Internal linking is one of the highest-ROI on-page SEO tactics available. It works because Google's algorithm still relies heavily on links to determine page importance and topic relationships. When you link from a strong page to a weaker one, you pass authority that can directly improve rankings. The mechanics are straightforward. Every page on your site accumulates some PageRank from external backlinks and internal distribution. Strategic internal links channel that authority to pages you want to rank. A homepage typically has the most authority, so linking from it to a category page or money page passes significant value. Similarly, older blog posts with backlinks make excellent sources for internal links to newer content. Internal linking also establishes topical clusters. When you link multiple related articles together with descriptive anchor text, you signal to Google that these pages cover connected topics. This improves your site's perceived expertise in that subject area. For our portfolio sites, we typically see noticeable ranking improvements within 2-4 weeks of adding internal links from relevant high-authority pages. The anchor text matters more than most people realize. Using exact-match or partial-match keywords in your anchor text tells Google what the target page is about. Don't use generic "click here" or "read more" links. If you're linking to a page about Ottawa web design, use anchor text like "web design services in Ottawa" or "custom website development." Common mistakes include linking too much from low-authority pages, using the same anchor text repeatedly (looks manipulative), and creating orphan pages with zero internal links pointing to them. At Ottawa SEO, we audit internal link structure quarterly for our portfolio sites. We identify high-authority pages, map out topical clusters, and systematically add 3-8 contextual internal links per published article. Sites with 100+ pages should have an average of 5-10 internal links per page for optimal crawling and authority distribution.