Internal linking and pillar structure · Marketing
A page nothing links to is a page Google reaches last.
On-page SEO makes one page answer one search. This page is about what happens between pages, which on a site of any size decides more than the wording on any single one.
In one paragraph
Internal linking and pillar structure is the work of deciding which pages on your site link to which, and grouping them under one main page per subject. GullySales maps what you already have, links the narrow pages up to the pillar and back down, and merges the ones competing against each other for the same search.
A pillar is the page that owns a subject. The cluster is the narrow pages beneath it, each linking up, with the pillar linking back down to every one of them. Google reads that shape and works out which page to rank for what.
The other half of the job is subtraction. Two pages chasing the same search take half the strength each. The fix is to merge one into the other and redirect it.
The problem
Does this sound like your business?
What owners tell us on the first call, in their words.
“The page is live and Google has not indexed it”
When nothing on your site links to a page, the only route in is the sitemap. Google reads that as a page the site itself does not consider important.
“Two of our pages compete for the same search”
Both of them rank badly. The links, the words and the attention that should sit on one page are split across two, and Google keeps swapping which one it shows.
“Every link on the site says click here”
The words inside a link tell Google what the page it points at is about. Generic link text throws that signal away, on every link, across the whole site.
“Our menu carries three hundred links”
A link counts for less the more of them sit on the same page. A mega-menu spreads the site's strength so thinly that no page gets a useful share of it.
What we do
Everything that is included.
Each deliverable, and what it gets you. Nothing here is an extra.
A map of what links to what
Every page listed with what points at it, how many clicks it sits from the home page, and which pages have nothing pointing at them at all.
Pillar and cluster plan
The subjects that deserve a pillar page, the narrow pages that belong under each, and which of your existing pages move into that shape.
Cannibalisation list
The pairs of pages chasing one search, with a decision against each: keep it, merge and redirect it, or rewrite it towards a different search.
Anchor text rules
What the link text should say when it points at each important page, and how much it should vary, so two hundred links do not read identically.
Orphan and depth fixes
Pages with nothing pointing at them get links from the right places, and pages buried five clicks deep are brought nearer the surface.
Links written by hand into the copy
Each link goes inside a sentence that reads naturally to a person, because a block of links stuck at the foot of a page is worth little and looks worse.
Menu and footer rework
What belongs in the main menu and what does not, so your important pages take the strength and the rest stays reachable without being listed.
A rule for every new page
Where a new page links up to, which pages link down to it, and who adds those links, so the structure holds after the project ends.
How the result is measured
- Pages with no internal links pointing at them
- Clicks from the home page to a page that earns money
- Pages indexed against pages published
- Rankings for the pillar pages on their main searches
- Enquiries traced to search, before and after
Recorded as a baseline before work starts, then reported every month against it.
Who it is for
This is written for you if these sound familiar.
- Sites of a hundred pages or more where nobody can say what links to what
- Businesses with a service page, a blog post and a location page all chasing one search
- Owners whose new pages take months to appear in Google at all
- Anyone about to add a large section of pages who wants the shape decided first
Not for
It is not the right fit if.
- A twelve-page website, where the problem is that it has twelve pages and not how they link
- Anyone expecting movement inside a month, because this shows in search over a couple of months
- Sites with faults that stop pages being crawled at all, which is technical work that comes first
How it works
From your first message to the first monthly report.
No open-ended retainer. Each step has a point in time and something you receive.
01 · Day 1
Free audit call
45 minutes with whoever handles your enquiries: how they arrive, how fast they are answered, where they are lost.
02 · Within a few working days
Written, scored report
Six areas scored, fixes ranked by return and cost. If you want our help, the scope and fee come with it, in writing.
03 · Before work starts
Baseline recorded
Enquiries by source, reply time, conversion and cost per order, written down so every later month has an honest comparison.
04 · Month 1
The first fix goes live
Usually the cheapest one on the report: reply time, a follow-up sequence or the marketing-to-sales handover.
05 · Every month
Report against the baseline
What moved, what did not, and what changes next, in plain words.
06 · Month 3 to 6
Renew on the numbers
The term ends and you decide whether to continue from the results. No twelve-month lock.
How the internal linking and pillar structure work runs
- 1
Crawl and map
We crawl the site, list every page with its inbound links and its click depth, and mark the orphans.
- 2
Group by search, not by menu
Pages are grouped by what a buyer types rather than by where they sit in the menu, which is how the duplicates surface.
- 3
Decide the pillars
One page per subject is chosen as the one meant to rank, and everything narrow is pointed at it.
- 4
Merge and redirect
Competing pages are merged into the stronger one, with a permanent redirect from the old address so nobody lands on nothing.
- 5
Write the links in
Links are added inside the copy, one page at a time, with the anchor text written for that particular placement.
- 6
Watch and hold the shape
Rankings and indexing are read over the following weeks, and the rule for new pages goes to whoever publishes them.
Proof
What happened when owners fixed this.
Real clients, the work we did, and the result as it was recorded. Where no number was recorded, none is claimed.
Hotel Felicity Inn
- Situation
- A traveller compares three hotels on a phone and books one. The website was not built for that.
- What we did
- The site rebuilt around booking
- Photography and one look
- Search work for destination searches
- Content a traveller reads
- Result
- Online bookings increased 35%
- Organic traffic increased 50% within six months
- Positive reviews on Google and TripAdvisor increased 30%
SB Engineering
- Situation
- Buyers searching for laser cutting and sheet metal work in Bengaluru were finding other suppliers first, because the company did not rank for the terms its own customers type.
- What we did
- The site redesigned for mobile
- Search work on the buyer's terms
- Content that shows the work
- Social channels managed
- Result
- Website traffic rose 60% within six months, against a target of 50%.
- High-quality leads rose 45%, with a rise in conversion rates alongside them.
- Fifteen target keywords moved up the rankings, five of them into the top three positions.
Chord Road Hospital
- Situation
- Patients who knew the hospital trusted it. Patients who searched for a department or a treatment in the area did not find it.
- What we did
- Website rebuilt around patient needs
- Search visibility
- Social media on a schedule
- Review management
- Result
- Organic traffic increased 60% within six months
- Online appointment bookings increased 40%
- Social following grew 45%, and engagement on it rose 70%
Also worked with
Curtain Label · Difesa Security Services · Hands On CSR · Implevista · Kambar Group · Kalessi · Kerur Pain Clinic · LL Trust · Lucky Deals · Natural Gases · NavaShakthi Souhardha · NewCom Logistics · Proton Technical Services · Shakthi Foundation · Shakthi Group · Urbanest · Insyde Studio · Venkateshwara Laser Tech · Vivara Studios
Why us
Why owners pick GullySales over an agency.
Marketing and sales, as one job
Most agencies stop at the enquiry. We also fix what happens after it: the reply, the follow-up, the quote and the CRM.
The person on the first call does the work
No account managers in between. You are never handed to someone you have not met.
A baseline before anything starts
Your numbers are written down on day one, so every monthly report compares against something honest.
The fee in writing, split three ways
Our time, your media spend and production on separate lines. You always see what goes to us.
No lock-in, no guarantees we cannot keep
Three to six months at a time. We never promise a ranking or a lead count, because nobody controls those.
One office, and we say so
Nagarbhavi, Bengaluru. We work across India by call and WhatsApp and travel when a session needs to be in person.
#257, 3rd floor, Sri Nanjundeshwara Complex, Nagarbhavi 8th Block, Outer Ring Road. How we work.
Engagement options
Ways to work with us.
Pick the size of commitment that fits. Every option starts with the free audit.
Option 1
The audit on its own
A 45-minute call and a written, scored report. It says honestly whether you need outside help, and many fixes are ones your own team can make.
Option 2
One fix, scoped
Start with the fix the audit ranks first, such as reply time or follow-up. The fee is in writing before anything starts.
Option 3
A three-to-six-month programme
We run the work month by month, report against the baseline every month, and you renew on the numbers. No twelve-month lock.
Option 4
Guidance for your own team or agency
We plan, brief and check the work of your in-house team or current agency, instead of replacing them.
The offer
Start with a free audit of how you sell.
It is useful on its own, whether or not you hire us.
What you receive
- A 45-minute call with the person who will do the work
- A written, scored report on the six places orders leak, within a few working days
- Every fix ranked by what it returns and what it costs
- The one thing to do first, and why
- An honest line on whether you need outside help at all
- If you do, the scope and the fee in writing
No invoice. No obligation. No sales script.
FAQ
Questions owners ask before they call.
Not here? More answers, or ask on WhatsApp.
How is this different from link building?
How many internal links should a page have?
Do I have to delete the pages that compete?
How long before this shows in search?
Is this worth doing on a small site?
How is this priced?
How long is the contract?
Who will actually do the work?
What do you need from us?
What if we are not happy with the work?
By industry
Internal linking and pillar structure, written for your industry.
Related services