Internal Link Optimization Workflow

On the map, colour is PageValue and fade is connection:

• Ghost nodes, faded: pages the hovered node neither links to nor is linked from
• Blue nodes: pages with lower PageValue
• Red nodes: pages with higher PageValue

Hover any node and its inbound and outbound links draw in, so which pages are connected and which are not is read straight off the map.

Nodes are placed by relevance to each other and the other measurements the crawl takes, so related pages sit together whether or not they link.

How to Identify Link Opportunities

The image shows a classic website structure: a category page (cyan) at the center with related content pages (darker blue) forming an arc around it. The category page links to each post in the arc.

Finding linking opportunities is three hovers:

• Hover the parent in the centre and look for ghosts in its arc, which are related pages it does not link to
• Hover each node along the arc; ghosts among its neighbours are sibling links that do not exist yet
• Use the same pass to check that the linking pattern you decided on is being followed

What The Pass Replaces

The pass replaces opening pages one at a time to guess which might be related. From the map you can:

• See which related pages are not linking to each other
• Confirm a crawlable link exists between logically connected content
• Decide which pages should link from where they sit, not from a hunch

Where This Fits

Whether you are auditing the links you have or planning new ones, the map shows the gap between related pages before you touch a page. It is one step of the wider workflow, and it can run beside whatever process you already use or replace it.

Because the map can be shared with the team or a stakeholder, the people approving the work see the same gap you do, which is a faster route to a yes than a list of URLs.