Internal Anchor Text Links

[BeckyKey]

Hi

How important are internal anchor text links & rankings?

I'm researching competitors and am seeing a lot of internal anchor text links with keywords helping them rank - but they have these links in their menu which at the moment isn't possible for us.

We can include our top level 1 categories, but nothing below this in the top navigation

Thanks!

[bittristo]

This might be a whole new thread, but how does an internal link work if you are linking to a page that is already in the main menu of the page you are linking from. A top level product page for example. Is it worth creating anchor text links if they will be the second link discovered by the spiders?

[TammyWood]

Hello,

With anything SEO there is the chance of appearing spammy. Keeping in mind the user, does this link with anchor text makes sense to the user? Does it accurately describe what the user will find on the linked page?

Be aware that you should always design your website with the user in mind.

[BeckyKey]

Hey

Sure i know you need some anchor text, but is there a limit? Will it be spammy if there's too much, or is it going to help rankings?

Thanks!

[BlueCorona]

Hi Becky!

Internal anchor text is important because it gives web site visitors (and search engines) a hint about the web page or web site they are about to visit (if they click the link). This is why you DON’T want to use common calls to action like, “click here” or “our website.” Instead, you want to use keyword rich anchor text. But you don't want it to become very spammy sounding—so keep this in mind when creating content.

Anchor text helps search engines understand what the page is about and it also helps establish site architecture. And depending on the anchor text of the link, it might even increase your rankings for certain keywords!

As an example, if you’re having a contest to give away a free website makeover for the HVAC industry, make free HVAC website the anchor text! If thousands of web sites link to your site using the anchor text ‘leading residential furnace installers‘ there’s a good chance that you’re in the residential HVAC business and you install furnaces!

I hope this helped! But if you're looking for more information check out our blog that discusses if you need links to rank on Google.

[Alick300]

Hi Becky,

Internal links help spread link juice (ranking power) around websites. Find detailed article on best practice @ https://moz.com/learn/seo/internal-link

While internal linking is highly recommended, avoid doing it with keyword-rich anchor text. Using too many keyword-rich anchors can have a negative impact on your link profile. Try the healthy alternative of spreading the anchor across a sentence. For instance, instead of using “link building definition," you can go for something like “learn about the definition of link building." So, this ideally means that you create a long anchor and spread the keywords within. - SEOmoz excerpt

Thanks