Internal Linking: Why Not Link to the ‘Contact Us’ Page?

It’s almost a rite of passage for content writers.

Put the finishing touches (or so one thinks!) on a piece of content.

Add internal links.

Run it through a writing assistant to test its on-page SEO bonafides.

And get a warning: Do not link to the Contact Us page.

There are more than a billion websites. A quarter of a million come online every day. In fact, in the time it took you to read these first few sentences, another 40 or so websites have been created. None of them are supposed to link to the “Contact Us” page?

Why not link to the ‘Contact Us’ page?

The reason you do not want to link to the contact page from your new blog is so you do not over-optimize the internal link profile to this core page. That’s why we avoid linking to the contact page.

That’s it in a nutshell.

And yet so many sites devoted to digital marketing best practices, search engine optimization, and internal linking fail to answer that query. It can be remarkably difficult to find a consistent, clarifying answer on this topic.

Example: At least one site discourages internal linking to contact pages … and then links to a contact page!

Another example: No less an authority than Neil Patel says not to link to the contact page “unless absolutely necessary.” In addition, he says that to link or not to link “really depends on each and every site and the site’s goals.”

Let me try to provide a more comprehensive answer: We don’t usually link to the “Contact Us” page because a website likely has numerous links already pointing to that page. (You’ll be discouraged from linking to the homepage for much the same reason.)

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

For example, the footer of your website probably links to it, right? (Or to a page with similar contact options — e.g., “Answer Your Questions” or “Get Started” or “Connect With Us” or “Live Chat.”) Those are already on every page of your site, along with your email address, contact information, and customer service and customer support contact numbers.

Content creators and SEOs probably won’t be tasked with improving the pageview numbers of a contact page. (If they are, I have to ask: What kind of hellscape digital marketing agency are they working for?) Links to the contact page add unnecessary (and possibly misleading) heft to a page that doesn’t need it — at the expense of other pages that do.

After all, as many digital marketers know, search engines are very smart — but they’re also sorta dumb sometimes.

We want to optimize our content and the pages on which they appear for maximum effect. We don’t want to confuse search engines by making it appear that our contact page is the most important page on our site.

UX, UI, and You

It really does come down to UX and UI (user experience and user interface, respectively). If you know your audience, your content will be tailored to meet its needs. Therefore, an internal linking strategy should focus on links that are topically relevant to the content.

However, there will sometimes be wise, content-related reasons for an internal link to the “Contact Us” page. A link to the contact page can be a helpful and seamless way to encourage someone to continue toward a conversion.

For example, let’s say you’ve written a stellar service page. Your reader is primed and ready to convert. Providing them with an internal link to the contact page might make sense from a momentum standpoint. (Let’s not distract them by making them search for where to click next!)

Of course, linking to the contact page means that’s where the user should go to make a conversion. This could mean signing up for an email newsletter, calling the client, setting up an appointment, requesting an estimate, etc.

If there are other, better pages for those conversion points, then link to those instead.

And there should definitely be other, better pages for those conversion points. Website design (again: UX and UI) will play a role in creating these eye-catching, swift-response-time pages.

Content Planning

Content marketers work hard to devise content plans and strategies that answer user queries and fulfill their needs.

That’s why we should create and then link internally to other types of conversion pages. Product pages, landing pages, and other optimized pages are deeper within the site structure and represent a better linking opportunity.

We should provide internal links wherever and whenever they make sense for the user. They should provide additional information or point the way toward a conversion.

That’s how we improve engagement and generate goodwill.

Long story short: Helpful internal links improve UX. They also strengthen the authority of your site’s internal pages. This increases the site’s overall authority in the eyes of search engines.

Internal links are important for one’s SEO efforts. They let Google and other search engines know which pages are the most important to one’s website. While not as powerful a ranking signal as an external link, internal links matter big time.

A great “Contact Us” page has its place. It can serve as a knowledge base, providing form fields, calls to action, and info on support teams. But most users are savvy enough to find this page on their own. If we link to the “Contact Us” page, we better have a good reason for it — one that’s backed up by data.

The key for content marketers is to provide the user with the information they need and a link that’s easy to find and that helps them convert. Most of the time, that link won’t need to go anywhere near the “Contact Us” page.