Objective and scope

Help readers move from problem to product while building topical authority. Internal links should be descriptive, visible, and useful. Structure them so Google can crawl and understand your site. See the Starter Guide on site hierarchy.

Link taxonomy

Make links crawlable with real <a href> elements. Google explains why in the note on crawlable links.

Hubs and clusters

Cluster outline example

Cluster: Content Analytics
Hub: /resources/content-analytics-attribution-standard/
Spokes:
- /resources/ga4-guide-for-content-marketers/ (mofu)
- /resources/utm-governance/ (mofu)
- /resources/content-dashboards-examples/ (mofu)
- /resources/compare-attribution-models/ (bofu)

Anchor text rules

Anchor text should describe the destination. Avoid “click here” or raw URLs. This improves clarity and helps search engines understand relationships. NN/g shows why descriptive link text improves comprehension in their link text guidance.

• Use task language like “compare attribution models”
• Place links early for scannability when relevant
• Do not stuff exact match terms in every link

Good vs weak anchors

Placement and density

Density is a guideline. Keep links useful and avoid repetition.

Breadcrumbs and navigation

Breadcrumbs help users and search engines understand structure. Use visible breadcrumb markup and JSON-LD. Google documents eligibility in the Breadcrumb guide.

<nav aria-label="Breadcrumb">
  <ol>
    <li><a href="/resources/">Resources</a></li>
    <li><a href="/resources/seo-and-visibility/">SEO</a></li>
    <li aria-current="page">Internal Linking Standard</li>
  </ol>
</nav>

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context":"https://schema.org",
  "@type":"BreadcrumbList",
  "itemListElement":[
    {"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Resources","item":"https://accordcontent.com/resources/"},
    {"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"SEO","item":"https://accordcontent.com/resources/seo-and-visibility/"},
    {"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Internal Linking Standard","item":"https://accordcontent.com/resources/internal-linking-topic-cluster-standard/"}
  ]
}
</script>

Crawlability and rel attributes

Links must be real anchors with href attributes. Avoid JS-only onclick handlers that create navigation without an href. See Search Central on crawlable links and MDN for the <a> element.

• Use <a href=”/path/”> not <span onclick>
• rel=”nofollow” for untrusted external links or paid placements
• Avoid nofollow on internal links that should be crawled

Bad vs good pattern

<!-- Bad: JS navigation without href -->
<span class="link" onclick="location='/resources/utm-governance/'">UTM rules</span>

<!-- Good -->
<a href="/resources/utm-governance/">UTM naming rules</a>

Series and pagination

For multi part guides, give each page a clear title and list the parts at the top. Prefer a single page when load and UX allow. If you must paginate, use crawlable links and a visible index.

<nav aria-label="Series">
  <ol>
    <li><a href="/resources/content-architecture/">Part 1: Architecture</a></li>
    <li><a href="/resources/internal-linking-topic-cluster-standard/" aria-current="page">Part 2: Internal links</a></li>
    <li><a href="/resources/structured-data-standard/">Part 3: Structured data</a></li>
  </ol>
</nav>

Orphan pages and audits

Orphans are pages with no internal links. They are hard to discover and often underperform. Use Search Console and a crawler to spot them.

• Search Console Links report lists internal links to each page
• Compare your XML sitemap against crawled pages
• Add at least one contextual link and one hub link

See the Search Console Performance and Links reports to monitor discovery.

Measurement and GA4 events

Track how internal links influence behavior and content paths. Use GA4 events for read-next clicks and table of contents interactions. Validate changes in Search Console with CTR and query growth by folder.

// Read-next links
document.querySelectorAll('a[data-read-next]').forEach(a => {
  a.addEventListener('click', () => {
    gtag('event','select_content',{
      content_type:'read_next',
      anchor_text:a.textContent.trim(),
      cluster:a.dataset.cluster || 'unknown',
      content_stage:a.dataset.stage || 'unknown'
    });
  });
});

// TOC links
document.querySelectorAll('a[data-toc]').forEach(a => {
  a.addEventListener('click', () => {
    gtag('event','toc_click',{ anchor_text:a.textContent.trim() });
  });
});

Templates and checklists

Read next block

<section aria-label="Read next" class="grid-3">
  <a class="card" href="/resources/utm-governance/" data-read-next data-stage="mofu" data-cluster="analytics">
    <h3>UTM governance</h3><p class="small">Keep naming clean across campaigns.</p>
  </a>
  <a class="card" href="/resources/ga4-guide-for-content-marketers/" data-read-next data-stage="mofu" data-cluster="analytics">
    <h3>GA4 guide for content</h3><p class="small">Events, conversions, and reports.</p>
  </a>
  <a class="card" href="/resources/content-dashboards-examples/" data-read-next data-stage="mofu" data-cluster="analytics">
    <h3>Content dashboards</h3><p class="small">Scorecards that show business impact.</p>
  </a>
</section>

Internal link QA checklist

• Every page links to a hub or glossary where relevant
• At least one contextual link appears in the first screenful
• Anchors are descriptive and not generic
• Links are real anchors with href attributes
• Breadcrumbs visible and marked up if hierarchical
• No dead or redirected internal links

Acceptance rubric

FAQ