New Page Wave Link Routing
What this page covers
New Page Wave Link Routing
New Page Wave Link Routing shows how to plug newly published growth pages into your existing internal linking strategy so they are easy to discover and stay aligned with your hub and leaf structure.
Use this guide with your internal linking map, hub and leaf rules, and orphan page audit to decide where each new page should receive links from and which related pages it should link out to.
In brief
- Treat every new page as a leaf that must connect to an existing hub. Choose its primary hub, then add at least one contextual link from that hub and from any closely related sibling pages.
- Give each new page a clear outbound pattern: 1–2 links up to its hub, 2–4 links to sibling or supporting leaves, and 1–2 links to high‑value conversion or product pages.
- Update your internal linking map in the same wave as publishing. This prevents orphan pages, keeps crawl paths shallow, and preserves a consistent hub‑and‑leaf structure as you add new content.
What to do
When you publish a new wave of pages, plan and route internal links as part of the launch, not as a follow‑up task. Start by assigning each page a single primary hub based on topic and intent. From that hub, add at least one prominent contextual link into the new page, ideally from an existing section that already attracts traffic and internal authority.
Next, define the page’s outbound linking pattern. Link back up to the hub using a consistent anchor that reflects the hub’s core topic, then add a small cluster of links to closely related leaf pages that cover adjacent questions or deeper detail. Finally, include 1–2 links to your key conversion or product pages so users and crawlers have a clear path from discovery content to action pages.
Document these decisions in your internal linking map as you go. For each new URL, record its hub, inbound sources, outbound targets, and role in the journey. This keeps your hub‑and‑leaf model coherent across waves, avoids accidental orphaning, and makes future audits, Radar scans, and expansions much easier to run.
What to keep in mind
New page wave routing works best when you already have a defined hub‑and‑leaf model and an up‑to‑date internal linking map. If your structure is unclear or you have many legacy orphan pages, stabilize the existing architecture first so you can apply consistent rules to new content.
Not every new page should receive the same link density. High‑value, evergreen pages can justify more prominent links from hubs and navigation, while narrow or experimental topics may only get a few contextual links from relevant leaves. Over‑linking every new page from your strongest hubs can dilute topical focus and confuse both users and search engines.
Routing also depends on crawl budget and site size. Large sites should prioritize linking new pages from sections that are already frequently crawled and avoid deep, isolated paths that require many clicks from any hub. Smaller sites can be more flexible, but still benefit from clear rules for how many links go up to hubs, across to siblings, and down to more specific leaves.