Case Study 1: Uproer.com
Traffic Growth:
The blog doesn't explicitly mention the exact traffic growth percentage, but it states a "33% Y/Y organic traffic growth" for the client, IFTTT.
Strategies:
- HTML Sitemap: Created a central page linking to all website pages, leading to a 3x increase in indexed pages within two weeks.
- Server-Side Rendering: Implemented an SSR solution to make JavaScript-rendered internal links crawlable by search engines.
- Redesign Key Pages: Introduced sub-navigation systems in key pages to improve internal linking between parent and child pages.
- Content Plan for Internal Linking: Regularly create content that strategically includes links to high-SEO-potential pages.
Important Explanations:
- Internal linking issues are common: Websites, especially complex ones like SaaS platforms, can suffer from poor internal linking due to factors like JavaScript frameworks or missing guidance.
- Fixing internal linking: Depending on the website's size and complexity, fixing internal linking issues might involve web development projects or resource-intensive manual work.
- Quantify the value: Demonstrate the potential traffic and conversion gains from improved internal linking to get buy-in for implementing the necessary changes.
Case study 2: Samunderwood.co
Traffic Growth:?
While the exact percentage isn't mentioned, the blog states "averaging 104% up" for Jewelry Stores. Specific cases grew 150% for SaaS construction sites and 188% YoY for Casino affiliate sites.
Key Strategies:
- Internal Linking: Fixing internal linking issues was crucial. This included restructuring content with topic clusters, improving breadcrumbs and navigation, and strategically adding internal links between relevant pages.
- Technical SEO: Addressing common technical issues like duplicate content, image indexing, and redirects helped search engines crawl and understand the site better.
- Content: Creating high-quality, topic-focused content targeting relevant keywords significantly boosted ranking and traffic. This included rewriting existing content and hiring topic experts for writing.
Important Explanations:
- Internal linking is crucial: Proper internal linking helps search engines understand your site structure and distribute ranking power to relevant pages. Shopify websites often need manual internal linking due to limitations in the platform.
- Disavowing may not be necessary: Even disavowing half the client's backlinks (potentially spammy) had no negative impact on traffic, suggesting Google might ignore them anyway.
- Site structure matters: Google may not fully understand site structure just from breadcrumbs. Grouping related content in directories and using 301 redirects to consolidate parent pages can significantly improve ranking and crawling.
Case Study 3: Zyppy.com
The blog talks about how a website boosted its traffic by 175% in just a few months by using simple tweaks to its site architecture. Here are the key takeaways:
Traffic growth:?
They grew their traffic by an 175% thanks to improved site architecture.
Strategies used:
- Satisfy User Intent: Focus on what users are looking for and make it easy for them to find it. Use clear links, relevant anchor text, and well-organized content.
- Flatten Your Architecture: Don't make users click too often to find important pages. Aim for a "3-click rule" where key pages are within 3 clicks of the homepage.
- Leverage Hub Pages: Create central pages that link to related sub-topics and child pages. This helps users navigate, and search engines understand your content.
- Create Content Silos: Group related content together into "silos" with a clear hierarchy. This helps users find what they're looking for and boosts SEO.
- Cross-Link Contextually: Link-related pages within and across silos to keep users engaged and help search engines understand your content structure.
- Link High Authority to Destination Pages: Send link juice from popular pages to important but under-linked pages to boost their ranking and traffic.
Important points:
- Internal linking isn't just about adding links, it's about strategically organizing your content to make it easy for users and search engines to find what they need.
- Testing and measuring are crucial. Track your results and adjust your approach as needed.
Case Study 4: SeerInteractive.com
Traffic Growth:
- Case 1 (product pages): +23% page views, +58% lower bounce rate
- Case 2 (competitive keywords): +2.5 average ranking positions
Strategies:
- Hypothesis 1: Added internal links from various pages (FAQs, blogs) to product pages.
- Hypothesis 2: Added internal links with the same anchor text to target pages.
- Used Power BI/Tableau tool to automate finding internal linking opportunities at scale.
Important Explanations:
- Internal linking can be a powerful SEO and conversion rate optimization strategy.
- Strategic internal linking with relevant anchor text improves rankings and conversions.
- Investing in Power BI saves time and scales up effective internal linking.
- Bonus: The blog emphasizes purposeful internal linking and avoiding random linking.
Bonus Case Study: Authority Hacker
Summary of the article "Internal Linking For SEO: The Complete Guide"
This article talks about internal linking and its impact on SEO. Here are the key takeaways:
Importance of Internal Linking:
- Internal links play a significant role in Google's ranking algorithm. They help Google understand your website structure index pages and distribute authority among your content.
- While external backlinks are crucial, internal links contribute to user experience and conversion, ultimately impacting your SEO success.
Internal Linking Strategies:
- Optimize anchor texts: Use relevant keywords in your anchor texts to signal the linked page's content to Google and users.
- Silo your content: Group related pages under category folders with category pages linking to individual articles. This creates a clear hierarchy and improves navigation.
- Link strategically: Prioritize linking from pages with high external authority to low-ranking pages with high potential. This "juice flow" boosts rankings.
- Fix broken links: 404 errors waste link equity. Redirect these links to relevant existing pages to preserve their value.
- Optimize link quantity: Maintain a balance. While more internal links correlate with higher rankings, excessive linking can dilute authority.
Additional Tips:?
- Keep your top pages close to the homepage for maximum authority transfer.
- Use nofollow tags strategically for external links with limited value.
- Remember, user experience is key. Don't overstuff content with irrelevant links.
