What is anchor text?<\/h2>\nAnchor text is the part of the link that is clickable and visible to users. It is placed between the opening <a href><\/strong> and closing anchor tag <\/a>. <\/strong>Here is an example of an anchor text:<\/p>\n
<a href=\"https:\/\/example.com\">This is an anchor text<\/strong><\/a><\/code><\/p>\n
Here is another example of anchor text in Google Search results.<\/p>\n
![\"Anchor](\"https:\/\/www.reliablesoft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/anchor-text-google-results.png\")
Anchor Text in Google Search Results<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nGoogle is using the pagetitle<\/em> value as the anchor text for their search snippets.<\/p>\n
What does the anchor text do?<\/strong><\/p>\n
The anchor text gives a strong indication to both search engines and users about the page you\u2019re linking to.<\/p>\n
A hyperlink that you add to your site can either point to other pages on your site (that\u2019s an internal link) or to pages on other websites (that\u2019s an external link).<\/p>\n
In both cases, by providing for a meaningful anchor text, you help search engine crawlers and users understand what the target page is all about.<\/p>\n
Here is another example of an anchor text used for an internal link. By looking at the value \u201con-page SEO\u201d, you know that if you click the link, you will read more about the topic.<\/p>\n
![\"Anchor](\"https:\/\/www.reliablesoft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/anchor-text-example.png\")
Anchor Text Example<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nDifferent Types of Anchor Text<\/h2>\nThere are different types of anchor text you can use when creating a hyperlink.<\/p>\n
If you are new to SEO, you first need to understand the terminology so that you can follow the guidelines outlined below.<\/p>\n
\n- Branded <\/strong>– using your brand name as anchor text, for example: Reliablesoft<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
- URL <\/strong>\u2013 using the permalink<\/a><\/strong> of a page without text, for example: https:\/\/www.reliablesoft.net\/seo-strategy\/<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
- Domain name<\/strong> \u2013 using your domain name as anchor texts, for example: reliablesoft.net<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
- Generic<\/strong> \u2013 used very often, for example: read more<\/u>, or click here<\/u><\/li>\n
- Exact match keywords<\/strong> \u2013 using keywords for the link, for example: \u201cYou can learn more about SEO Keywords<\/a><\/strong> and\u2026\u201d<\/li>\n
- Partial match<\/strong> \u2013 using keywords with additional text, for example: \u201cYou can download our SEO checklist<\/a><\/strong>.\u201d<\/li>\n
- Page Title <\/strong>\u2013 using the page title as is, for example: \u201cThe Ultimate DIY SEO Tutorial (Step by Step) For Beginners<\/a><\/strong>\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Best SEO Practices for Anchor text<\/h2>\nAlthough anchor texts have been around since the beginning of the Internet, still a lot of webmasters don\u2019t follow best practices when writing them.<\/p>\n
Writing optimized anchor text for both your internal and external links can help your SEO in a number of ways.<\/p>\n
\n- Optimized anchor text in internal links can help search engines understand the site structure<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
- Anchor text in incoming links can help you rank higher for specific search terms<\/a><\/strong>.<\/li>\n
- Good anchor text in external links helps users understand if this is a link they want to click.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Choose meaningful text<\/h3>\nTry to use meaningful anchor text in your links. A meaningful anchor text in this case, gives an idea of what to expect to find in terms of content, when clicking the link.<\/p>\n
When choosing an anchor text:<\/p>\n
\n- Avoid using generic words like \u2018click here\u2019, \u2018this\u2019, \u2018read this\u2019, \u2018read more\u2019 etc. These words don\u2019t give enough clue to search engines on what the linked page is about.<\/li>\n
- Avoid using text that is not related to the content of the linked page.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Avoid using the URL of a page as the anchor text<\/h3>\n
In many cases webmasters may use the URL of a page (also known as Naked URL) as the anchor text.<\/p>\n
Although it will not create any problems, it\u2019s not the best practice, so use it when really necessary. A better alternative is to use the page title<\/em> as the anchor text.<\/p>\n
Write short anchor text<\/h3>\nWrite short anchor text that is concise and without too many words. If it has a lot of words, it\u2019s more difficult for search engines to understand it.<\/p>\n
Example of a good anchor text:<\/p>\n
<a href=\"https:\/\/example.com\">What is anchor text<\/strong><\/a><\/code><\/p>\n
Example of a ‘bad’ anchor text:<\/p>\n
<a href=\"https:\/\/example.com\">Anchor text is defined as the link that is clickable<\/strong><\/a><\/code><\/p>\n
Format links differently from normal text<\/h3>\nLinks should be easy for users to spot. Best practices include making the link color different than the text color.<\/p>\n
See in this article how easy is to differentiate my links from the rest of the text.<\/p>\n
Anchor text and Google Penalties<\/h2>\nOne of the reasons that anchor text is important for SEO has to do with links. Here is a simple explanation of how these two are related.<\/p>\n
Incoming links are still one of the most critical search engine ranking factors<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n
The process of promoting your website to get more backlinks is called off-page SEO<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n
One of the factors that play a role on how valuable a link is, is the anchor text.<\/p>\n
Recommended Reading: What are backlinks<\/strong><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Let me give you an example to understand this better:<\/p>\n
Website A links to Website B as follows:<\/p>\n
<a href=https:\/\/www.websiteB.com\/courses >SEO Courses<\/a><\/code><\/p>\n
When search engine crawlers find this link, they understand two things:<\/p>\n
\n- That website A trusts website B, that\u2019s why it\u2019s referencing it by adding a link<\/li>\n
- That the particular page on website B is about SEO Courses<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
So far so good. Everything was done according to the guidelines (as explained above).<\/p>\n
The problems begin when:<\/p>\n
\n- Website A received a monetary compensation to add the link<\/li>\n
- The content on website A is not related to SEO courses or training<\/li>\n
- Website A constantly links out to other websites using optimized anchor text<\/li>\n
- Website A and Website B agreed to exchange links<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
When Google finds out that the link was not placed naturally it will impose a penalty on both websites or devalue and ignore the links.<\/p>\n
Recommended Reading: How do I know if Google Penalized my site<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Here is the exact quote from Google guidelines related to anchor text over optimization:<\/p>\n
![\"Anchor](\"https:\/\/www.reliablesoft.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/06\/optimized-anchor-text-google.png\")
Anchor Text Over Optimization Guidelines<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nIn the SEO World, the algorithm that particularly targeted optimized anchor text is known as Penguin<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n
How to avoid anchor text over optimization<\/h3>\nIf you\u2019re confused by now as to whether you should optimize your anchor text or not, don\u2019t worry you are not alone.<\/p>\n
Here is what you should do.<\/p>\n
When linking out, follow these three simple rules:<\/strong><\/p>\n
#1. Link out to websites that you trust. If you don\u2019t trust a website make the links nofollow<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n
When building incoming links for your website:<\/strong><\/p>\n
Recommended Reading: What is a natural link<\/strong><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Anchor Text best practices for Internal links<\/h2>\nWhen it comes to creating anchor text for internal links, it\u2019s a totally different story.<\/p>\n
You should follow all the guidelines explained above without worrying about over optimization.<\/p>\n
Google repeatedly mentioned that there is no anchor text over-optimization penalty for internal links.<\/p>\n
If you take a closer look at the article you\u2019re reading now, I have used different types of anchor text for the internal links. Most of them are exact match<\/em> and others are page title.<\/em><\/p>\n
What you should avoid is:<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n- Adding internal links for search engines only. The primary role of internal links is to help users find out more about a specific topic so add links when it makes sense.<\/li>\n
- You can use generic anchor text like \u2018read more\u2019, \u2018click here\u2019 but don\u2019t overdo it. Try to stick to the guidelines of making your links meaningful and concise.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Recommended Reading: Internal Linking Best Practices<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
<a href=\"https:\/\/example.com\">This is an anchor text<\/strong><\/a><\/code><\/p>\nHere is another example of anchor text in Google Search results.<\/p>\nAnchor Text in Google Search Results<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nGoogle is using the pagetitle<\/em> value as the anchor text for their search snippets.<\/p>\n
What does the anchor text do?<\/strong><\/p>\n
The anchor text gives a strong indication to both search engines and users about the page you\u2019re linking to.<\/p>\n
A hyperlink that you add to your site can either point to other pages on your site (that\u2019s an internal link) or to pages on other websites (that\u2019s an external link).<\/p>\n
In both cases, by providing for a meaningful anchor text, you help search engine crawlers and users understand what the target page is all about.<\/p>\n
Here is another example of an anchor text used for an internal link. By looking at the value \u201con-page SEO\u201d, you know that if you click the link, you will read more about the topic.<\/p>\n
Anchor Text Example<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nDifferent Types of Anchor Text<\/h2>\nThere are different types of anchor text you can use when creating a hyperlink.<\/p>\n
If you are new to SEO, you first need to understand the terminology so that you can follow the guidelines outlined below.<\/p>\n
\n- Branded <\/strong>– using your brand name as anchor text, for example: Reliablesoft<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
- URL <\/strong>\u2013 using the permalink<\/a><\/strong> of a page without text, for example: https:\/\/www.reliablesoft.net\/seo-strategy\/<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
- Domain name<\/strong> \u2013 using your domain name as anchor texts, for example: reliablesoft.net<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
- Generic<\/strong> \u2013 used very often, for example: read more<\/u>, or click here<\/u><\/li>\n
- Exact match keywords<\/strong> \u2013 using keywords for the link, for example: \u201cYou can learn more about SEO Keywords<\/a><\/strong> and\u2026\u201d<\/li>\n
- Partial match<\/strong> \u2013 using keywords with additional text, for example: \u201cYou can download our SEO checklist<\/a><\/strong>.\u201d<\/li>\n
- Page Title <\/strong>\u2013 using the page title as is, for example: \u201cThe Ultimate DIY SEO Tutorial (Step by Step) For Beginners<\/a><\/strong>\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Best SEO Practices for Anchor text<\/h2>\nAlthough anchor texts have been around since the beginning of the Internet, still a lot of webmasters don\u2019t follow best practices when writing them.<\/p>\n
Writing optimized anchor text for both your internal and external links can help your SEO in a number of ways.<\/p>\n
\n- Optimized anchor text in internal links can help search engines understand the site structure<\/a><\/strong><\/li>\n
- Anchor text in incoming links can help you rank higher for specific search terms<\/a><\/strong>.<\/li>\n
- Good anchor text in external links helps users understand if this is a link they want to click.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Choose meaningful text<\/h3>\nTry to use meaningful anchor text in your links. A meaningful anchor text in this case, gives an idea of what to expect to find in terms of content, when clicking the link.<\/p>\n
When choosing an anchor text:<\/p>\n
\n- Avoid using generic words like \u2018click here\u2019, \u2018this\u2019, \u2018read this\u2019, \u2018read more\u2019 etc. These words don\u2019t give enough clue to search engines on what the linked page is about.<\/li>\n
- Avoid using text that is not related to the content of the linked page.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Avoid using the URL of a page as the anchor text<\/h3>\n
In many cases webmasters may use the URL of a page (also known as Naked URL) as the anchor text.<\/p>\n
Although it will not create any problems, it\u2019s not the best practice, so use it when really necessary. A better alternative is to use the page title<\/em> as the anchor text.<\/p>\n
Write short anchor text<\/h3>\nWrite short anchor text that is concise and without too many words. If it has a lot of words, it\u2019s more difficult for search engines to understand it.<\/p>\n
Example of a good anchor text:<\/p>\n
<a href=\"https:\/\/example.com\">What is anchor text<\/strong><\/a><\/code><\/p>\n
Example of a ‘bad’ anchor text:<\/p>\n
<a href=\"https:\/\/example.com\">Anchor text is defined as the link that is clickable<\/strong><\/a><\/code><\/p>\n
Format links differently from normal text<\/h3>\nLinks should be easy for users to spot. Best practices include making the link color different than the text color.<\/p>\n
See in this article how easy is to differentiate my links from the rest of the text.<\/p>\n
Anchor text and Google Penalties<\/h2>\nOne of the reasons that anchor text is important for SEO has to do with links. Here is a simple explanation of how these two are related.<\/p>\n
Incoming links are still one of the most critical search engine ranking factors<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n
The process of promoting your website to get more backlinks is called off-page SEO<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n
One of the factors that play a role on how valuable a link is, is the anchor text.<\/p>\n
Recommended Reading: What are backlinks<\/strong><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Let me give you an example to understand this better:<\/p>\n
Website A links to Website B as follows:<\/p>\n
<a href=https:\/\/www.websiteB.com\/courses >SEO Courses<\/a><\/code><\/p>\n
When search engine crawlers find this link, they understand two things:<\/p>\n
\n- That website A trusts website B, that\u2019s why it\u2019s referencing it by adding a link<\/li>\n
- That the particular page on website B is about SEO Courses<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
So far so good. Everything was done according to the guidelines (as explained above).<\/p>\n
The problems begin when:<\/p>\n
\n- Website A received a monetary compensation to add the link<\/li>\n
- The content on website A is not related to SEO courses or training<\/li>\n
- Website A constantly links out to other websites using optimized anchor text<\/li>\n
- Website A and Website B agreed to exchange links<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
When Google finds out that the link was not placed naturally it will impose a penalty on both websites or devalue and ignore the links.<\/p>\n
Recommended Reading: How do I know if Google Penalized my site<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Here is the exact quote from Google guidelines related to anchor text over optimization:<\/p>\n
Anchor Text Over Optimization Guidelines<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nIn the SEO World, the algorithm that particularly targeted optimized anchor text is known as Penguin<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n
How to avoid anchor text over optimization<\/h3>\nIf you\u2019re confused by now as to whether you should optimize your anchor text or not, don\u2019t worry you are not alone.<\/p>\n
Here is what you should do.<\/p>\n
When linking out, follow these three simple rules:<\/strong><\/p>\n
#1. Link out to websites that you trust. If you don\u2019t trust a website make the links nofollow<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n
When building incoming links for your website:<\/strong><\/p>\n
Recommended Reading: What is a natural link<\/strong><\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Anchor Text best practices for Internal links<\/h2>\nWhen it comes to creating anchor text for internal links, it\u2019s a totally different story.<\/p>\n
You should follow all the guidelines explained above without worrying about over optimization.<\/p>\n
Google repeatedly mentioned that there is no anchor text over-optimization penalty for internal links.<\/p>\n
If you take a closer look at the article you\u2019re reading now, I have used different types of anchor text for the internal links. Most of them are exact match<\/em> and others are page title.<\/em><\/p>\n
What you should avoid is:<\/strong><\/p>\n
\n- Adding internal links for search engines only. The primary role of internal links is to help users find out more about a specific topic so add links when it makes sense.<\/li>\n
- You can use generic anchor text like \u2018read more\u2019, \u2018click here\u2019 but don\u2019t overdo it. Try to stick to the guidelines of making your links meaningful and concise.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Recommended Reading: Internal Linking Best Practices<\/a><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n