Anchor text variation is one of the best ways to tell Google what a specific web page is about. It is used to help readers find more information about a topic and also factors into ranking your web pages. While it is a great tool, it can be the downfall of your SEO efforts if not used correctly.
Many people have tried (and are still trying) to manipulate search results. One way to do this is to link from specific anchor text in an attempt to rank for the specific word or phrase. Unfortunately for these folks but fortunately for those of us doing it right, we are no longer in the olden days of SEO and these types of black-hat techniques no longer work. In fact, they are likely to get you penalized.
One of the best ways to stay out of a penalty is by practicing link diversity[1]. There are many ways to do this – you could try linking from various domain extensions, different domain authorities[2], and using a mixture of “follow” and “nofollow” links. For the sake of this article, however, I want to focus specifically on varying anchor text.
Why vary your anchor text?
Because. Google…
That’s the simple answer, but let’s go a little more in-depth. Google looks at your link profile[3] when deciding how to rank your web pages. Part of your link profile involves the anchor text used to link to your website.
So, you should have specific anchor text that talks about your web pages, right? Well, sort of.
Using specific anchor text is fine, but when you start to use the same anchor text, Google will get suspicious. It will make your backlink profile[5]