What is Anchor Text?

The clickable text of a link, described in the episode as important because the word targeted and the associated words surrounding it carry contextual ranking signals.

From Google's Latest search algorithm to better understand natural language by Barry Schwartz #470

The clickable text used in a hyperlink pointing to a site. Exact match anchor text mirrors a target keyword exactly, and unnatural ratios of it can trigger Google penalties.

From Anchor Text Best Practices for Google by Roger Montti #416

The clickable text of a hyperlink. It should be relevant to the target page and ideally match the meta title keywords of the page being linked to.

From Duplicate Content and Anchor Text - #seopodcast 138

The clickable text used in a hyperlink. Overuse of repetitive keyword-rich anchor text on internal links was discounted by a Google algorithm update and can appear spammy or manipulative.

From 8 SEO Practices That Are No Longer Effective by Rand Fishkin #322

The clickable text used in a hyperlink. Over-using the exact same anchor text across all inbound links is flagged by Google as a manipulation signal.

From 2013 SEO Year End Review - P2 - #seopodcast 219

The clickable words used in a hyperlink pointing to a page, visible inside Google Webmaster Tools as part of the new links data section.

From SEO Tools, China SEO, Yahoo to Bing PPC Conversion - SEO Podcast - Number 80

The clickable text inside a hyperlink; using branded phrases like a company name instead of generic phrases like contact us adds more link value.

From Increasing SEO Visibility - #SEOpodcast 249

The clickable, often colored and underlined words in a hyperlink. The episode stresses that anchor text should contain keywords because search engines use it as a relevance signal.

From CMS Content Management Systems and Internet Marketing - #seopodcast 48

The clickable keyword text of a backlink pointing to your website, which should include your target keywords to help SEO.

From Long tail keywords, google position and traffic decreasing - #seopodcast 47

The clickable text used in a hyperlink that points back to your website; controlling it to match target keywords adds SEO value.

From Search Engine Visitor Optimization (SEVO) and Google Factors for SERPS - #seopodcast 43

The clickable, keyword-rich text of a hyperlink, which carries more SEO value than image alt tags when Google evaluates links.

From First Link Priority Foursquare and SEO - Internet Marketing Podcast 104

The clickable text of an inbound link. Using a target keyword phrase as anchor text tells Google that the linked page contains information about that phrase, building topical relevance.

From SEO 101 Back to Basics - Internet Marketing Podcast 101

The clickable text in a hyperlink. Using keyword-rich anchor text tells Google what the destination page is about, which influences how that page ranks.

From Alt Image Tags and Internet Marketing - Unknown Secrets of SEO E-Webstyle Number 56

The clickable text in a hyperlink. It should be keyword rich and match the keywords targeted on the destination page rather than generic phrases like click here or learn more.

From Switching Domain Names and Site Credibility - #seopodcast 137

The clickable text inside a hyperlink. In HTML, the A tag stands for anchor, and the words inside that tag linking to another page are the anchor text.

From Penguin and Google Image Search - #seopodcast 148

The clickable text inside a hyperlink on a page. Using multiple anchor text variations on the same page that all link back to that same page is considered manipulative and can be penalized.

From Above the Fold SEO - #seopodcast 134

The clickable, visible words used in a hyperlink. Keyword-rich anchor text repeated too many times across a site can be flagged as spammy by Panda and Penguin updates.

From SEO Advice on your Website - #seopodcast 154