How a CRM Tool Increased Organic Traffic by 40% With Internal Linking Alone

How a CRM Tool Increased Organic Traffic by 40% With Internal Linking Alone

Let me take you back to 2023, when a CRM Tool—a mid-sized SaaS company—was stuck. Despite pumping resources into content creation and backlinks, their organic traffic plateaued. Then, we tried something radical: we ignored external links and overhauled their internal linking. The result? A 40% surge in organic traffic in just six months. Here’s exactly how we did it—and how you can replicate this success.

The Problem: A Broken Internal Ecosystem

The CRM tool’s blog had over 500 posts, but its structure was a mess:

  • Orphan Pages: 30% of posts had zero internal links.
  • Shallow Linking: Most links pointed to the homepage, not deeper content.
  • Generic Anchors: “Click here” and “read more” dominated their anchor text.
  • Crawl Waste: Googlebot was stuck in loops, ignoring key pages.

Their DA was decent (45), but traffic? Stagnant.

Step 1: The Audit That Changed Everything

We used Screaming Frog to crawl their site and uncovered:

  • 112 orphaned pages (including high-value product guides).
  • 64 broken internal links (404 errors draining equity).
  • 80% of anchors were generic or keyword-stuffed.

Ahrefs revealed their top 10 pages were hogging 70% of internal links, while newer posts languished.

Step 2: The 3-Pronged Fix

1. Rescued Orphan Pages

  • Action: Linked orphaned posts to pillar content.
    • Example: A forgotten “CRM Integration Guide” was linked from 12 blog posts about SaaS tools.
  • Result: Orphan page traffic jumped from 0 to 1,200 monthly visits.

2. Replaced Generic Anchors

  • Before: “Learn more about CRM software here.”
  • After: “Discover how CRM automation improves tools retention.”
  • Result: Pages with optimized anchors saw a 25% ranking boost.

3. Built Content Clusters

  • Pillar Page: “The Ultimate Guide to SaaS Marketing.”
  • Subtopics: Linked to “Email Marketing for SaaS,” “SEO Strategies for Startups,” etc.
  • Result: The pillar page rose from #8 to #1 for “SaaS marketing guide,” pulling subtopics into the top 5.

Step 3: Redirected Equity to Weak Pages

  • Problem: Their pricing page had minimal internal links.
  • Fix: Added contextual links from 20+ blog posts (e.g., “Compare plans to unlock advanced features”).
  • Result: Pricing page conversions increased by 15%.

The Outcome: 40% Traffic Growth in 6 Months

  • Organic Traffic: 18k → 25k monthly visits.
  • Keyword Rankings: 60+ new keywords in the top 10.
  • Bounce Rate: Dropped from 65% to 48%.

While internal links fueled this growth, external backlinks act as turbochargers. For a deeper dive into balancing both, check out our guide: Internal vs. External Links: What’s the Real Difference?.

How SEO Collabs Amplifies Your Results

Internal linking lays the foundation, but pairing it with ethical external links unlocks unstoppable growth. SEO Collabs helps you:

  • Find Vetted Partners: Connect with niche-relevant blogs for guest posts and collaborations.
  • Automate Outreach: Use pre-built templates to pitch link swaps or co-authored content.
  • Stay Compliant: Built-in checks ensure every link follows Google’s guidelines.

Real-World Synergy: After fixing internal links, the CRM tool used SEO Collabs to earn 15 high-DA backlinks, further boosting their authority.

SEO Collabs Blog Banner

Your Action Plan

  1. Audit Your Site: Use Screaming Frog to find orphans and broken links.
  2. Optimize Anchors: Replace “click here” with descriptive keywords.
  3. Build Clusters: Link pillar pages to subtopics.
  4. Scale with SEO Collabs: Strengthen your strategy with external partnerships.

Key Lessons Learned

  • Quality > Quantity: 10 well-placed internal links beat 50 random ones.
  • User Experience Rules: Links should guide visitors, not just algorithms.
  • Consistency Wins: Audit quarterly to maintain momentum.

Conclusion

Internal linking isn’t glamorous, but it’s the backbone of SEO. By redistributing equity, optimizing anchors, and building clusters, you can unlock growth that content or backlinks alone can’t achieve.

Ready to Transform Your Site?
👉 Try SEO Collabs to pair your internal linking wins with high-impact backlinks—all while staying penalty-free.

Why Wait?

  • Fix Internals: Build a rock-solid foundation.
  • Boost Externals: Let SEO Collabs handle partnerships.
  • Dominate SEO: Combine both for unstoppable growth.

Your 40% surge is just a few links away. Start today!

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