Do you want to know the optimal number of internal links you should build to new pages?

Or how about which anchor texts will get you the best results?
In this episode of the Niche Pursuits podcast, long-time SEO expert Cyrus Shepard shares some very interesting answers to these questions you won’t want to miss.

His findings come from an in-depth study he did on the impact of internal linking on a website’s ranking and traffic.

He analyzed 1800 websites and 23 million internal links and found a positive correlation between internal links and Google traffic. But there’s a catch. After a certain point, the relationship between internal links and traffic diminishes.

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Want a Faster and Easier Way to Build Internal Links? Get $15 off Link Whisper with Discount Code “Podcast” on the Checkout Screen: https://www.nichepursuits.com/linkwhisper
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So, how can you make the most of your internal links? Cyrus emphasizes the importance of controlling both popularity and relevance in internal linking. He shares insights on Page Rank Sculpting and advises starting with a plan and adding links as soon as possible to avoid playing catch-up later. He also believes updating old content and internal linking should be a continuous part of your site management process.

Cyrus then shares tips on where to place internal links and the importance of varied anchor text. Plus, he shares his thoughts on keyword cannibalization and an example of how linking multiple pages together using keyword-rich cannibalization keywords improved the ranking of all pages.

But internal linking isn’t the only factor at play. Redirecting 404 pages with a 301 redirect to a highly relevant page is important. Plus, he recommends automation tools like Link Whisper to help find internal linking opportunities.

In short, internal linking is an essential aspect of SEO, and this episode is packed with actionable tips to help improve your website’s ranking and traffic. So, tune in now to learn more and start testing out these strategies on your own sites!

Topics Cyrus Shepard Covers
* Cyrus’ experience at Moz
* Running experiments
* Quick SEO wins
* Link popularity vs relevance
* Importance of anchor text
* Link position
* Dangers of duplicate anchor text
* Naked URLs
* Avoiding cannibalization
* Page sculpting tips
* First link priority
* The magic number for internal links
* Inbound linking tips
* Planning internal links with content creation
* Related links position
* Using images for internal links
* 404s, 301s, etc.
* In-text links

Links & Resources
* Zyppy – Where SEO Happens – https://zyppy.com/
* Cyrus Shepard on Twitter – https://twitter.com/CyrusShepard
* Cyrus Shepard on LinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/cyrusshepard/
* Link Whisper – https://www.nichepursuits.com/iifk

This Episode is Sponsored by Search Intelligence – https://search-intelligence.co.uk/ & Nichesites.com – https://www.nichesites.com/trial

Timestamps:
00:00 – Intro
05:05 – Cyrus’ Background
08:20 – His Internal Linking Study
12:20 – Key Findings
16:55 – Link Positioning
22:30 – Anchor Text Tips
28:30 – Page Rank Sculpting
34:40 – Inbound Linking Tips
46:40 – Images
49:25 – Cannibalization
54:00 – Redirect pages

-You can learn more about me at and get additional website tips at: https://www.nichepursuits.com

-You can learn about optimizing your site with internal links using a WordPress Plugin I created right here: https://www.linkwhisper.com

-And finally, if you are interested in buying or selling content or affiliate websites, my partners and I may be interested here: https://www.nichepursuits.com/motioninvest

Thanks for watching and please subscribe to my YouTube channel by clicking here: https://www.nichepursuits.com/youtube

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Internal links are one of those essential SEO items you have to get right to avoid getting them really wrong. Rand shares 18 tips to help inform your strategy, going into detail about their attributes, internal vs. external links, ideal link structures, and much, much more in this edition of Whiteboard Friday.

In this video, you’ll learn how to set up a basic internal linking strategy, and some mistakes to avoid. ► Like this video? Subscribe! http://smr.sh/KdD

Internal linking is maybe one of the most underutilized search engine optimization techniques by SEOs and developers alike. Have no fear, though! Solid internal linking is actually much easier than you might think.

Just like we talked about in our recent Top 5 SEO mistakes video, it really is a matter of investing a few minutes and doing the basics really well.

Step one: You’ll want to identify the pages of yours that target high volume keywords and then develop them as what we’ll call “hub pages.” For our site, we could set up hub pages for cakes, donuts, pastries, pies, and breads as the hubs. You’ll want to avoid picking too many hub pages. Keep them to the essentials. (and I think we have all the essentials right here)

Next, map out what fits under each hub page. Under the Cakes hub page, for example, you could have birthday cakes, graduation cakes, wedding cakes, company event cakes, or even funny cakes that make you smile.

Third, you’ll want to consider setting up one more level below each of these clusters. Under birthday cakes, for example, you could set up sub categories such as “cakes for kids” and “cakes for adults” – or it could be “whole wheat” and “gluten free” under your bread hubs. Just think through your products and audiences to segment these the best way.

Next – you might need to bribe your dev folks with some donuts for this next step. This hierarchy should become the basis for your main Navigational Internal Links – also known as the “Nav Bar.” If this isn’t the case, work with the dev team to make sure your site’s navigation actually aligns with these hubs and clusters.

The fifth and final prep step is tackling Contextual Internal Links. What are we talking about here? Contextual internal links are typically placed within the main body content of a page and is important because it helps users find additional related information they may need. Plus, internal links also pass authority to the page you’re linking to and helps search engines understand your site. Remember Google is always crawling your site and you want to help the machines really understand everything about it!

You’re not alone in doing this, though. SEMrush has great tools to help you do all of this well.

The easiest way to audit your internal links is to jump into the SEMRush Internal Linking report in Site Audit. It quickly shows the strongest and weakest links on the site.

Use this to identify errors, warnings, and notices regarding your site’s internal links and make the suggested changes to your site. It’s THAT simple!

Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
01:00 Example of how to set up your basics (imaginary donut website)
02:57 How SEMrush can help you check your internal linking
03:00 The Internal Linking report in Site Audit
04:46 Internal linking mistakes you want to avoid
06:35 Bonus tip: check your HTTPS
07:28 Outro

�� USEFUL RESOURCES
SEO checklist for 2020 ► https://youtu.be/8BnoUS6cbWo
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Most common SEO mistakes to avoid ► https://youtu.be/-VkLsveXI2Q

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KEEP IN TOUCH!
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Twitter: https://twitter.com/semrush
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/semrush/

#internallinking #interlinking #links #semrush