Why are we still talking about SEO?! Oh that’s right because it’s the one thing I see most business owners getting ripped off with. So I’m going to make sure you understand the basics of this stuff before you sign up for some SEO program promising the world, and then you get mad and say marketing is trash.
This week we’re going to talk about internal linking.
Imagine, for a moment, that you’re in a massive city that you’ve never visited before. Now, imagine there are no street signs, no maps, and no friendly locals to guide you. Sounds like a nightmare, right? Well, that’s exactly what your website looks like to search engines and users without effective internal links.
What are Internal Links?
In the realm of websites, internal links serve as your friendly neighborhood guide. They’re the blue, clickable words within an article that whisk you away to another page on the same website, much like a helpful local in our hypothetical city would direct you to the best coffee shop around the corner.
The Many Faces of Internal Links
Internal links come in various shapes and sizes. Navigational links – think menu, footer, or sidebar links – serve as the main roadways of your site. Contextual links, on the other hand, are embedded within the content, subtly guiding you to more information you might find intriguing. They’re like hidden alleyways leading to unexpected treasures.
Why You Need to Have Internal Links
If you’ve been following along I’ve been telling you over and over you need to create more content, specifically blog/written content. I failed to mention the primary reason you should be creating all of this written content! Writing blogs is probably the easiest way to get more search traffic. And if you create specific blog content about topics related to your primary product offerings, you can help improve your search engine ranking on those product pages through the internal links TO that product page from your blog content!
Now for the action, the step-by-step guide to build your internal links
1. Keyword Research:
The reason I did last week’s issue on keyword research was I wanted you to have a decent understanding of that process. There’s a ton of products out there, SEMRush and Ahrefs even have built-in tools to recommend internal link opportunities!
2. Audit Your Existing Content:
Find any blog posts you already created that are relevant to the product page you’re trying to boost.
3. Create High-Quality, Relevant Blog Posts:
If you don’t have enough relevant content, create it. Write in-depth, informative blog posts on topics related to the product page you’re promoting. Ensure they provide value to your audience and use the keywords from your research naturally within the content.
4. Identify Natural Linking Opportunities:
Within these blog posts, look for natural opportunities to link to your product page. This could be when you mention the product or relevant topics adjacent to it. The anchor text should be relevant to the linked page and not feel forced. It’s also a good idea to use different but related anchor texts for different links to avoid over-optimization.
5. Add the Links:
Once you’ve identified the opportunities, add the internal links. Make sure the links are “dofollow” to pass the SEO benefits to the linked page.
6. Monitor Your Metrics:
Use Google Analytics and Google Search Console to track how users are interacting with your blog posts and product page. Look at metrics like bounce rate, time on page, and conversion rate to measure the effectiveness of your internal linking strategy.
7. Adjust As Necessary:
If you’re not seeing the results you want, adjust your strategy. This could mean changing the anchor text, adding or removing links, or revising your content. But give it a little time, I usually give a blog post and product page 30 days before I make any drastic changes.
8. Continuous Improvement:
SEO is an ongoing process. Regularly update your content, add new links as relevant, and remove any broken ones. Keep an eye on changes in SEO best practices and adjust your strategy as necessary.
Remember, the primary aim is to provide value to your visitors. If your content is high-quality and your internal links help visitors find what they’re looking for, you’ll likely see improvements in your SEO.
You’re now armed with the secret sauce of internal linking. But remember, using this power comes with great responsibility. Like a master chef, you’ve got to balance the ingredients. Too many links and Google will give you a stern side-eye. Too few, and you’re like a city without street signs. Use your newfound knowledge wisely. And remember, SEO isn’t some mystical beast; it’s just a tool. A tool that needs patience, attention, and a dash of creativity. So, get out there, start linking, and let’s make your website the talk of the town (or at least, the talk of Google’s search algorithms).