The Importance of Linking in Web Design

Without links, there would be no World Wide Web. The very nature of the Internet means that a majority of the time, users navigate from page to page by clicking on links instead of typing in URLs.

By paying attention to links while designing and maintaining your site, you can create user-friendly pages and build credibility with search engines. Both internal and external links can help bring new visitors to your site and keep them there.

Internal Links

Linking among the pages on your site is the best thing you can do to help visitors find their way around. Think of your internal links as guideposts that show your users where to go next.

If you have content on your site that you want your users to see, make links to that content obvious. Do you want users fill out a contact form? Then point them to that form through a clear, linked call to action. Do you want them to upload content? Make uploading easy through large buttons and clear instructions.

Think through every link on your site carefully. While too few links may discourage people from using your site because they can’t navigate easily, too many links may confuse and overwhelm them.

External Links

External links are links from other sites that direct users to your site. While internal links are more important to users than to search engines, external links are usually more important to search engines than to users. When other sites link to your site, search engines look at those links as votes of confidence. The reasoning goes that if people like your site enough to link to it, then your content is probably relevant. And the more relevant your site seems for a particular term, the higher it will be in the search rankings.

Today’s search engines are smart enough to know that not all links are equal. Search engines place a higher premium on links from sites that have higher search rankings. For example, a link to your site from CNN is going to be exponentially more valuable than a link from your cousin’s blog or a directory that lists hundreds of unrelated sites. As a general rule, the harder the link is to obtain, the more valuable it is.

Getting external links is one of the most tedious things a Web designer can do, but it is also one of the beneficial. Obtain more external links by following these tips:

• Create valuable content
  Write lists, blogs with insightful analysis, articles with new information, white papers or case studies. If your content is good enough, others will want to link to it.
• Reach out to other Web masters
  If you’d like to request a link from another site, take the time to write a personal email to the site’s Web developer explaining why he should link to your site and thanking him for his time.
• Submit your site to directories
  The Web contains thousands of directories that you’ve never heard of. Don’t waste time submitting to directories that obviously exist just to get websites higher search rankings. Remember that the hardest directories to submit to usually provide the most search engine value.
• Get creative
  There are dozens of ways to build links. Comment on blog posts, participate in a forum, review products, write articles for online and print publications or present yourself as an industry expert. Just be careful to only use ethical link building practices. If you’re trying to hide what you’re doing from Google, you probably shouldn’t be doing it.

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