SEO
Structure analysis
How pages support each other
On this page
- How to build a good information architecture
- How an internal linking strategy works
- How anchor text affects how Google understands the target page
- Common linking problems we identify and fix
- How navigation and menus affect your SEO
- Do not count on the footer being enough
- Why repeated text rarely helps in search
- How many clicks from the home page can an important page be (click depth)?
- Internal links make crawling easier
- How we move from analysis to action
- Would you like to optimise your site structure?
A well-structured website is the foundation of successful SEO. The structure governs both how users navigate and how Google understands and values the content on the website.
The structure determines
- Whether search engines find all the important pages
- How Google understands the relationship between different pages
- Which pages get the most “weight” through internal linking
- Whether users easily find what they are looking for
In the structure analysis, we review how the site is organised, how pages are linked together and how we can optimise for both users and search engines.
How to build a good information architecture
Logical organisation that works for everyone
Information architecture is about how the content on the site is organised and categorised. A good structure is logical for both visitors and search engines.
Basic principles of a strong architecture
Build a clear hierarchy
Good structure
- Home page → Main categories → Subcategories → Individual pages
- As a rule of thumb, no more than four clicks from the home page to any important page
- A clear connection between related pages
Poor structure
- A flat site where all pages sit at the same level (it is not clear what is important)
- A deep hierarchy where important pages sit six to seven clicks down (hard to find for both users and search engine crawlers)
- Confusing categorisation where the same content appears in several places
Example from e-commerce
Good:
Home page → Men's clothing → Jackets → Winter jackets → [Product page]
Poor:
Home page → All products → [400 products at the same level]Categorise the content logically
How content is grouped affects both usability and SEO.
For e-commerce
- Categories should be based on how customers think and search
- “Running shoes” is a clearer category than “Activity shoes spring/summer”
For service companies
- Group services by customer problem, not by internal organisation
- “Help with business finances” is clearer than “Department 3’s services”
For content sites
- Categorise by topic and search intent
How an internal linking strategy works
How pages reinforce each other
Internal links are one of the most powerful tools in SEO. They serve three important purposes at once:
1. Internal links help visitors find their way onwards
Internal links help users find more relevant information quickly without having to go through menus or the search function.
Practical example: If someone is reading about “SEO strategy” and you link to “search behaviour analysis” in the text, the reader can easily dig deeper. A link like that:
- Improves the user experience
- Keeps visitors on the site for longer
- Increases the chance that they convert
Good links are contextual: they appear naturally where they are relevant, not randomly everywhere.
2. Internal links show Google which page is the target page
Internal links help Google understand which page is the target page for a particular term or phrase.
How it works
If 15 pages on the website link to /tjanster/seo/ with the anchor text “SEO services”, Google understands that:
- This page is about SEO services
- This page is important to you (many links point here)
- This page is the primary target page for the term “SEO services”
Conversely: If the links point to five different pages with varying anchor texts (“SEO”, “search engine optimisation”, “our services”, “read more”), it becomes unclear to Google which page is the most important.
Let the links point to the same target page, with similar anchor texts.
3. Internal links strengthen the target page’s ranking
Each internal link gives the target page a little more “weight” with Google (often called PageRank).
How it affects rankings
- Many internal links to a page tell Google that it is important to you
- An important page is more likely to rank highly
- The anchor text reinforces the page’s relevance for that particular phrase
How anchor text affects how Google understands the target page
The words in the links mean something
The words used in links affect how Google understands the target page.
Good anchor text
- “Read more about our SEO process”
- “How search behaviour analysis works”
- “Discover our web design services”
Poor anchor text
- “Click here”
- “Read more”
- “Here”
- “This”
Why it matters
Linking with “Read more about SEO analysis” signals to Google: “This page is about SEO analysis.”
Linking with “Click here” signals nothing. Google gets no information about what the target page is about.
What to do
- Use descriptive text that explains what the target page contains
- Include relevant keywords naturally
- Vary the wording but keep the message consistent
Common linking problems we identify and fix
How we fix the linking problems
Problem 1: Scattered links
Example: 20 pages mention “web design” but link to 5 different pages
/tjanster/webbdesign//webbdesign-stockholm//vara-tjanster//kontakt//om-oss/
- Consequence
- It becomes unclear which page is your main page for web design, and the links are spread across five pages.
- Solution
- We identify which page should be the main page for “web design” and make sure all relevant links point there with similar anchor texts.
Problem 2: Poor or missing anchor text
Example
- “Read more here” (50 times on the site)
- “Click here for more information”
- Buttons with just “Read more” and no context
- Consequence
- Opportunities to strengthen important pages are lost. Google gets no information from the links.
- Solution
- We rewrite them as descriptive text:
- “Read more about the SEO process”
- “Discover our e-commerce platforms”
- “See how we work with conversion optimisation”
Problem 3: Important pages without links
- Example
- An important service page gets only two internal links (from the footer and the sitemap).
- Consequence
- With so few links, the page does not come across as important, and users do not find it.
- Solution
- We identify natural places to link from:
- Related service pages
- Content pages that mention the topic
- The main menu (if the page is important enough)
- Relevant blog posts
Problem 4: Too many links from one page
- Example
- The home page links to 150 different pages.
- Consequence
- Each link becomes weaker (the total “weight” is divided between all the links).
- Solution
- Prioritise. As a rule of thumb, the home page should link to the 10 to 20 most important pages. Other pages are reached via category pages or content links.
Why repeated text rarely helps in search
Text that is repeated on many pages (for example the same company description in the footer on every page) rarely adds anything in search, and it should not dominate the page’s content.
Keep the repeated text short
How crawlability and hierarchy are connected
Help Google find everything important
How many clicks from the home page can an important page be (click depth)?
The more clicks it takes from the home page, the harder the page is to find.
What to do
- Important pages: no more than four clicks from the home page
- Very important pages: one to two clicks from the home page
In practice: If a service page is six clicks down in the hierarchy, Google may crawl it less often, and visitors will find it harder to reach.
Internal links make crawling easier
Google’s crawler follows links. If no internal links point to a page, Google may
- Miss the page completely (if it is not in the sitemap)
- Crawl it rarely
- Treat it as unimportant
Every important page needs internal links, both for rankings and so that Google can find it.
How we move from analysis to action
The analysis becomes a concrete structure strategy
The structure analysis results in concrete recommendations for:
Internal linking
- Which pages should be linked from where
- Which anchor texts should be used
- How many links each important page needs
- Which existing links should be rewritten or removed
Navigation
- Which pages should be in the main menu (desktop and mobile)
- How submenus should be structured
- How the hamburger menu should prioritise content on mobile
Hierarchy
- Which pages need to be moved closer to the home page
- How categorisation can be improved
- Which page types should be grouped together
Implementation: We often help with the implementation itself as part of our ongoing SEO work, both with technical changes in the CMS and with rewriting links in existing content.
Would you like to optimise your site structure?
We analyse how your site is structured and how internal linking can be optimised to give every important page maximum strength.
Want to know where you stand today?
Call us, or fill in the form and we will get back to you.