|
Article Home
Links and navigation
Links and navigation
This section examines how to build links that search engine spiders can follow.
A good navigation structure makes it easier for search engines spiders and users to browse your website.
If it is easy for users to navigate your site, they will most likely return. If it is easy for search engines to follow your links it is more likely that they will index many of your web pages.
The more web pages you have indexed, the more likely it is that one of them will be found in a search, thus leading a prospect to your website.
Use hyper linking that search engines can follow
Search engine spiders can't follow every kind of link that webmasters use. In fact, the only kind of hyperlinks that you can be certain all search engine spiders can and will follow are standard text-based links.
In HTML code, text-based links are written like this:
Link text
The link will look like this on a web page: Link text
All other forms of links can pose a problem for search engine spiders.
TIP:
If you are using a WYSIWYG editor or content management system, it will usually output the correct HTML code for you when you insert a text link. You can verify that it is indeed a text link by highlighting the link text in your browser. If you can highlight it letter by letter like most other text on a web page, then you should be safe.
Image maps or navigation buttons
Sometimes designers want to use graphics for navigational links. There are two common ways of making graphical links that are very different:
Image maps and Navigation buttons
Image maps can have different areas of one image linking to different web pages. That is a very common way to build top- or side-navigation bars or country maps.
Most search engines do not read image maps, so you should always add additional text-based links on each page for search engine spiders to follow. The text-based links will also be good for visitors who do not use a graphic capable browser, or are surfing with graphics turned off to save bandwidth.
Navigation buttons are single images that each link to a specific web page. Most search engines spiders will follow this type of link. However, if you want to be absolutely sure that all search engines can and will follow all your links, we still recommend adding pure text-based links in addition to any kind of graphical links.
Flash, Macromedia and Java Applets
Flash, Macromedia, and Java Applets have something in common: They all require the user to have a special program installed on their computer to open and play the files. Most new browsers come with the necessary programs installed to play the most common file types. However, search engine spiders usually do not open such files.
We recommend that you do not build your navigation links using any of these techniques. If you do, you should only serve the high-tech version of your website to users that have the right plug-ins installed, and have a low-tech version ready for all other users. The low-tech version should include regular text-based links. This will work well with the search engine spiders as well as the users that do not have these plug-ins installed.
TIP:
If you are using techniques to present navigational links that require the user to have a certain plug-in installed, you can add standard navigation text-links for the search engine spiders to follow in the footer of each web page.
Java Script and DHTML
JavaScript is widely used to perform simple client side operations. The script is loaded into the users' browser along with the HTML and can then be executed without having to contact the server again. That is great for a lot of things like shopping carts and dynamic navigation schemes. However, there is one big problem: Search engine spiders do not read JavaScript!
Thus, do not put important things like your main navigation in Java Script. And if you do, make sure that the same links are also available as standard text-links somewhere on your web pages.
TIP:
If you are using JavaScript or DHTML to present navigational links, you can add standard navigation text-links for the search engine spiders to follow in the footer of each web page.
Non-HTML formats (PDF, MS Word etc)
Even though some search engines have started to read and index non-HTML file formats such as Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, and Adobe PDF (Portable Document Format) files, none of the search engine spiders will follow links within these formats. If you want search engines to follow links on your website, they should always be placed in your regular web pages - your HTML documents.
Do not place text in such formats if you want people to find it in search engines. At least make the content accessible in HTML format too - as a regular web page. Not all search engines will index these non-HTML formats and many will make more errors indexing them.
Website
design company
 |
|
123webguru Articles
Color scheme of the website design
While designing a website, it is important to consider the color scheme that goes into the website design. The color scheme used for your website design ...
Some web technology softwares
There are many softwares available that facilitates website design. You can choose any of them in order to make your website design a success. This article ...
Accepting Credit Cards Online
Most of the websites now a days started to conduct transactions through their websites. Website designing supporting e-commerce features are getting widespread. ...
Essentials for a website development Company
<br>The need for a website design is well known. No business can survive without a website in the current business scenario. Website is the cheapest ...
Do you remember that story about Henry Ford
You've probably know many answers to this question: a good marketeer palces links, bad one - don't, good one makes surveys, bad one - don't, etc. All of ...
Working of World Wide Web
what is World wide Web?
The term "World Wide Web" refers to all of the publicly accessible web sites in the world, in addition to other information ...
|
|
 |
|
 |
 |
|
Testimonials
"A great piece of design work, showing excellent creativity allied to excellent design skills. Will definitely send them more work in the future." Andy
"Excellent work and communication. Will definitely consider for future projects." Jim
|
|
 |
|
