Internal Linking Strategy Template: Cluster Mapping, Anchor Text, and Orphan Pages

Internal linking is the most underused, highest-leverage SEO tactic available to content teams. It's free, fully in your control, and has a direct impact on how search engines understand your site's structure and authority distribution. Yet most content teams treat it as an afterthought — adding a few links at the end of a post and calling it done.

A systematic internal linking strategy does three things: it helps search engines discover and understand your content hierarchy, it passes link equity from high-authority pages to pages that need a rankings boost, and it guides readers to the next logical step in their journey with your content (which increases pages-per-session and conversion).

This template gives you the complete system: the cluster map, anchor text framework, orphan page audit, and a repeatable process for maintaining it.

---

Why Internal Linking Works (The Mechanics)

When Google crawls your site, it follows links to discover and index pages. Pages with more internal links pointing to them get crawled more frequently and signal higher importance. Google uses the anchor text of those links as context for what the linked page is about.

Beyond crawling, internal links distribute "link equity" (the ranking power passed from one page to another). A high-authority page — your homepage, a widely-cited resource, a pillar piece with hundreds of backlinks — can pass authority to deeper pages in your site through strategic internal links.

For content teams, this means:

• New content gets discovered faster when linked from established pages
• Underperforming but high-quality content can be revived by adding internal links from strong pages
• Topic clusters signal clear topical authority to search engines

---

The Topic Cluster Model

The topic cluster model, popularized by HubSpot, is the foundational structure for internal linking strategy. It organizes content into:

Pillar Pages: Comprehensive, authoritative pages covering a broad topic in depth (2,000–4,000 words). These are your "hub" pages.

Cluster Content: Deeper, more specific articles covering subtopics of the pillar (800–2,000 words each). These link back to the pillar and to each other where relevant.

Internal Links: Every cluster piece links to the pillar page with relevant anchor text. The pillar page links to each cluster piece. Cluster pieces may link to related cluster pieces.

Example Cluster Map

Pillar: "The Complete Guide to Content Marketing Strategy" URL: /blog/content-marketing-strategy

Cluster pieces:

• "How to Build a Content Calendar" → links back to pillar
• "Content Marketing KPIs and Metrics" → links back to pillar
• "B2B Content Marketing Tactics" → links back to pillar
• "How to Write a Content Brief" → links back to pillar
• "Content Distribution Strategy" → links back to pillar
• "Content Marketing Tools" → links back to pillar

The pillar page links outward to each cluster piece. Each cluster piece links to the pillar and optionally to related cluster pieces.

---

The Internal Linking Strategy Template

Step 1: Build Your Cluster Map

Create a spreadsheet with these columns for each content cluster:

Pillar Page	Pillar URL	Cluster Post Title	Cluster URL	Target Keyword	Links TO Pillar?	Pillar Links TO This?
[Pillar Title]	/blog/[slug]	[Cluster Title]	/blog/[slug]	[keyword]	✓ / ✗	✓ / ✗

Action: Audit your existing content. For every post, identify:

• What is the closest pillar topic this belongs to?
• Does it currently link to the pillar?
• Does the pillar currently link to it?

Any "✗" is an action item.

---

Step 2: Identify Link Opportunity Priority

Not all internal link gaps are equal. Prioritize using this matrix:

Tier 1 — Fix Immediately:

• High-value pages (high organic traffic or conversion rate) that are NOT being linked to from topically relevant content
• Pillar pages that have fewer than 15 internal links pointing to them
• New content (published in the last 30 days) with fewer than 5 internal links from established pages

Tier 2 — Fix This Quarter:

• Cluster content that links to the pillar but doesn't link to related cluster content
• Evergreen pages that were published more than 6 months ago and have fewer than 3 internal links

Tier 3 — Ongoing Maintenance:

• New content linking back to existing content as standard practice
• Monthly audit to find and fix newly created orphan pages

---

Step 3: Anchor Text Framework

Anchor text is the visible, clickable text of a link. For internal links, it's a meaningful SEO signal — it tells Google what the linked page is about. Poor anchor text ("click here," "read more," "this post") wastes the signal.

The internal anchor text rules:

Use descriptive, keyword-rich anchors:

• ✓ "content marketing strategy for B2B SaaS"
• ✓ "how to write a content brief"
• ✓ "internal linking best practices"
• ✗ "click here to learn more"
• ✗ "this article"
• ✗ "read more"

Vary your anchors naturally: You don't need to use the exact target keyword every time. Variations are fine and more natural:

• Target keyword: "content calendar template"
• Variations: "editorial calendar template," "content planning template," "how to build a content calendar"

Match the anchor to the target page's focus: The anchor text should describe what's on the page you're linking to, not what the surrounding paragraph is about.

Avoid over-optimization: If 90% of your internal links to a page use the exact same anchor text, it can look manipulative. Aim for 40–60% with the primary keyword variation, 40–60% with variations.

---

Step 4: The Orphan Page Audit

An orphan page is a page on your site with zero (or very few) internal links pointing to it. Orphan pages are crawled less frequently, rank worse, and are essentially invisible from a user navigation standpoint.

How to find orphan pages:

Option A: Screaming Frog

1. Crawl your site with Screaming Frog
2. Export all URLs
3. Filter by "Inlinks" column — any page with 0–2 inlinks is an orphan candidate
4. Export and prioritize by page type (landing pages and pillar content first)

Option B: Ahrefs Site Audit

1. Run a site audit
2. Navigate to Internal Pages > Issues
3. Look for "Orphan page" or "Low number of inlinks" issues

Option C: Google Search Console + manual audit

1. Export your top pages by organic traffic in GSC
2. For each of your high-traffic pages, manually check how many internal links it has using Ahrefs' "Inbound internal links" metric
3. Pages with high traffic but few internal links are especially worth expanding

The fix: For each orphan page, identify 3–5 topically relevant existing pages and add a link to the orphan from each. Be natural — link within the body text, not just in footers or sidebars.

---

Step 5: The Content Brief Internal Linking Section

Every content brief should include an "Internal Linking" section that specifies:

Internal Linking Requirements

Links FROM this post (must include):

1. [Pillar page title] at [URL] — anchor: "[target anchor text]"
2. [Related cluster post] at [URL] — anchor: "[target anchor text]"
3. [Product feature page] at [URL] — anchor: "[target anchor text]"

Links TO this post (pages to update after publishing):

1. [High-authority post] at [URL] — add anchor: "[anchor text pointing to this post]"
2. [Pillar page] at [URL] — add link to this new post in the relevant section

This makes internal linking a pre-publication standard, not an afterthought.

---

### Step 6: The Monthly Internal Linking Audit

Schedule a monthly 30-minute audit with this checklist:

**New content audit:**
- [ ] All posts published this month link to their pillar page
- [ ] All posts published this month have been linked from 3+ established pages
- [ ] Content briefs for next month include internal linking requirements

**Existing content audit:**
- [ ] Run Screaming Frog crawl, export inlinks data
- [ ] Flag any page with fewer than 3 inlinks — add to fix queue
- [ ] Identify top 10 pages by traffic — verify each has 10+ internal links

**Anchor text review:**
- [ ] For your top 3 target pages, what are the top anchor texts used to link to them? Are they keyword-rich and varied?

---

Advanced Internal Linking Tactics

The "Power Page" Strategy

Identify your highest-authority page — typically your homepage, your most-linked blog post, or a popular resource — and use it to pass authority to pages you want to rank better. Add 2–3 contextual links from this page to your target pages with optimized anchor text.

The "Content Hub" Architecture

Beyond simple clusters, build hub pages that aggregate and link to all related content. These aren't just pillar pages — they're curated resource hubs that create a clear topical neighborhood for search engines. Example: a "Content Marketing Resources" hub that links to every template, guide, and case study you've published on the topic.

The Reverse Silo

For technical SEO, a reverse silo deliberately concentrates inbound links from high-authority pages onto a small number of target pages, creating concentrated ranking potential. Identify your 3–5 most commercially important pages and make sure they're receiving internal links from your strongest content.

---

Further Reading

• content clustering and pillar pages for building authority
• how to build topical authority without a content team
• SEO for startups on a lean budget
• Averi's Strategy Map to visualize topic clusters and internal linking opportunities

Frequently Asked Questions

How many internal links should each page have? There's no hard limit. Naturally, a 2,000-word pillar post might have 10–15 outbound internal links across the content. A short 500-word post might have 3–5. The rule is: link when it genuinely helps the reader, use descriptive anchor text, and make sure important pages are being linked to frequently enough that Google understands their significance.

Does internal linking actually help rankings? Yes, consistently. A well-documented case: HubSpot found that updating existing posts with internal links to new content accelerated new post indexing and ranking by weeks. Multiple SEO case studies have shown pages recovering from ranking drops after internal link profiles were strengthened. It's not a silver bullet, but it's one of the most reliable controllable levers you have.

What's the difference between internal linking for SEO and for UX? For UX, you're linking to content a reader would genuinely want to see next — based on reading intent and natural progression. For SEO, you're also considering authority flow and anchor text. In practice, both objectives usually align. The best internal links are ones that readers actually click because they're relevant — and those same links pass strong SEO signals.

Should I link to my homepage from every page? Most sites do this via navigation (header logo link). You don't need to add additional links to the homepage in body content — it already has the strongest internal link profile of any page. Focus internal linking on deep content pages that need the equity.

How do I handle internal linking in a CMS like WordPress? Most CMS platforms don't auto-suggest internal links. Tools like Link Whisper (WordPress plugin) scan your content and suggest relevant internal link opportunities based on keyword matching. Alternatively, Ahrefs and Semrush both have link opportunity reports in their site audit tools. At minimum, make internal linking a part of every writer's pre-publication checklist.

---

Averi builds internal linking awareness into your content workflow — so every piece publishes with the right structure from day one. Try Averi free.