Internal linking for SEO – why and how to do it
People frequently overlook or underestimate the importance of internal linking for SEO. In order to improve their rankings, many individuals just worry about their on-page search engine optimization and external link-building. But even though those are the two factors that seem to be of the highest significance to Google, that’s not to say internal links don’t have a say in the matter. Having said that, those of you who are unfamiliar with this aspect of SEO and would like to learn more about its potential benefits should find this article particularly useful. What follows is a thorough explanation of internal linking, its advantages, and proper implementation.
Internal linking for SEO – what it actually is?
The notion itself isn’t too complicated to define. In fact, in this context, “internal linking” refers to the process of creating links between different pages on the same domain. For instance, if you were to click on the hyperlinked text in this sentence, it would take you to the Digital Dot NYC homepage – the page on the same website you are reading the article on and thus, an internal link!
External linking, on the other hand, occurs when a page either links to another website or is linked to by another website. Social media shares, backlinks from guest articles, or links from other sites all constitute external links.
Now, going back to internal links, there are various reasons why they are important. As their name implies, they aid visitors in navigating your site and jumping from one page to another. In addition, they are a crucial component of SEO as they allow search engines to better understand the content on your website. This, in turn, helps them determine how to better rank your pages.
There is more than one type of internal links. To give you an idea, you may typically find them in the sidebar, footer, or navigation menu of a website. Then, there are contextual links. Or rather, links within the body of the post or page, as shown here. They are typically used to direct the reader to another page or to draw their attention to related material. Finally, internal links may also be found in the breadcrumbs or as part of a related posts plugin.
How and why do internal links aid SEO?
Websites with well-structured, internally-linked pages are easier for search engines to navigate, just as they are for human visitors. The only way search engines will see your site is through external links. However, once they’re there, they may navigate to other sections of the site with ease because of the internal links. Therefore, internal linking is essential if you want Google to index all, or the majority, of your website’s content.
Internal links are also taken into consideration by search engines when determining page rankings. What they do is help them understand what information on the site matters the most. For instance, there is a greater significance attached to a page if other pages link to it.
Furthermore, these links allow search engines to determine the context of the page. For example, let’s say that the URL of the page is website.com/web-designers. Now, it’s clear that the page discusses the topic of web designers but it’s not clear whether it discusses web designers NYC, web designers in general, or those located elsewhere. However, if the page is linking to multiple pieces on the site that talk about the same or a similar topic, search engines can fully grasp what the content is all about.
How to adequately use internal linking for SEO?
As someone who provides professional SEO services New York, we are fully confident we can guide you through the best internal linking practices.
#1 Identify key pages
These are the most important sections of your site that you want people to visit. They are normally static web pages, but they can also take the form of guides. That being said, how do you actually determine what content matters the most on the site? Well, consider the information that serves as the bedrock of your company… the things that you want to pop up when people search for your business or your particular area of expertise. That’s the area over which you most wish to build authority!
#2 Connect the key pages to the homepage
Once your most important pages have been determined, you should provide direct access to them from the homepage. No other page has as much value as the primary one, which means anything you link to from there will receive a lot of traffic. To actually link to a certain page from the homepage, you can utilize any element in your header, footer, or even sidebar. If you prefer, you can also make use of the ”most popular posts” widget or a call-to-action button.
#3 Build links between similar articles
Building links between articles that discuss the same or similar topic is essential. Why? Well, because, for once, it helps your audience get more information on the topic they are reading. In addition, it also helps search engines realize that these articles are related one to another.
#4 Link from content to a conversion page
The goal of content marketing is to bring in new customers by showcasing your knowledge and skills. That’s why it’s crucial to embed conversion-focused calls-to-action (CTAs) in your content pages. If you want to improve your conversion rate, it’s important that consumers can quickly and effortlessly locate and purchase your products (or follow, subscribe, etc.). Luckily, this can be achieved by the strategic placement of internal links.
#5 Link to taxonomies
Taxonomies, also known as tags and categories, shouldn’t be neglected. In fact, SEO wouldn’t be what it is without them. With that in mind, they need to be linked so as to help search engines find and classify content. To reap their full benefits, make sure to include them in your posts!
Finishing words
Search engine optimization is all about making your information readily accessible to both humans and search engines. Internal linking for SEO is one of its crucial components. One that makes your content easier to find, not to mention more user-friendly. While we’ve given you a basic idea of how utilizing these links can benefit your SEO efforts, there’s still much for you to learn. As figuring out how to use this is a process of trial and error, be ready to make mistakes at the beginning. Nevertheless, once you’ve mastered the usage of internal links, you will have realized that all the effort was more than worth it.
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