, the most important and relevant links should be placed in the top section of your content if possible. Not only will this make the further content easier to find by your users, but search engines will also consider the hierarchy of your links too. This is another technique for you to signal to Google what it should be indexing in relation to your site.
Links pass on link equity, so use this to your site’s advantage. If you have a high authority page on your site (one that is ranking well on search engines and generating a lot of backlinks), leverage it to boost the other page’s visibility. Include relevant links on the high ranking page to the newer, lower authority pages.
The easiest way to check the Domain Authority of a site’s page is with the free Open Site Explorer from SEO software business Moz. Simply enter the link and it will tell you its score. Similar tools include SEMRush’s Backlink Analytics Tool.
Learn more about Domain Authority and what it means here.
If you have two pages on your site, one being about web design and the other web development, you shouldn’t link the word ‘websites’ with both links intermittently. This will confuse Google tenfold and negatively impact your domain authority. Use obviously different descriptive text for each link.
Similar to keyword stuffing, internal link stuffing is a big no-no too. Too many internal links can dilute the value of your site’s structure in Google’s eyes. If your site structure isn’t clear and bloated with links then it will not help you improve your domain’s authority and thus ranking.
In line with best practices around keywords, you also want to make sure your internal links are continuously updated and working!
It’s clear that understanding and implementing an internal links SEO strategy can significantly influence your site’s visibility and SERP ranking. It also helps your users navigate and use your website as intended. So, it’s an important process to prioritise.
If you think you need further support with your internal links and SEO, check out the KIJO Optimise service. Looking at 113 data points, our expert team will pinpoint exactly how to make your site rank higher on Google, boost traffic, and increase conversion volume and ratio.
