Optimizing Anchor Text (Link Text)
What is anchor text
Anchor text (or link text) is the text used for linking to a specific page.
As you can see from the following HTML example, link text lies between the <a> and the </a> tag.
Modern search engines base their results on robots that craw the internet page by page.
Robots take note of the anchor text which is used for pointing from one URL to another.
Anchor text significantly determines the position of your site in search results.
HTML Code
<a href="http://flywebmaster.com">THIS IS ANCHOR TEXT</a>
Produces
THIS IS ANCHOR TEXT
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Optimization Tips
Let's assume that you are the owner a small carwash business called "123Wash".
If 100 web pages point to your homepage URL with the anchor text "Carwash" your web site will rank high in searches containing the word "Carwash".
In contrast, if links to your web site use the company name ("123Wash") your web site will perform worse under the search "Carwash".
That is why you should make descriptive links.
This principle applies in both external and internal linking.
Instead of saying "Click here to read the history of my carwash", it is better to put down "Read the history of my carwash"
Bad Anchor Text
<a href="http://123wash.com">123Wash</a>
Good Anchor Text
<a href="http://123wash.com">Car Wash Service</a>
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Anchor text and image buttons
When linking between pages with an image button, make sure you use the ALT attribute.
This is crucial because text-based browsers and robots cannot determine appropriate anchor text from the image itself.
You can see the ALT or anchor text of an image link by holding your mouse over it.
HTML Code
<a href="http://flywebmaster.com">
<img src="home_button.gif" alt="ANCHOR TEXT">
</a>
Produces
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Search Optimization
