Improve SEO With Internal Links to Similar Products

While there is no question that external links (backlinks) to your Shopify store are necessary – and valuable – internal links are important for SEO as well – and are much easier to obtain because YOU create them!

Internal links improves the user experience (UX) of your website because they allow your customers to discover similar products that are available. It’s kind of like a sales associate in a brick-and-mortar store that tells you “we have scarves available over here that would go really well with this jacket”. You get the idea. And… when you present your visitors with links to even more products on your website, you are encouraging them to stay longer and click through to more products – which ultimately increases your chances of a sale. Cha Ching!

This article gives you a few tips for using internal links.

Internal Links to Similar Products

When you have similar products available in your store, you should add a link to those products within your product listing pages. If you have complimentary products in your store, you should also add a link to those products from other product listing pages (sort of like the sales associate example above). Think about this process as leading your customers through your store to discover more things they will love.

Using internal links – from blog to product listing page, or product listing page to collection page – you can lead your visitors on a journey that gives them more information about your products, improves the user experience, and boosts your SEO.

To Create an Internal Link:

1. Type the descriptive text to be used as the clickable link from your product listing page
   It is very important to use the exact keyword(s) you want the link to point to. For example, if you’re selling vintage lamps, the keywords should be “vintage lamps” (see screenshot below). You DON’T want the link text to say something like “click for more vintage lamps” or “see our other vintage lamps available in our store” – those last two examples use more words than the specific keywords you need. It’s important to focus on just the important keyword(s)!
2. Select that text (by dragging the mouse to highlight it)
   
3. Click the Insert Link tool on the toolbar (it looks like a chain link)
   
4. Enter the URL of a similar product in the Link To box
   
5. Keep the Open This Link In to The Same Window (no need to have your customers see the other product in a new window or new tab)
6. Enter text for the Link Title – this is what a customer will see when they hover over the link, and this text is also used by search engines to know what the link is for
   You will want to make sure that the descriptive text you enter here as Link Text includes the keywords of the item the link points to. This is good for both SEO and for user experience.
7. Click the Insert Link button
   The text you selected as the link appears in your product listing, similar to the text in the image below.
   

• If you have more than one similar item, rather than creating individual links to all those items, create an internal link to a search result within your store. By using the search result URL as the link URL, your customers will see all the similar products available.
• If you are using the blog function of your Shopify store, you can also use the steps here to link to products within your store from your blog page. This makes it quick and easy for your customers to click on the products you mention within your blog article.
• Have you written a blog article that includes a product from your store? Make sure to link to that article from within your product listing page. This makes it easy for customers to read even more information about your products, and helps to nurture even more sales. The opposite applies as well – if you have a blog article you’ve already written, include a link to it from the product listing page.
• Don’t forget links to other important pages within your website. For example, you could link to your Shipping Information or Return Policy page within a product listing page. The idea is to include links to help guide your customer from page to page within your website.
• I personally don’t recommend linking to your home page from within a product listing page. While many Etsy shop owners do this on Etsy, it really isn’t all that helpful for your Shopify website. The main reason for not linking to your home page on Shopify, is that you already have links to your home page on your website – in your breadcrumbs and in your website navigation. On Etsy, you’re trying to keep shoppers on YOUR Etsy shop, so internal linking there is okay. But when someone lands on your own website, you really don’t need to link them back to your home page. Also, doing this can be seen as “over linking”. The main thing you want to keep in mind when creating internal links is the user experience for your visitors! If a link improves the user experience for your visitors, great. But if it’s just something extra to click on, it’s best to leave it out.

If you have any questions, post them in a comment below and I am happy to help.