By Shad Super —

Seo Internal Link Analysis - 8 Actionable Strategies

Seo Internal Link Analysis - 8 Actionable Strategies
Internal Link Analysis to Uplift SEO

You must be looking for methods to optimize the internal linking structure of your website or client. The reason could be that you might have lost control of internal links, facing a challenge to keep track of all the pages while navigating or adding the content. 

Acclaimand! You have landed at the right place. 

Check out this post to learn how to do internal link analysis, and how internal links impact SEO and website performance so you can optimize your internal linking, improve navigation, boost search rankings, reduce bounce rates, and enhance domain authority. 

And a lot more..! 

What Internal Links Actually Are?

Internal links are indeed hyperlinks that connect one page of a website to another page on the same domain. Unlike external links, which direct users to pages on other domains, internal links keep users within the same website ecosystem. 

These links play a crucial role in website navigation, user experience, and SEO, as they help users discover related content, establish website hierarchy, and distribute link equity throughout the site. 

Internal link analysis involves evaluating the internal linking structure of a website to identify opportunities for improvement. It's essential to implement a structured approach that encompasses various aspects of website organization and management. By strategically incorporating internal links, website owners can enhance navigation, promote important pages, and improve search engine rankings.

Here are a few steps to conduct internal website link analysis for smooth workflow.

Start with Crawling the Website

Start by conducting a comprehensive audit of your website's internal links to identify any broken links, outdated URLs, or irrelevant anchor text. Use tools like Screaming Frog or Google Search Console to analyze your website's link structure and address any issues.

Use a website crawler tool like LinkBot, Screaming Frog, or SEMrush to crawl your website and gather data on internal links.  Linkbot is a fully automated internal linking assistant for your website content. It will provide you with a comprehensive list of all internal links automatically. 

LinkBot Features 

  • Internal Link Report+Grade 
  • Copy & Paste Installation 
  • Improve Indexing and Rank 

Reviewing internal link distribution involves analyzing how internal links are spread across your website. Based on your analysis, consider rebalancing the distribution of internal links across your website. This may involve adding internal links to low-traffic pages from higher-traffic pages or updating anchor text to improve relevance. Analyze the distribution of internal links across your website. Look for pages with a high number of internal links as well as pages with few or no internal links.

Create an Organized Sitemap

Creating an organized sitemap involves structuring and categorizing your website's pages hierarchically to provide a clear overview of its content and navigation.

What Should I Do?

Set up a proper sitemap that outlines all of your website's pages and sections. Use internal linking within your sitemap to connect related pages and facilitate navigation. Provide clickable links to each page or category within the sitemap to allow users to easily navigate to their desired content. Regularly update the sitemap to reflect any changes in your website's structure or content, ensuring it provides an accurate roadmap for search engines and users alike.

Examine Anchor Text 

When examining anchor text in the context of internal linking, it's important to analyze the text used for hyperlinks within your website's content. Therefore, find out the anchor texts used for internal links. Ensure that anchor text is descriptive and relevant to the linked page. 

The best way to do so is to incorporate relevant keywords into your anchor text where appropriate. This can help improve the visibility of the linked page in search engine results for those keywords.

Pro- Tip:-  Avoid generic anchor text like "click here" or “Read More” and instead use keywords that accurately represent the content of the linked page.

Ensure that the anchor text accurately describes the content of the linked page. It should provide users with a clear indication of what they can expect when they click on the link.

Identify Orphan Pages

Your next task should be to search for orphan pages - locating pages that are not linked to any other page on your website. These pages are isolated from the rest of your site’s content. Orphan pages can be difficult for users and search engines to find, so consider adding internal links to these pages from relevant sections of your site.

By identifying orphan pages and integrating them into your website's internal linking structure, you can improve their visibility to users and search engines, ultimately enhancing the overall effectiveness of your website.

Conduct a manual inspection of your website's sitemap or navigation menu to cross-reference with the list of pages generated by the website crawler. Look for pages that are not linked to any other page on your site. Use Google Search Console or other search engine webmaster tools to identify indexed pages that have no incoming internal links. These pages may also be considered orphan pages.

Evaluating internal link depth involves assessing how deeply nested or buried within the website hierarchy certain pages are. Pages that are buried deep within your site structure may not receive as much link equity as pages that are closer to the homepage. 

What Should I Do?

Determine how many clicks it takes for a user to reach a specific page from the homepage or another top-level page. Pages that are accessible within a few clicks are considered shallow, while those requiring many clicks are deeper in the hierarchy.

What you can do here is consider restructuring your site or adding internal links to improve the accessibility of these pages. Assess how link equity flows through your website hierarchy. Pages closer to the top of the hierarchy typically receive more link equity, which can positively impact their search engine rankings and visibility.

Broken links are hyperlinks that point to non-existent or inaccessible web pages. When a user clicks on a broken link, they typically encounter a 404 error page, indicating that the desired content cannot be found. Broken links can negatively impact user satisfaction and SEO, so it's important to regularly monitor and address them.

What Should I Do?

Look for broken internal links and fix them to ensure a seamless user experience. Once identified, you can either update the broken link to point to the correct URL if the content still exists or remove the link altogether if the content is no longer available.

Redirect outdated or broken internal links to relevant and up-to-date pages to maintain a seamless user experience and prevent 404 errors. Use 301 redirects to permanently redirect users and search engines to the correct page.

Internal Link Analysis Tools

Several tools can assist in conducting internal link analysis to optimize your website's linking structure. Here are some popular ones:

1.  Screaming Frog SEO Spider: This tool is widely used for website crawling and analysis. It can provide comprehensive data on internal links, anchor text, and other SEO-related elements.

2.  SEMrush: SEMrush offers various features for website analysis, including an internal link analysis tool. It provides insights into internal linking patterns, broken links, and opportunities for improvement.

3.  Ahrefs: Ahrefs is primarily known for its backlink analysis capabilities, but it also offers tools for internal link analysis. Users can explore internal links, identify orphan pages, and analyze anchor text.

4. Google Search Console: While not as comprehensive as dedicated SEO tools, Google Search Console provides valuable data on internal links, including which pages are linked to most frequently and how they're linked.

5.  Sitebulb: Sitebulb is another website crawling tool that offers insights into internal link structures, anchor text distribution, and other SEO-related factors.

6. Moz Pro: Moz Pro includes features for analyzing internal links, identifying opportunities for optimization, and monitoring website performance.

7. DeepCrawl: DeepCrawl offers in-depth website crawling and analysis capabilities, including internal link analysis, broken link detection, and content optimization insights.

These tools can help you gain valuable insights into your website's internal linking structure, identify areas for improvement, and optimize your site for better search engine rankings and user experience.

Optimize Linking Strategy

Based on your analysis, develop a strategy to optimize your internal linking structure. This may involve adding internal links to important pages, updating anchor text, removing excessive links, or reorganizing your site architecture.

By following the strategies listed above you can conduct a thorough internal link analysis and make informed decisions to improve the effectiveness of your internal linking structure. However, regular monitoring of internal links using tools like Google Analytics Scan prevents you from having hassle. You can track metrics such as click-through rates, bounce rates, and time on the page to identify areas for improvement and optimization, after following the six strategies.

Key Takeaway:  By implementing these effective internal link analysis strategies, you can optimize your website's internal linking structure and improve its SEO performance, ultimately enhancing user experience and driving more traffic to your site.

Frequently Asked Questions

1.  How many internal links should I include on each page? 

Answer: There isn't a specific number of internal links that you should include on each page as it depends on various factors such as the length of the content, the structure of your website, and the user experience you want to provide. 

2.  Is it better to use exact match anchor text or variations? 

Answer: It's generally better to use a mix of exact match anchor text and variations for internal links, rather than relying solely on one approach. 

Answer: Yes, internal links can indirectly improve your website's conversion rate by enhancing user experience, guiding visitors through your site, and increasing engagement with your content.

Answer: Internal links play a crucial role in mobile SEO by facilitating navigation, enhancing user experience, and optimizing website structure for mobile devices. When users find the information they need easily and are encouraged to explore additional content, they're less likely to bounce back to search results or exit your site prematurely.