If anyone doubts the high value Google places on internal linking (deep-linking), I have hard evidence that should blow them away. Google recently bumped a client of mine up from no results for a particular set of real estate keywords (local schools) to the top ten over a weekend. Yes, that included a coveted number one rank. All this for nothing more than taking the time to internally link, directory-style, to a number of very relevant pages for these terms.

Nothing too fancy, but very powerful.

This SEO project involved creating a page of useful keyword friendly links to internal pages (MLS listing searches, actually) on his own site. I knew it would be worth the investment, but even I was shocked at how fast this strategy would be reflected in the SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages).

In less than a week, this client rocketed to the top of Google for these high value real estate keywords, which will end up producing quality targeted traffic. Make no mistake; this is not merely about the search engines. Humans will more easily find what they are looking for, and most importantly, find my client in the process.

Deep internal linking works for humans and search engines

Internal links work in part because Google has decided that they are an indicator of how the site owner sees his/her own content. While a good search engine optimization strategy will include inbound links from other sites, internal links let Google know what pages you think are important on your site, and how important you think they are.

What pages are your internal links from? What link text are they using to point to your internal pages? If your internal links are located within close proximity of the front page, Google will see the target pages as more important.

Link anchor text is important

Of course, the link text you use for the links is extremely important. Never use generic terms. Always use relevant keywords in your internal linking strategy. This helps both search engines and humans, particularly those with disabilities who make use of text reading software to navigate the web.

In short, if you are looking to get a boost to your search engine ranking, consider deep linking to your own pages from relevant content items. You might be as amazed as I was.

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Internal Links
written by Frank Polenose, October 13, 2008

Must admit never concentrated a massive amount on internal links - migh do now!

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