- Tom Harish
- May 23, 2024
- 1:55 pm
What is an Anchor Link? Why it is important? How does it help Google Search? What more do you need to know about it for SEO?
Table of Contents
What is Anchor Link?
Anchor links are helpful in web pages where the length of articles is considerably high. It is a way to enhance the user experience and it is also a fundamental aspect of web development. It reduces the hassle of excessive scrolling, scrolling aimlessly and fatigue in reading. In this article we will understand more about anchor links.
Technically what are Anchor Links?
As we have understood that anchor links act as a gateway to the same web page content. These anchor links are elements of HTML. With the usage of these elements a user can jump to a specific part of the content or a different content entirely. This enhances the navigation of the article.
What is Anchor text in Google?
Anchor text helps a lot when dealing with Google Search. With the help of anchor texts you can actually increase the rate of appearance of your web page in the google search results. This happens by using multiple anchor texts and associating them with relevant content. Suppose if you highlight “cute cats” and then link it with a cat web page, google will think that the particular phrase “cute cats” mean that the person wants to go to a cat page and therefore next time if a person searches “cat” on google search then your web page related to cats is most likely to be shown.
How do anchor links work?
The working of anchor links depends on two things, namely, anchor and link. The anchor is the text which when clicked transfers the user to that desired section. The link is the address to the destination section in which the user is trying to go. When we add an anchor link to our web page, the anchor text gets highlighted which when clicked leads to the desired section.
How are anchor links helpful for us?
Improved Navigation
Imagine a long content without being able to navigate. It is very hard to find out where and what exactly we are looking for. Even if there is a “Table of Content” present, we cannot exactly tell how long we have to scroll in order to reach that section. Earlier web pages were used to be made in this manner only.
But after the implementation of anchor links, navigation has been made easier within the web page since it allows the users to quickly jump to the content they have been looking for. It turns off the need for excessive scrolling, wastage of time and effort and fatigue in reading.
It is highly recommended that contents with multiple pages or with extensive material apply anchor links and make their content better and efficient.
Content Organization
Who doesn’t love an organized presentation? Whether it is a room, a desk or your web page. Therefore, it is very important to structure your data, organize it and make it presentable for the user. When you organize your content, your article becomes more presentable to the user and hence enhances the user experience. It enhances the readability of the content and makes sure that the user gets the most out of it.
Accessibility of the Content
When the data is unstructured, the user tends to face the fatigue of reading the entire content and it reduces the accessibility to the entire content.
For instance, consider that someone is looking to solve their problem, say X and your content has the solution to the problems A, B & X. If your content is not organized, the user might have to go through searching the solution of X by reading firstly A, then B and then X. Every user is not this patient which might lead to them leaving the website and going to some other. This affects the credibility of the content, and even though our content had the solution for X, we still lost a user. On the other hand, if we had the solution organized, The user just had to click on the required problem and the solution would be in front of them within a few moments. Structured data answers the user promptly.
Therefore, it is very important to make sure that your content is well organized and the usage of anchor links is done properly.
Accessibility of the Content
When the data is unstructured, the user tends to face the fatigue of reading the entire content and it reduces the accessibility to the entire content.
For instance, consider that someone is looking to solve their problem, say X and your content has the solution to the problems A, B & X. If your content is not organized, the user might have to go through searching the solution of X by reading firstly A, then B and then X. Every user is not this patient which might lead to them leaving the website and going to some other. This affects the credibility of the content, and even though our content had the solution for X, we still lost a user. On the other hand, if we had the solution organized, The user just had to click on the required problem and the solution would be in front of them within a few moments. Structured data answers the user promptly.
Therefore, it is very important to make sure that your content is well organized and the usage of anchor links is done properly.
Other small advantages
Other than the two major advantages, anchor links also offer a beautiful aesthetic to the web page and provide a clean, minimal look to the content. The scrolling needed to do reduces and therefore it provides a good impact to the user. Every article is an opportunity to develop trust in a person. If a person is happy, they might look up your website again for other contents.
Is there any place where Anchor links shouldn’t be used?
Usually it is always advised to use anchor links, but at times where the content is very small (one or two pages long), you may not use an anchor link.
Visibility of other contents with anchor link
Anchor links can be used in your main content and other contents of the same website as well. Anchor lines act as a gateway to all the other contents of your website and this helps you to increase your reach and enhances the visibility of other contents as well.
Anchor links and Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Did you know that anchor links affect search engine optimization? When we use An anchor link in our content we are increasing its visibility to the user and not only this, we are also increasing the visibility of other contents to the user as well. Anchor links are applied by using internal links within a website. This increases the link equity throughout the website and it increases the visibility of the key content.
For example if you consider the phrase “how to make a delicious food with tomato and rice” and then link “tomato and rice” to a relevant web page, Google will dedicate that web page to the highlighted keywords and therefore the next time if someone searches for those keywords then the highlighted web page is most likely to be shown.
Types of Anchor Text in SEO
-
- Exact Match: This is a type of anchor text which matches exactly as the linked web page keyword. For example – if the target web page is optimized for “graphic designing” then the anchor text is also “graphic designing”.
- Partial Match: this is the type of anchor text which has multiple keywords or phrases. For example – if the target website has keywords graphic designing then the anchor text can be “top graphic designing options”.
- Branded: If the anchor text uses the name of a brand then it is a branded anchor text. For example an anchor text “Brand A” leading to Brand A’s home page.
- Naked URL: If the anchor text is the url itself, it is a naked url anchor text. For example – “www.brand-a.com” leading to Brand-A’s home page
- Generic: The anchor text which uses phrases like “click here”, or “read more”, or “learn more”. These are commonly used anchor texts.
- Image Anchor: When an image is used as a link then it becomes an image anchor.
- Long-tail: The anchor text which is made of longer text are long tail anchor texts.
Write an SEO-friendly anchor text with these simple tips:
- Description is the key. The Anchor Text should have a clear description about the linked web page.
- Use keywords. In order to be SEO friendly you should use relevant keywords which can represent your linked page’s content.
- Always be natural. People hate gimmicky stuff. The more natural you present yourself while being in context with your surrounding content, the more people will find your content to be genuine.
- Always avoid generic and repetitive phrases like “click here” or “read more”. Use a variation of keywords.
- Stay concise and relevant. When you stay concise and use shorter anchor text, your anchor link will be more user friendly.
- Strategize your SEO and identify the ways in which you can link the keywords with your SEO strategy. Suppose if you are trying to attract a gen-Z audience through your content, some of your keywords can be vibe, bro, top-g, etc.
- Even the links of your own website (Internal Links) and from other websites (External Links) also affects your visibility. Use them to your advantage.
In short, you can always for this formula:
Relevance + Diversity + Naturalness = Effective Anchor Text
Cautions while using anchor links
While implying the Anchor link, the developer must be clear about the target link. The target link should be of relevance to the current section where the anchor text is written and thereafter the anchor link is applied. For example, If we are talking about “oranges”, an anchor link to “how to peel oranges” would be more suitable. However, if you imply an anchor link to some other irrelevant stuff in this content, it will become a joke rather than conveying any information. Therefore, relevance is the most important thing in anchor links.
Double check the links which are applied to the anchor link. Many times it has been found that the required anchor links are not leading to their correct destination and some anchor links are not even opening at all. These are big blunders and instantly destroy the credibility of the website. They create an ignorant reputation of the website.
While implementing anchor links, it is on the choice of the developer and the owner of the website if they want to imply smooth scrolling or not. Smooth scrolling is an aesthetic extension to the overall website which gives us a scrolling look whenever the person touches the anchor link. Basically, whenever you touch the anchor link, the website automatically scrolls till you reach that particular content. Technically it is a bit intensive and therefore some low end mobile device users may not like this feature, but it is completely optional.
Efficient ways of using an Anchor Link
It is important to understand what are the efficient ways of using an anchor link because it will be a gateway to an entire section or a complete content. It cannot be taken for granted.
- Be subtle, but not generic. Use subtle phrases or keywords as anchor text that instantly link to the required section or the content.
For instance, if you want to link a content Which informs on how to correctly peel an orange you can use anchor texts like, “properly peel the orange”. Do not use generic phrases like “Click Here” or “Read More”. Technically it is not wrong to use generic phrases, but it destroys the uniqueness of the content and therefore it should be avoided. Make it a thumb rule.
- Be consistent, an organization can only come with consistency. If anchor links are placed inconsistently, It will look untidy and can also give an idea of spamming or bloatware (unnecessary advertisement). It should be user friendly and the user should be able to predict where an anchor link can be and how they are functioning.
- Ensure proper accessibility. It is very important that the anchor links which you provide or you are trying to highlight are actually working. No one wants a non-working device. Similarly, no one wants a non-working anchor link.
- Run tests across different devices and browsers. Make sure it is accessible through all or at least the popular browsers and devices. Check the resolution, the boundaries of the websites. Make sure that the website is displayed properly on the screen and no part is getting cut off.
- Optimize primarily for mobile and tablet devices since most of the people use these for their day-to-day activities. Make sure that your anchor link is responsive to these.
- You can also increase the aesthetic look of the content by involving Smooth Scrolling and Visual Feedback. Smooth scrolling is a feature in which when a person touches the anchor link, the website scrolls the content for you until the desired section is reached. Visual feedback is the Indication that the user gets when they touch the anchor link. These visual feedbacks can include:
- Highlighting the linked text (anchor text) whenever the link is clicked.
- Animate the scroll transition whenever a person scrolls down the content to a new section.
- Optimization is the final blow. Optimize your web page as much as possible. Make sure that the page load times or performance is not getting affected adversely. The faster the loading is, the better will be the user experience.
- Monitor your results. Make sure that you analyze which anchor link is getting clicked the most by the users. Keep optimizing and enhancing your web page as per needed.
Complete guide to basic coding of Anchor links
Anchor Text in HTML
Here is a basic format of writing and anchor text in html programming language:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang=”en”>
<head>
<meta charset=”UTF-8″>
<meta name=”viewport” content=”width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0″>
<title>Anchor Tag Example</title>
</head>
<body>
<!– Anchor tag with anchor text –>
<a href=”https://www.example.com” target=”_blank”>Visit Example Website</a>
</body>
</html>
Templates of Anchor Text in SEO with examples
Following are some of the basic templates of every anchor text type in SEO. You can also take help of the examples. :
i. Exact Match:
<!– Exact match anchor tag –>
<a href=“https://www.example.com/buy-shoes” target=“_blank”>buy shoes</a>
ii. Partial Match:
<!– Partial match anchor tag example –>
<p>Learn more about our <a href=“https://www.example.com/services” target=“_blank”>digital marketing services</a> to improve your online presence.</p>
iii. Branded:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang=”en”>
<head>
<meta charset=”UTF-8″>
<meta name=”viewport” content=”width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0″>
<title>Branded Anchor Tag Example</title>
<style>
.branded-link {
color: #3498db; /* Brand color */
text-decoration: none;
font-weight: bold;
}
.branded-link:hover {
color: #2980b9; /* Darker brand color for hover */
text-decoration: underline;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<!– Branded anchor tag –>
<a href=”https://www.example.com” class=”branded-link” target=”_blank”>Visit Example’s Official Site</a>
</body>
</html>
iii. Naked URL:
<!– Naked URL Anchor Tag –> <a href=“https://www.example.com” target=“_blank”>https://www.example.com</a>
iv. Generic:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang=”en”>
<head>
<meta charset=”UTF-8″>
<meta name=”viewport” content=”width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0″>
<title>Generic Anchor Tag Example</title>
</head>
<body>
<!– Generic anchor tag –>
<a href=”URL_HERE” target=”_blank”>LINK_TEXT_HERE</a>
</body>
</html>
v. Image:
<!– Anchor tag with an image –>
<a href=”https://www.example.com” target=”_blank”>
<img src=”https://www.example.com/image.jpg” alt=”Example Image” style=”width:200px;height:100px;”>
</a>
vi. Long-tail:
<!– Long-tail anchor tag with descriptive anchor text –>
<a href=”https://www.example.com/best-practices-for-seo-optimization” target=”_blank”>
Learn the Best Practices for SEO Optimization to Improve Your Website’s Search Engine Ranking
</a>
Anchor Text vs Hyperlink
Anchor text and hyperlink are very different from each other.
Anchor text is a part of the hyperlink. It is the part of the content which is visible to the person reading the web page. A person clicks on the anchor text in order to land to the other directed web page.
Hyperlink on the other hand is a part of the code which is used to link between the targeted website and the current web page. it embeds the anchor text within itself. The programmer programs a hyperlink into the entire html code and therefore the anchor text is visible on the web page which when clicked it takes the user to the targeted website.
With the help of a code we can understand that what is an anchor text and what is a hyperlink:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang=”en”>
<head>
<meta charset=”UTF-8″>
<meta name=”viewport” content=”width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0″>
<title>Anchor Tag Example</title>
</head>
<body>
<p>With the help of a code, we can understand what is an anchor text and what is a hyperlink:</p>
<!– Anchor tag with anchor text and hyperlink –>
<a href=”https://www.example.com” target=”_blank”>This is an anchor text linking to Example Website</a>
</body>
</html>
In brief
In this article we learnt about all the things that are needed for an anchor link. We understood the way anchor links work, how to manage them efficiently, what are the things that we should focus on while adding a hyperlink. With all the basic understanding and the programming knowledge from our article, a good anchor link can be applied to the required content. Also, don’t forget that SEO plays a key role along with the Anchor Link.
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