Free Internal Linking Template for SEO

Start with the pages that matter to your customers and your business. That could be a service page explaining an offer, a product category with a useful range or a guide that answers a question before someone buys.

For each destination, write down what it offers and when a reader would need it. A category link can help someone compare products; a detailed guide may be more useful when they still need to understand their options. The destination should fulfil the expectation set by the source passage.

Prioritise recommendations with a clear purpose and a destination that is ready for visitors. If the target page has missing information, an outdated offer or a technical problem, record that dependency before assigning the link update. An internal linking action plan should make the next step clearer, not simply make every page link to the same commercial URL.

Read the articles, service explanations and buying guides that already discuss the destination's subject. Start with the site's search, content inventory or a search limited to your domain, then open each candidate and check the actual passage. Search results are a starting point, not a complete list of your pages.

Look at navigation, breadcrumbs and related-content modules as well as body copy. If you have a crawl export, use it to investigate pages with few incoming links and to see where existing links originate. Confirm the crawl covered the relevant area before treating a missing link or page as a site-wide finding.

Record the source URL, relevant heading and current text as you review. If a useful link is already present, check whether it needs improvement rather than adding a duplicate. A navigation change that repeats across a template should be scoped separately from an edit to one article.

Anchor text is the wording a visitor clicks. Make it descriptive enough to explain the destination, while keeping the sentence easy to read. Avoid squeezing keyword variations into a passage that would not otherwise discuss the topic.

Write the whole revised sentence, not just the phrase to link. A short explanation may be needed before the recommendation makes sense. Read the paragraph aloud and check that the linked words set the right expectation without relying on nearby promotional copy.

For example, a bedding-care article can point readers to a relevant range when it discusses replacing worn bedding. The completed recommendation below uses the words “linen bedding” within a sentence about that next step. It does not insert a shopping link into unrelated washing instructions.

Each recommendation should be specific enough for someone else to apply without reconstructing your research. Include the source and target URLs, current passage, revised passage, linked words and exact position. Explain the benefit to the reader and identify anything that must be resolved first.

Give editorial review and implementation separate statuses. A writer approving the sentence does not mean the link has been published. Assign the relevant owner, record requested revisions and keep the final agreed copy alongside the original recommendation.

Check the source page again before making the change, especially when several people edit the website. If the paragraph has moved or the content has changed, update the recommendation before proceeding. For a shared module, name the affected template and agree a sample of pages to test.

Open the live source page on desktop and mobile. Find the agreed passage, follow the link and confirm that the intended destination loads. Check that the text is readable, the link is usable with a keyboard and the change has not disrupted the paragraph or nearby controls.

Inspect the rendered link when a CMS component or script creates it. A normal anchor element with an href gives crawlers a discoverable destination; a control that only changes the page after a scripted click may not. Check for an old URL or an unintended redirect as well as a visibly broken link.

Record the publication date, the person who checked the change and the outcome. Recheck links when pages move or offers change. A correctly published link completes the implementation check; any later effect on search traffic needs its own review and should not be assumed from publication alone.