When it comes to SEO, link anchors are an essential element to consider in optimization efforts. Anchor links are visible text on a web page that is clickable and leads to another web page. In other words, it is the text that a visitor must click on to access other content. Although link anchors may seem like a minor detail, they can have a significant impact on a website’s SEO. In this article, we’ll look at everything you need to know about link anchors in SEO.
What is a link anchor in SEO?
An anchor link is the clickable text that website visitors see on one page, which takes them to another web page. Link anchors are important for SEO because they provide information to Google about the content of the target page.
For example, if a link is created with the anchor “women’s running shoes”, this tells Google that the target page is about women’s running shoes. This can help Google rank the target page in search results relevant to that query.
In SEO, we classify link anchors into 3 types:
–Optimized anchor: containing the keyword targeted by the landing page
–Semi-optimized anchor: containing secondary keywords from the landing page
–Natural or deoptimized anchor: This is anchor text that does not contain keywords and is inserted in a natural way. Example: click here, read more…
How Do Link Anchors Affect SEO?
Link anchors impact a website’s SEO in several ways. Here are the main points to remember:
Understand the content of the target page
As we mentioned earlier, link anchors provide information to Google about the content of the target page. This can help Google rank this page in relevant search results for related keywords.
Improve click-through rate
Well-written link anchors can help entice visitors to click the link and go to the target page. This can help increase traffic to the website.
Improve content relevance
If a link is created with a relevant link anchor, this can help boost the relevance of the content on the target page. This can help improve the page’s ranking in relevant search results.
The risk of harming natural referencing
If link anchors are created incorrectly or inappropriately, it can harm the website’s SEO. For example, excessive use of keywords in link anchors can be considered link spamming, which can result in a penalty from Google.
How to create effective link anchors for natural SEO?
Use relevant keywords
Relevant keywords can help make content on the target page more relevant. However, it is important not to overdo it and overuse keywords, which can be considered link spamming or over-optimization.
Use Descriptive Link Anchors
Descriptive link anchors can help provide additional information about the target page. For example, if a link leads to a products page, using the link anchor “see our product selection” rather than just “products” can help entice visitors to click the link.
Avoid Generic Link Anchors
Generic link anchors like “click here” or “learn more” are not very informative and can harm the relevance of the target page. It is best to use descriptive link anchors that provide information about the target page. Using this type of natural anchors still allows you to vary the anchor profile and avoid over-optimization.
Avoid Excessive Link Anchors
Using too many link anchors on a web page can be considered link spamming and can harm the website’s SEO. It is best to limit the number of anchor links on a web page and use them wisely.
