Internal links
Also called Internal linking, Site links, Anchor text.
Internal links are links from one page of your website to another page on the same site. They are how visitors and search engines find your pages and understand how they relate. The clickable words, called anchor text, should say what the linked page is about.
Doug's Field Guide · Updated
Why do internal links matter?
Google finds most pages by following links. Its link guidance says every page you care about should have a link from at least one other page on your site. A service page that nothing links to, called an orphan page, may be found late or not at all, and customers on your site will never reach it either.
Links also show which pages matter and how they connect. When your drain cleaning page links to your Round Rock, Pflugerville and Hutto pages, and each of those links back, both people and search engines can see that you do drain cleaning in those towns.
A simple structure works for most local businesses: the home page links to each service, each service page links to the towns where you offer it and to related services, and each town page links back to its services. Add links from your guides and FAQ answers to the service they mention.
What is good anchor text?
Anchor text is the visible, clickable words of a link. Google's guidance says it should be descriptive, reasonably short, and relevant to the page it points to, and it lists 'click here', 'read more' and 'website' as examples to avoid.
The words matter for people too. Someone skimming a page, or using a screen reader that lists every link, should know where each one goes without reading the sentence around it. Link the words that name the destination.
- Weak: 'For water heaters, click here.'
- Good: 'See our water heater replacement prices.'
- Weak: 'Read more.'
- Good: 'How we handle emergency tooth pain on weekends.'
- Weak: 'Plumber Round Rock plumber Round Rock TX best plumber' repeated in link after link. Google treats keyword stuffed anchor text as spam.
How do you find what's missing?
Open each service and area page and ask two questions. What links to this page? What does this page link to? If the only way to reach a page is typing its address, it is orphaned. If a page ends without pointing the reader anywhere, add a link to the next thing they'd want: booking, pricing, or the related service.
Google Search Console has a Links report that shows which of your pages have the most internal links pointing to them. Pages you care about near the bottom of that list need more.
Check for broken links while you're there. A link to a page you deleted or renamed sends visitors to an error page. Point it at the new page, or set up a redirect from the old address.
Link your pages together this week
- List every service and area page on your site.
- Make sure each one is linked from your menu, your home page, or at least one related page.
- Search your site for 'click here' and 'read more' and rewrite each link to say where it goes.
- On each service page, add links to the town pages where you do that service, and link each town page back.
Common mistakes
- Publishing a new page and never linking to it from anywhere, leaving it orphaned.
- Using 'click here' or 'learn more' as the link words on every link.
- Repeating the same keyword phrase as anchor text across dozens of links, which reads as stuffing.
How Doug does it
Doug's weekly site health check flags orphan pages, broken links, redirect chains and 'click here' link text. The service, area and guide pages Doug drafts and publishes link to each other with descriptive anchor text.
Terms on this page
- Anchor text
- The clickable words of a link. They should say where the link goes, like 'water heater prices', instead of 'click here'.
- Orphan page
- A page that no other page on your site links to. Visitors can't reach it by clicking, and search engines may find it late or not at all.
- Sitemap
- A file, usually sitemap.xml, that lists the pages on your site you want search engines to find. You can submit it in Google Search Console.
Keep exploring
- Service area pagesOne page per town you really serve, with something on it that is only true there.
- Google Search ConsoleGoogle's free tool that shows how your website does in Google Search.
- FAQ pagesThe questions customers ask on the phone, each with one short, clear answer.
- The weekly visibility checkEach week he asks the assistants your customers' questions and counts your mentions.
Sources
Written by Doug's team from these sources and our own work with local businesses. Search engines change their rules, so check the source before a big decision.
