Hub-and-spoke: page structure, internal links and click depth

A hub helps readers choose the right in-depth content, a pillar page explains a main topic coherently, and a supporting page addresses a specific need. A service hub can show the types of engagement available, while a service page describes a particular deliverable and a guide explains a problem.

The hub does not need to reproduce every answer. It should show the main differences so that visitors can choose the right route.

The same page can serve as both a hub and a pillar page. Different methods use these terms differently, so document the page’s purpose rather than letting the label determine its content. A simple collection of links does not replace a promised explanation of a topic.

When does a subtopic need its own page?

A subtopic needs its own page when it addresses a distinct reader need that the existing page does not answer adequately. A synonym or a small follow-up question, however, can be answered in a sentence or section. The reader’s task and the pages’ actual content should distinguish them, not a fixed word count.

Illustrative example: “What is a Google business profile?” and “What does Google Business Profile mean?” can be answered together because the names refer to the same service. “How should a business manage Google reviews?” involves several tasks of its own: requesting reviews, sharing a review link and responding to feedback. If these need a complete procedure, they can have an in-depth guide that the overview summarises and links to.

First check which answers already exist. Write down what the proposed page adds and what stays on the overview. If both pages would have almost the same main question, examples and next step, reconsider the split. A separate page should help readers without mainly repeating the hub.

Link from the hub to deeper guides that help the reader choose the right topic, and link back when the overview is a relevant next step. In the example below, the local SEO guide provides the overview. Two deeper guides serve different tasks: working on the Business Profile and collecting honest reviews. The return link helps readers understand how the profile works with the website. The reader’s next need justifies the link; there is no rule that every page must link to every other page.

How do you build the structure from existing pages?

Start with the pages’ actual tasks, choose a clear overview and record why each planned link is needed. The following process also works when the website already has content:

1. List the pages within the topic. Record each address, main question and what readers should be able to do afterwards. Include existing answers before planning more pages.
2. Choose the page that provides orientation. Explain the differences between the deeper guides there, so that the links become understandable choices.
3. Check each proposed in-depth page against the overview. Keep a short follow-up question on the overview when it needs neither its own procedure nor a separate decision.
4. Record the source page, destination, link text and reader’s reason, as in the table. Place the link in the section where the need arises, then check the destination.

If an in-depth guide does not yet exist, the overview can give a short answer. Add the link when a working, relevant destination is available. A connection drawn in a topical map is not an implemented link, and an empty page does not solve the reader’s task.

A contextual bridge explains why the next page helps readers with a question that arises here. The link text and the surrounding sentence should work together to describe the next task.

Example: when a page is missing from Google, you need to distinguish between a page that has not been discovered, one that cannot be crawled and one that has not been indexed. The guide to Google indexing shows which checks help you narrow down the problem.

The sentence identifies the situation, the remaining problem and how the link helps. The current page should still provide its own answer before sending the reader elsewhere.

A guide can link to a service when implementation becomes relevant. The service can, in turn, link to a guide that answers a follow-up question. Each direction needs its own reason; not every page should link to every other page.

Check links in context: describe what readers will find on the destination page, open the link and check that the page actually answers the promised question.

How do you check that an internal link works?

Check both the link’s promise and its behaviour on the published page. Text that looks clickable is not, by itself, proof that a search engine can follow the link.

Google recommends an HTML a element with an href attribute pointing to a real web address. A click event without such an address is not equivalent. Google’s guidance on crawlable links explains how to check links and link text.

• Read the linking sentence without the rest of the page. Does it explain which question the destination helps with?
• Open the link. Check that it reaches the intended page and the answer is there, rather than an error page or an unrelated overview.
• Check the link address in the rendered HTML. If JavaScript creates the link, the finished result also needs to contain a followable link.
• Check each direction separately. A return link should meet a need of its own, not merely make a diagram symmetrical.

No. The navigation hierarchy and the URL structure are two separate decisions. A page can appear under Services in the menu while keeping its existing address, for example /seo-konsult. Do not change a working address simply because its label moves in the menu.

The topical map documents each page’s purpose and relevant onward routes. SOVRA Digital’s service overview shows how a hub can help visitors choose between different engagements.

What is the difference between URL depth and click depth?

The number of folders in a URL is not the same as the number of clicks needed to reach the page. A short address can be hard to find if no relevant pages link to it. A longer address can be easy to reach from a clear hub. Choose stable, understandable addresses and check the actual links; do not create a deeper URL structure simply to represent a theoretical topic hierarchy.

Google’s guidance on crawlable links emphasises links that can be followed and descriptive link text. It does not set a general rule requiring every guide to have a particular number of internal links.

Illustrative example: a guide at /guides/seo/indexing can be reached in one click from a relevant SEO overview. A guide at /indexing can still be hard to find if it has no internal links. A click-depth review therefore needs a stated starting point, such as the homepage or topic hub, and must follow the actual route.

First check whether a hard-to-reach page is missing a link from the right overview or a related answer. Repair that gap where the reader’s need arises. Do not automatically put every article in the main menu or change URLs to achieve a particular number of folders. Google’s URL structure guidance supports understandable, descriptive addresses; it does not establish a universal maximum click depth for this model.