Text linking: what it is and how to use it correctly

Proper optimization of the site includes many components, and one of the most important is competent linking. This tool not only helps search engines to better index your resource, but also significantly improves the user experience. But what is actually a relinking, how does it work and why it is worth paying special attention to it? Let's understand this issue in detail.

Relinking: definition and relevance to the site

Relinking (or internal relinking) is a system of links between pages of one web resource with the help of hyperlinks. Simply put, it is a process by which you create links from some pages of your site to others, forming a logical and understandable structure.

For example, a blog article may link to a product card, a product card may link to a category, and a category may link to the homepage. Such relationships can be quite complex and multi-level, which is absolutely normal for modern online resources.

The relevance of linking is difficult to overestimate. In an era when search engine algorithms are becoming more and more complex, and competition for a place in the output is growing, internal relinking becomes a powerful tool that is completely under your control and does not require additional costs.

The main types of linking

There are several basic types of relinking, each of which has its own characteristics and applies to certain situations. Understanding these types will help you create an effective strategy for your website.

Internal and external linking

Internal relinking is a system of links between pages of the same site. It is on it we will focus in this article, because it is completely under your control and is the basis for building a logical structure of the site.

External linking - links that lead from your site to other resources or from other sites to yours. While external links are also important for SEO, they require a separate approach and strategy.

The optimal ratio of internal to external links depends on the type of your website, but in most cases, internal links should be significantly more to avoid losing link weight.

Contextual and structural linking

Contextual linking is placing links directly in the content text, where they fit seamlessly into the narrative. Such links carry more weight for search engines because they are surrounded by relevant context. For example:

"There are many factors to consider when creating an effective SEO strategy, including content quality and technical optimization."

Here, the term "SEO strategies" can be a reference to a relevant page on your website.

Structural linking is a system of navigational elements such as:

• Main and additional menus
• Breadcrumbs
• "Related articles" or "You may be interested in" blocks
• Footer and site map

Structural linking helps users to easily navigate on the site and find the necessary information, and search engines - to understand the hierarchy and structure of the resource.

Anchor and anchorless linking

Anchor linking is the use of text (anchor text) as a clickable element of a link. Anchor text plays an important role in SEO, as it helps search engines understand what the linked page will be about. For example:

"Learn more about how to properly optimize meta tags to improve search engine visibility."

Unlinking is the use of non-text elements (buttons, images, banners) as links. Such links attract the attention of users, but have less weight for search engines if they do not contain alt and title attributes with relevant keywords.

An effective linking strategy usually includes both types of links to create a natural and diverse link profile.

Navigational and cross-linking

Navigational linking is the creation of links in the navigation elements that help the user navigate through the main sections of the site. These links are usually located in the header, sidebar or footer of the site and are accessible from any page.

Cross-linking - placing the same links on all or most pages of the site. Such links usually lead to the most important sections or pages with high commercial value. For example, a link to a contact page or a basic service can be present in the sidebar on all blog pages.

Why do you need re-linking

Proper internal relinking solves several important tasks, which together significantly improve the position of the site in the search engine and increase its effectiveness.

Improved indexing

Re-linking makes it much easier for search engine crawlers to crawl your site. It helps them:

• Find new and updated pages faster
• Better understand the structure and hierarchy of the site
• Determine the thematic relevance of pages
• Properly allocate crawling budget

According to research, pages with good internal linking are indexed on average 30-40% faster than pages without incoming internal links. This is especially important for large sites with a large number of pages.

Imagine your website is a city and the pages are buildings. Linking is a road network that allows search engine robots to easily reach each building without missing a single one.

Page weight distribution

In the world of SEO there is a concept of "link weight" or "link juice" (link juice) - a conditional indicator that is transferred from one page to another through links. The more quality links lead to a page, the higher its weight and the better it can rank in search results.

With the help of linking you can:

• Transfer authority from popular pages to less visited pages
• Strengthen the position of commercially important pages
• Increase visibility of new content
• Create thematic clusters where the main page gets more links and weight

Research shows that proper internal link weight distribution can increase key page positions by 15-20% even without changing the external link profile.

Improving user experience

Relinking is not only an SEO tool, but also an important element of website usability. It helps users:

• Easily find additional information on topics of interest
• Quickly navigate between related sections of the site
• Discover relevant content they may not have known existed
• Take targeted actions through strategically placed calls to action

According to statistics, sites with a well-designed internal linking system have an average 25-30% lower bounce rate and 15-20% longer user time on site.

Increased time on site

When users see relevant links to topics of interest, they are more likely to continue exploring your site instead of returning to the search engine. This results in:

• A decrease in bounce rate
• Increase in the average time spent on the site
• Increase the number of pages viewed per session
• Increased likelihood of conversion

According to research, increasing the average number of pages viewed from 1.5 to 2.5-3 per session can increase the probability of conversion by 30-50%, especially for commercial sites.

How to do relinking correctly: basic principles

Now that we understand the importance of relinking, let's understand how to implement it competently and effectively.

Choosing pages for linking

Choosing pages for linking should be strategic and deliberate. Here are a few recommendations:

1. Analyze statistics - use Google Analytics and Google Search Console to identify pages with low traffic, high bounce rates, or indexing problems. For example, pages that are visited by less than 1% of all site users are likely in need of additional internal links.
2. Prioritize - Identify the pages that are most important for conversion (e.g., service or product pages) that need extra weight. These pages should receive more inbound links than others.
3. Create topic clusters - group content by topic and create links between pages of the same topic. For example, if you have a main article about SEO and several in-depth pieces about different aspects of SEO (meta tags, load speed, mobile optimization), they should all be linked together.
4. Take click depth into account - pages that can only be reached in 3-4 or more clicks from the main page need additional links from higher levels of the hierarchy. According to research, a click depth of more than 3 reduces the probability of visiting a page by 50-70%.

Creating effective anchors

Anchor text plays an important role for both SEO and attracting visitors' attention. Here are guidelines for creating effective anchors:

1. Use keywords - the anchor should contain keywords relevant to the destination page, but without overspamming. The optimal density of keywords in anchors - 30-40%, the rest of the anchors should be diverse.
2. Avoid general phrases - anchors like "click here" or "learn more" are less effective than specific and informative ones. Studies show that specific anchor texts get 2-3 times more clicks.
3. Vary the anchors - don't use the same anchor texts for all links to the same page. For example, you can link to the page "SEO-optimization" through different anchors: "search engine optimization", "improving the visibility of the site", "promotion in search engines", etc.
4. Observe naturalness - anchors should organically fit into the context of the page and do not look artificially inserted. Search engines may downgrade pages with unnatural anchors.

Optimal number of links per page

There is no single ideal number of links for all page types, but there are a few general guidelines:

1. Avoid overspam - too many links can dilute the weight of the page and confuse users. In the past, Google recommended no more than 100 links per page, but this limit is now less strict. Nevertheless, for most pages, the optimal number of links is 20-50, depending on the amount of content.
2. Take into account the volume and type of content - the longer the text, the more natural opportunities for links. You can roughly use 1-2 links for every 200-300 words of text for informational pages and 1 link per 100-150 words for commercial pages.
3. Prioritize important pages - not all pages should have the same number of outbound links. Focus on those that have the most value for users and conversions.
4. Control the ratio of internal to external links - internal links should be significantly more (about 80-90% of all links) to avoid losing link weight.

Use different types of links

An effective linking strategy includes different types of links:

1. In-text contextual links are the most valuable for SEO as they are surrounded by relevant context and look natural to the user. Aim for 60-70% of all internal links to be contextual.
2. Links in navigation elements - menus, breadcrumbs, sidebar. They help users navigate the site and give weight to the pages of the first and second level of the hierarchy.
3. Related materials - blocks "Related articles", "You may be interested in", "Popular products". Such blocks are usually placed at the end of the article or in the sidebar and contain 3-5 links to relevant pages.
4. Links in images and interface elements - banners, buttons, icons. They attract users' attention, but for SEO they should contain relevant alt and title attributes.

Linking schemes: choosing the optimal strategy

Linking scheme is a well-thought-out system of links between the pages of the site, which determines how the link weight is distributed and how users will move around the resource. The choice of scheme depends on the type of site, its structure and promotion goals. Let's consider the most effective options.

Relinking "all to all" on the principle of "star"

This is a simple and common scheme in which each page of the site links to all or most of the rest. Such linking is especially effective for small sites (up to 50 pages), where it is necessary to evenly distribute the link weight between all materials.

The advantages of this scheme are in the high connectivity of pages, because they are all available in 1-2 clicks. It also provides an even distribution of link weight and is quite simple to implement. Among the disadvantages should be noted the possible redundancy of links on large sites, the lack of allocation of priority pages and a decrease in thematic relevance of links.

According to research, for sites with up to 30-40 pages, the scheme "star" can increase indexing by 25-30% compared to unstructured linking.

Relinking in a circle and in the target (ring)

In this scheme, pages are linked together in a logical sequence, forming a chain or ring. For example, article A links to article B, article B links to article C, and article C links to article A again, closing the ring. Additionally, each article can link to a landing page (such as a service or product page).

Such a scheme is ideal for:

• Series of articles or step-by-step guides
• Linking products from the same category
• Creating a thematic route for the user

The effectiveness of ring linking is confirmed by numbers: on average, it increases the depth of browsing by 40-50% and reduces the bounce rate by 15-20% compared to chaotic linking.

To implement this scheme, it is recommended to limit the rings to 5-7 pages, so as not to create too long chains that can confuse the user.

Re-linking by rank or hierarchy

This is one of the most effective schemes for medium and large sites. In it, pages are divided into levels according to their importance. The top level includes the home page and key sections of the site (5-10% of all pages). The middle level includes categories, subsections, important information pages (20-30% of pages). The lower level consists of individual products, articles, news (60-70% of pages).

Links in this scheme are distributed in such a way that the top level pages receive the maximum number of incoming links from all pages of the site. The middle level pages receive links from the top level and related pages of the same level. Lower-level pages get links mainly from mid-level pages and related lower-level pages.

Studies show that hierarchical linking provides the best link weight distribution for large sites and can increase CTR in search engine rankings by 12-15% for prioritized pages.

Pushing the top pages

This scheme focuses on promoting specific pages with high commercial value. For example, if your goal is to increase sales of a certain product or service, then the page of this product should receive the maximum number of links from other pages of the site.

For effective pushing, it is recommended to place links to top pages in the most prominent places, for example, in the first paragraph of the text. It is also important to use strong anchors containing key queries and create links from pages with high link weight. At the same time, the number of pages to be pushed should be limited - no more than 5-10% of the total number of pages.

According to analysts, the correct pushing of top pages can increase their conversion rate by 30-40% and increase positions in the search results by an average of 5-7 positions.

Relinking for low-frequency queries

This scheme is aimed at attracting traffic on low-frequency and long-tail queries, which together can account for 70-80% of all search traffic.

To implement this strategy should create content optimized for low-frequency queries, combine these pages into thematic clusters and link pages with low-frequency queries to the corresponding pages of medium and high level.

Statistics show that competent linking for low-frequency queries can attract an additional 25-35% of targeted traffic with relatively low competition.

Common mistakes in linking and how to avoid them

Even understanding the principles of linking, many webmasters make mistakes that reduce the effectiveness of this strategy. Let's consider the most common problems and ways to solve them.

Link spam

Too many links on a page can be perceived by search engines as an attempt at manipulation and lead to the erosion of link weight. To solve this problem, stick to the optimal number of links - no more than 2-3 links per 1000 characters of text. Use only really relevant links that will be useful to the user, and avoid repeating the same links on the same page.

According to research, pages with link density higher than 8-10% of the total text volume may face search engine filters and demotion.

It is also useful to check link density using special tools such as Screaming Frog SEO Spider. This tool allows you to identify pages with an excessive number of links and optimize them.

Irrelevant or broken links

Links to non-existent pages not only degrade user experience, but also negatively affect site ranking. According to statistics, the presence of more than 5% of broken links can reduce a site's position by 10-15 positions.

To avoid this problem:

• Check your site regularly for broken links (at least once a month)
• Set up 301 redirects from old addresses to new ones when the structure changes
• Use tools for automatic monitoring of broken links
• Update linking when pages are deleted or added

Irrelevant anchors

Anchor text that does not match the content of the destination page is misleading to users and can be perceived as spam by search engines.

To solve this problem, create informative and accurate anchors that clearly describe what the user will find through the link. Avoid over-optimization - no more than 30-40% of anchors should contain the exact occurrence of the keyword. It is useful to vary the anchor texts for links to the same page, using synonyms and different wording. It is also recommended to analyze the anchors of competitors ranking high in the rendition.

Too deep hierarchy

If some pages can only be reached by many clicks from the main page, they may not receive enough link weight and be worse indexed. According to SEO research, each additional nesting level reduces transferable link weight by 15-20%.

To solve this problem, aim to make any page on the site no more than 3 clicks away from the main page. Use cross-references between sections to shorten the path. Create a sitemap (XML and HTML) to improve indexing of deep pages. It is important to regularly analyze the site structure and optimize it if some pages appear to be too deep.

Ignoring the mobile version

With more than 60% of internet traffic today coming from mobile devices, relinking that works well on the desktop may be awkward or inaccessible on mobile devices.

To avoid this problem, adapt your navigation and linking for mobile devices. Ensure that clickable elements are large enough - at least 44x44 pixels according to Google's recommendations. Regularly test the usability of linking on different screen sizes and use responsive design and adaptive layout for all linking elements.

Useful tools for building internal linking systems

There are many tools that can help in creating an effective linking system. Let's take a look at the most useful of them.

Tools for analyzing existing linking

Screaming Frog SEO Spider is a powerful website audit tool that allows you to scan all internal links, identify broken links, analyze anchor texts and visualize site structure. This tool is especially useful for sites with 100 to 10000 pages, allowing you to identify up to 95% of internal linking problems.

Google Search Console - A free tool from Google that shows indexing problems, internal links on a site, pages with errors and keywords that pages are ranking for.

Netpeak Spider - An alternative to Screaming Frog with additional features such as:

• Link Map Building
• Identifying cyclic links
• Checking link attributes
• Analyze link weight distribution

Tools for link building

Yoast SEO is a popular plugin for WordPress that helps you automatically suggest internal links based on keywords, track orphan pages (without incoming links), optimize anchor texts and set up breadcrumbs. According to statistics, using Yoast SEO can increase the number of internal links by 30-40% and improve their quality.

Ahrefs Site Audit - a comprehensive tool that allows you to identify pages with an insufficient number of internal links, analyze link weight distribution, find opportunities to improve linking and track changes in the site structure.

Sitebulb is a tool for in-depth analysis of a site with a focus on internal linking. It provides visualization of links between pages, calculation of page importance indicators, analysis of link weight transfer and identification of problems with site architecture.

Organization of internal linking in practice

Creating an effective linking system is not a one-time task, but an ongoing process. Here are step-by-step instructions for organizing internal linking.

First of all, it is necessary to audit the current situation: analyze the existing structure of the site, identify pages without incoming links, identify pages with an excessive number of outgoing links and find broken or irrelevant links.

Then you should develop a strategy: choose a suitable linking scheme, identify priority pages, create rules for anchor texts and set targets.

The changes should be implemented gradually:

• Start with the most important pages
• Update existing content by adding relevant links
• Create new content with a strategy in mind
• Modernize navigation elements of the site

Do not forget to analyze the results on a regular basis: monitor changes in the site's position in search engine results, analyze user behavior, check page indexation and adjust the strategy based on the data obtained.

According to research, a comprehensive approach to relinking with regular analysis and optimization can increase organic traffic by 20-30% within 3-6 months.

The importance of a blog for building internal linking

A blog is a powerful tool for building an effective internal linking system. A regularly updated blog with quality content provides many opportunities for natural linking.

A blog allows you to create topic clusters, covering different aspects of your niche and creating related topical content. For example, if you blog about SEO, you can write a series of articles about different aspects of optimization and link them together.

Regularly updating your link structure happens with each new article as you add links to existing content and update older articles with new links. This keeps your link structure up to date and helps search engine crawlers index new content faster.

Quality blog posts with relevant internal links significantly increase a user's time on the site. According to statistics, users who go from one blog article to another spend an average of 45-60% more time on the site.

With the help of content marketing and competent linking, you can unobtrusively promote your products or services. For example, in an article about choosing a CMS for an online store, you can refer to your website building service.

To organize relinking in a blog is important:

• Create a structure of categories and tags
• Add "Related Articles" blocks (increases CTR by 25-35%)
• Regularly update old content
• Create summary overview materials

According to analysts, a blog with a well-thought-out linking system can attract up to 60-70% of all organic traffic to the site and significantly improve conversion rates.