As all SEOs know, using the right internal linking strategy is important. Why? Because internal links give your website structure and make it easier for Google to crawl and index your pages. Internal links also establish a site hierarchy, allowing you to give important pages and posts more link juice than other, less valuable pages. So, using links to your advantage can boost page rank and positively contribute to SEO success.
But what about hiding internal links? Why might you want to do this? And how should you go about it? Here’s a more detailed overview – as confirmed by Google.
Hiding ‘Unimportant’ Pages
Firstly, let’s look at why you might want to hide internal links in the first place. It’s all to do with how Google views the pages of your website and how they’re presented in a search.
Some SEOs are hiding internal links in order to block PageRank from ‘unimportant’ pages such as pages about privacy or terms and conditions. This is because they want other pages, such as services or shopping pages to be seen as the most dominant, as these can help directly improve the ROI of a business. In the physical world, it’s like a shop retailer placing designer dresses in the window while hiding anything less glamorous or expensive in the storeroom – the main aim being to bring attention to the best stock.
What Exactly is PageRank?
PageRank is an algorithm used by Google Search to rank web pages in their search engine results. According to Google, It works by counting the number and quality of links to a page to determine a rough estimate of how important the website is. The underlying assumption is that more important websites are likely to receive more links from other websites. Internal links can also give particular web pages more prominence. After all, the more links a page receives, the more important it will seem to search engines. So, all considered, it makes sense to hide internal links to other pages so that the link juice to important parts of your site isn’t diluted in any way.
How Can I Hide Internal Links?
Hiding internal links in the button element of pages is a technique used by SEOs to hide internal links. And apparently, this works. Google’s John Mueller recently confirmed that Google can not see internal links in the button element, stating:
“Google won’t click on these buttons to see what happens. So we would not see that there’s a link associated with another URL within your website.”
It, therefore, appears that the Post/Redirect/Get Pattern (PRG Pattern) is a way to hide internal links from Google by using a button HTML element. PageRank would not count the hidden links thereby allowing other pages to outrank less important ones.
Contact Whitefish Marketing today for all your on and off-page SEO requirements. We’ll provide you with an SEO strategy to suit your business and help to optimise your content for maximum traffic and engagement.
