Internal links are not navigation. They are instructions: what matters, what supports it, and how topics relate. On a young site, internal linking is often the fastest way to improve discovery + indexing priority.

If you’re debugging indexing first, start here:

TL;DR

Build clusters, not isolated posts: 1 pillar + 6–12 supporting pages with distinct intent.
Make the cluster visible with a hub page (topic hub / “start here” block).
Link both directions: pillar → supporting and supporting → hub/pillar.
Use anchors that encode intent (“Crawled – currently not indexed: fixes”), not “click here”.
Add a small Next steps block (3 links) to keep users (and crawlers) moving.
Validate with GSC: impressions rise across the cluster, not only one URL.

The model: pillar → hub → supporting → back-links

Use a simple architecture:

Pillar: the map (broad intent, long shelf-life)
Hub: the curated index of the cluster (e.g. /topics/seo)
Supporting pages: each page solves one intent
Back-links: supporting pages link back to the pillar (and to adjacent supporting pages when truly relevant)

This creates coverage + coherence: systems can interpret the set as a topic, not as random documents.

Start with the SEO hub:

Step 0: choose core URLs (so Google knows what to prioritize)

Pick:

1 pillar page (or the closest thing you have)
5–10 supporting pages you want indexed and ranking
3–5 strong internal sources (homepage, hub pages, top posts)

You will use those strong sources to “push” discovery and priority to the cluster.

Step 1: eliminate orphans (fastest indexing win)

An orphan page has no meaningful internal links pointing to it (sometimes only a sitemap link).

Checklist:

every new supporting post is linked from at least 2 strong pages
it is linked from one hub (topic / cluster index)
it links back to the pillar

If you’re stuck in “not indexed” statuses, internal links often help when the issue is priority/coherence:

Step 2: anchor text rules (so links mean something)

Bad internal linking creates noise.

Rules:

Name the intent: “technical SEO audit checklist”, not “learn more”
Be consistent: don’t link to the same page with 10 unrelated anchors
Avoid over-optimization: mix exact + partial + descriptive anchors naturally
Prefer contextual links over footer-only links for priority signals

Step 3: add “start here” + “next steps” blocks

Hub: “start here” block

On the hub, include:

1–2 sentences framing who it’s for
3–7 links in recommended order

Supporting posts: “next steps” block

At the bottom of each supporting post, keep it small (3 links):

Back to hub (/topics/seo)
Best next supporting post (adjacent intent)
Pillar (main guide)

Step 4: prevent crawl debt (internal linking can create junk)

Internal linking improves discovery, but it can also multiply low-value URLs. Watch for:

thin tag pages
pagination as crawl sinks
parameter URLs getting linked internally (?utm=...)

If you recently pivoted, clean up old URLs instead of linking to everything:

301 vs 410: GSC cleanup after a site pivot

Step 5: validate in GSC (don’t guess)

Internal linking should change priority first, then impressions.

In Google Search Console:

URL Inspection (for 5–10 core URLs): indexing allowed + consistent canonical
Pages report: core URLs should move from “Discovered/Crawled” to indexed
Performance: impressions should cluster around the topic (not random one-offs)

If you’re seeing impressions but no clicks, linking helps distribution, but you may need snippet/intent work too:

Why GSC shows impressions but no clicks

FAQ

How many internal links should a blog post have?

Enough to express relationships, not to “sculpt”. For most posts: 3–8 contextual links (plus navigation) is a good baseline.

Do internal links help indexing?

Yes. Internal links affect discovery and priority. Orphan and weakly linked pages are much more likely to stay “discovered/crawled but not indexed”.

What’s the biggest internal linking mistake?

Linking randomly or only in footers/sidebars. The system needs a clear hierarchy: pillar ↔ supporting, with hubs making the cluster visible.

How to build topic clusters with internal linking (2026): a practical blueprint that gets pages indexed

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