Usually referred to as ‘links’ or ‘web links’ a hyperlink is anything that links to another file or object. It can connect two different documents as well as various sections of the same document.

I bet you never gave it much thought but, imagine how powerful a hyperlink is. Without hyperlinks, you would have to know every URL of every page on the internet in order to access it. They are a great tool that lets you hop from page to page and from one website to another without having to enter a URLs.

For usability purposes, hyperlinks’ color can change. For example, after you click on a website’s link from the search result pages, the link becomes purple. This is to tell you that it has already been clicked. However, when you see a link that you haven’t click on yet, it appears blue.

Types of hyperlinks

Outbound links – these are the links from your site to another site with a different domain. They should be to high-quality sites and appear natural to users.

Inbound links – these are links from other domains to your website. They are the ones that give your site authority as they imply that others trust the information you provide. They should be natural links from relevant sites.

Internal links – are the links within your site’s pages. They help distribute PageRank, but more importantly, they guide your visitors through your website and to other content within it that they might find relevant.

How can you create hyperlinks?

To create hyperlinks, you need to use HTML, which is the Hypertext Markup Language. They are implemented using the <a> (which stands for anchor) and <link> elements. When you use the <a> element, you are referring to a specific link in a certain place of your website. For example, if you are creating an index in your homepage and want to link your ‘About Page,’ then the <a> element is the one you should use.

But, if you want to link an external document or reference items such as fonts or a CSS document, then you must use the <link> element.

Hyperlinks are a powerful way to increase SEO. By placing links on specific keywords within your website’s content, you can amplify the visibility of a specific page and your website as a whole.