Define the gap before fixing it.
In this guide, an orphan candidate is a selected published post or page with no incoming internal link from the content set you scanned. That is an audit definition, not a universal SEO label. A menu, archive, related-post widget, XML sitemap, or content type outside the scan can change the wider picture.
Google says every page you care about should have a link from at least one other page and recommends crawlable anchors with concise, relevant text. Read the current Google Search Central link guidance before turning any audit rule into a ranking claim.
A careful seven-step audit.
- Choose the content set. Decide whether posts, pages, and relevant custom post types belong in the audit.
- Build the incoming-link map. Parse crawlable on-site anchors and count links by destination after normalizing relative and absolute URLs.
- Inspect the zero-inlink list. Confirm each candidate is published, canonical, indexable, current, and worth keeping.
- Choose one target first. Start with the page that would genuinely help a reader if it were easier to reach.
- Find contextual sources. Look for existing pages whose topic and sentence already create a useful transition to the target.
- Review the exact anchor and placement. Use concise, descriptive language and avoid headings, code, forms, navigation, or an existing link.
- Publish one change and keep a record. Inspect the rendered source and target, then re-run the map later. Do not treat a changed count as ranking causation.
Not every zero deserves a link.
- Keep and connect
- The page is accurate, useful, canonical, and supports a real reader journey from another page.
- Refresh first
- The topic matters, but the copy, evidence, examples, or destination needs work before another page should recommend it.
- Consolidate
- Two pages answer the same intent and one stronger destination would be clearer than distributing links across both.
- Redirect or retire
- The page is obsolete, duplicated, accidental, or no longer meant to be found. A manufactured internal link would hide the real decision.
Where LinkTiller enters the workflow.
LinkTiller automates the map and shortlisting, not the editorial decision. It ranks eligible sources locally, lets the endpoint you configured propose exact phrases, verifies each proposal, and waits for one administrator approval. If a source changes after review, v0.3.2 refuses the stale write.
The public download is still v0.2.1 while WordPress.org review remains pending. The v0.3.2 build shown in the proof film is a private pilot candidate, not a public directory release.
Apply with one real WordPress libraryQuestions worth settling first.
Is a page orphaned if it appears in a sitemap?
A sitemap can help discovery, but it is not the same as a contextual internal link from another useful page. Define the audit rule you care about and report sitemap, navigation, and contextual links separately.
Should every page receive an internal link?
No. First confirm that the page is current, indexable, canonical, useful, and meant to remain public. Redirect, consolidate, update, or remove weak pages instead of manufacturing a link to them.
How many internal links should I add at once?
There is no universal quota. Start with the smallest set that genuinely helps a reader move between related pages, then inspect the rendered result and revisit coverage later.