Swapping generic internal anchors for descriptive ones across 300 links

Swapping generic internal anchors for descriptive ones across 300 links

Question: does internal anchor text actually carry relevance signal, or is it mostly external anchors that matter? One controlled swap.

What was done: a site had 300 internal links using generic anchors ("read more", "click here", "this guide"). These were rewritten to descriptive, keyword-bearing phrases pointing to the same URLs. Link targets, placement, and surrounding text were unchanged.

Outcome: the 47 destination pages receiving the rewritten anchors improved an average of 4.1 positions over eight weeks on the queries matching the new anchor phrasing. A control group of pages whose anchors were left generic moved 0.6 positions.

Caveat: descriptive anchors often sit in more relevant link contexts, so anchor text and context co-vary. The differential vs. control is meaningful but the mechanism (anchor vs. surrounding context) isn't isolated.

Method note: paired cohorts, single site, 8-week window, query set matched to anchor phrasing.

Confidence: medium — controlled comparison, partly confounded mechanism.