SEO or search engine optimization can help a business or website attract the kind of attention that produces results. The basic goal of SEO is to achieve a higher ranking in search engines. Anchor text links, if used correctly, can give more meaning and relevance to your content.

Links Should Reflect Content

Anchor text links are most effective when they reflect the content of your site. Text links should, ideally, take the visitor to highly related pages. This means that when someone is searching for something related to a topic on your website, your link will come up in the search results.

For example, if you have a travel website and you are talking about ski vacations the words “ski vacations” should be made into an anchor text link. When people search for ski vacations, your link will come up in the SERP or search engine results page.

The First Link is Important

When several links lead to a page having the same URL, the first link is the one that is usually considered when ranking the site among search engines. Therefore, the first link is very important.

Vary Your Anchor Text Links

Recent rule changes by Google and other leading search engines make it necessary to make your anchor text links different. In other words, you can’t cram the same link “anchored” to the same word or phrase throughout your site. The same link, however, can be “anchored” to different words or phrases.

You want to insert the anchor text link so that it flows naturally with the rest of your text. Obvious anchor text link stuffing will raise flags. About half of your anchor texts should contain your target text.

Natural Linking

Visitors to a website appreciate backlinks because they save time and add to the natural flow of the text. A relevant backlink allows a reader to make a detour via a link while reading your content.

You can’t control the anchor text backlinks a reader will use, but you can “direct” them towards certain ones you want them to use by using naturally flowing texts with links that peak a reader’s interest. Consider making some of your headlines links.

Related Posts: 5 SEO Tips for Small Business Owners and Entrepreneurs

Keep It Short, Descriptive

Anchor text links really should be no more than 24-30 characters in length. In order to encourage people to click the link, it has to say something that catches the readers attention. A reader is not usually going to simply click on text because it contains an active link. For example, sometimes you have an idea or concept that you can’t provide details on without breaking the natural flow of the text. This is an ideal place for an anchor text link.

Correctly using anchor text links helps you use information and related technology to your advantage. The same concept translates to information technology or IT. Exploring this fascinating field can start with taking some classes and eventually lead to pursing a masters in IT. By definition, IT encompasses how we process and present the information that makes up our world through existing technology. Part of that technology involves directing people to the information you want to present to them, bringing us back to anchor text links.

Do you use anchor text links to create keyword targeted traffic?

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