Simply put, internet traffic flow is the way people use to move between web pages. Some of these lanes are highways with eight lanes and thousands of vehicles per minute. To some, it may look like a city street with quad stops every two blocks. Then there are the backwoods trails that are rarely used and only a select few know about.
When you think about the things you do on the Internet every day, you will see that you have taken several different paths, some going better than others. You probably checked your email when you logged in. I may be off the beaten track here, but this one is probably going to be pretty narrow. You are probably the only person who has gone this route, and I think you do quite often.
Then, you may have visited your favorite blog to find out what PtrWigg thinks about international business today. When you read his most recent blog, you notice he has a link to a work website related to the topic to make his point. I decided to visit this site to find out more basic information. There is a link to another interesting site about globalization. It is a path in itself to travel through the blog, business website, and globalization website.
Well, this is pretty basic. Even if you've never thought of the internet in this way, I'm sure you already know that. Although this idea is pretty simple, I don't think webmasters always take it into account when building a website, and SEOs don't always seem to take it into account when optimizing for one.
Does linking to other websites help SEO?
So, how does a webmaster think about "flow" when building a website? Realizing that each page is not just a path within itself but also a step within a path is, in my opinion, the first step. Let's say you write an article about how to make a business proposal and put it on a page. Although part of the information you provided was excellent, the information itself is useless.
The importance of linking articles together
If you can't get dressed, tie your shoes, comb your hair, eat breakfast, drive to work, operate a projector, or speak in public, does it really matter if you know how to make a job offer? It goes without saying that we will assume that your users are able to complete every step except for turning on the monitor step. Information is only useful when combined with other pieces of data!.
Make them stay
Therefore, ask yourself what path the average user is likely to follow and, if possible, make them able to continue on that path. A little planning and some links to related resources are all that are required.
In my opinion, most webmasters do a good job of designing their sites with traffic flow in mind. When promoting a website through link building, professional SEO experts may consider the Internet traffic flow model, but this does not seem to be a common practice among webmasters.
Nowadays, getting a ranking through the most popular search engines seems to be the primary goal of link building. The two most popular link-building methods completely ignore the flow of internet traffic. Webmasters enjoy getting links from directories and exchanging links in return. The problem is that the average user spends very little time searching from directories or link exchange pages.
Isn't that a little far-fetched? By taking the time to list their websites where most people don't go, webmasters are trying to get more attention on their sites. If we were to apply this to offline marketing, it would be similar to buying a bottled water billboard in the middle of the desert. Bottled water might be something people want in the middle of nowhere, but wouldn't it be better to advertise where people might actually see it?
I am not saying that webmasters should not submit their sites to directories, but I do believe that their marketing mix should include more than just exchanging reciprocal links and directory submissions. Within the flow, I believe it is essential to focus on link-building.
The idea is not difficult to understand. Determine the natural position of your website in the flow. The next step is to make an effort to exchange links or purchase contextual links on pages on the paths your target user is most likely to follow. Regardless of your ranking in the search engines, this will help you find long-term sources of targeted traffic. For the same number of backlinks, this method will take much longer, but the search engines will reward you for the high quality of your links.
There are many benefits to linking articles together, including:
- Improved navigation: By linking related articles together, it makes it easier for readers to find and explore more content on the website.
- Increase page views: When readers finish an article and find a relevant link, they may click on it to read more, which increases page views for the site.
- Improve search engine optimization: Search engines take into account the number and quality of links pointing to a website when determining its ranking. Linking articles together can help improve a website's search engine visibility and bring more organic traffic to the site.
- Building Trust: Linking to trusted sources or relevant content can help establish a website as a trusted source of information.
- Relationship building: Linking to other websites can help create relationships with other website owners and influencers, which can lead to more exposure and future collaboration opportunities.
- Improving User Experience: When users find useful and relevant information in an easy way, it increases their chances of staying longer on the site and coming back.