A crawlable linking model that supports users, search engines, and answer engines without forcing visitors through one interaction path.
Build a crawl graph
Every important page should be reachable from the homepage or a strong category hub through normal links. The HTML sitemap is a secondary discovery layer, not the primary architecture.
Use descriptive anchors
Link text such as “FAISS vector search architecture” carries more context than generic anchors like “read more.” Keep it natural and useful to the reader.
Link by next intent
Project pages should link to technical articles; articles should link back to projects; profile pages should link to the work that proves the claims they make.
Keep depth reasonable
Important pages should not require a long chain of clicks to reach. The sitemap and category pages provide a second route when needed.
Audit orphan pages
A page that exists only in a sitemap but has no contextual internal links is weaker from a user-navigation perspective. Periodic link audits keep the cluster connected.
- State the problem before the tools.
- Expose the system boundary.
- Use metrics with context and limitations.
- Document one meaningful trade-off.
- Link to adjacent project or topic pages.
What is internal linking strategy?
A crawlable linking model that supports users, search engines, and answer engines without forcing visitors through one interaction path.
Why does it matter?
Every important page should be reachable from the homepage or a strong category hub through normal links. The HTML sitemap is a secondary discovery layer, not the primary architecture.