I’m talking about links today because I know that they’re a constant source of irritation to most if not all internet users. It all too easy to happen across a great website only to find your enjoyment ruined because of a broken link or one that isn’t easy to spot.
Broken Links
On a personal website, a broken link isn’t really a big deal, but on a business website it becomes so much more than just a simple inconvenience or mild frustration; it turns into a very effective customer repellent which is especially costly if the link in question is part of the buying process. A website has only seconds to capture a visitor’s attention, so it’s a shame that if after achieving that, a broken link undoes all the good work by forcing them to leave.
Colour and Underline
As you want links to be easily seen it’s important that they are highly visible. Incorporating them into block copy without changing their colour and underlining them is missing the point entirely because they couldn’t be any more camouflaged if you tried. Links are there to direct visitors where you want them to go so disguising them is defeating the object.
Descriptive Links
It’s always a good idea to tell visitors what kind of information the link will take them to and using click here or more details doesn’t do that, so if for example you sell camping equipment and wanted visitors to look at a particular kind of cooker for instance; instead of click here, you could use something like ‘Discover the latest innovation in portable gas stoves’. Note that there is no need to make the whole line into a link so only ‘portable gas stoves’ is underlined.
Test Regularly
Making links visible is just a matter of common sense and for whatever reasons they can and do break down, however, regular testing means you should be able to pick up on the fault and rectify it fairly quickly. Don’t rely on visitors to report broken links because as soon as they discover one that doesn’t work, their first action will usually be to try and find what they want on another site, so testing is anything but a waste of time if you want them to remain on your site.
Until next time.
