Internal linking

Definition

Internal linking is the practice of connecting one page of a website to another through hyperlinks. These links guide users through content and help search engines understand the structure and hierarchy of a site. Internal linking ensures that both visitors and crawlers can easily find important pages.

For example, a blog article on fitness tips may link to related content such as nutrition guides or workout plans. This not only improves navigation for users but also distributes ranking authority across the site, helping search engines prioritize valuable pages.

Advanced

An effective internal linking strategy requires careful planning of site architecture and content hierarchy. Links should be placed naturally within content using descriptive anchor text that reflects the topic of the destination page. Search engines use these signals to assess relevance and assign link equity.

Advanced approaches involve creating content clusters around pillar pages, optimizing crawl depth so key pages are not buried, and using breadcrumbs for structured navigation. Technical tools like Screaming Frog and Google Search Console help audit internal links, detect broken connections, and identify opportunities to improve link distribution.

Why it matters

• Guides search engines to discover and index content.
• Distributes authority to support ranking of key pages.
• Improves user experience through clear navigation.
• Reduces bounce rates by encouraging deeper site exploration.

Use cases

• Linking blog posts to relevant product or service pages.
• Building topic clusters with pillar and supporting content.
• Adding breadcrumbs to improve site navigation.
• Updating old articles with links to new content.

Metrics

• Number of internal links to priority pages.
• Crawl depth and accessibility of important content.
• Engagement metrics such as pages per session.
• Indexation rates tracked in Search Console.

Issues

• Broken or orphaned pages that receive no internal links.
• Excessive links on a single page reducing their value.
• Poor anchor text practices weakening relevance signals.
• Inconsistent linking causing uneven distribution of authority.

Example

A marketing agency creates a content hub about email marketing. The hub page links to supporting articles on templates, automation tools, and analytics. These supporting articles also link back to the hub, creating a cluster. The result is higher visibility for all related pages and improved rankings for the main hub keyword.