These links link to pages in the same domain. These links define a “hierarchy” based on the “homepage” or main page of the domain. Internal links are distributed from this page to all other pages.
You can create internal links to allow the user to jump from one page to another, allowing them to enter the content.
Google’s “spiders,” which scan web pages to determine their position, can move within a page by using internal links. These “spiders,” who are responsible for scanning web pages in order to place them, “jump” through the links, moving from one page to another.
This “network” allows spiders to determine various factors about a page. For example, the relationship between pages or the relevance of content. The stronger and more structured an internal link is, the easier it will be for Google to find it to index the page correctly and place it on the results page.
All web pages contain a set of links we can call “predefined.” These are located in the navigation menu, side widgets on the page, forms or typical footers that link to privacy statements or terms and conditions pages.
Why Use Internal Links?
Internal links improve SEO on-page since they offer several benefits such as:
They can give authority to specific pages within a website.
They improve the user experience by reducing the bounce rate and accompanying the user as they move from one piece of content to the next, increasing the amount of information.
Create a hierarchy between pages to allow Google to index your page faster.
How can you Improve the Internal Linking of a Website?
First, you should review all internal links. Check that all the internal links are working. There is no rule on how many internal links are too many; just use common sense. For example, 4,000 links are too many.
To improve the internal linking of a webpage, you can:
Find the Most Popular Web Pages
Find out which pages on your website receive the most traffic. You can do this in Google Analytics. After identifying these pages, search for content that is related or, if the content isn’t available, create content that links to those pages.
Link Position
Keywords, Anchor text
The anchor text is the text that links the content. In this article, for example, the anchor text is SEO On-Page, which links to a similar article. It is easy to include the keyword in the text, but it’s not recommended. Google prefers natural content, so it’s best to avoid forcing the inclusion.
Number of Internal Links on a Page
We have already mentioned that it is not recommended to overload a page with links. Maintain a simple text with only one or two internal links. Internal links can be abused and lead to keyword competition. It’s important to keep a balance. It’s not good to completely remove some pages while overloading others.
Landing Page
The user experience is important when working with internal links. Never force the user to click many times to get to content. The link should always be opened in a tab and not a window. This can confuse the user and cause him to lose his concentration.
Avoid links to “contact” and “home,” as the goal is to immerse users in the content so they continue reading the page, finding new links within the content that lead them to other pages.
