Footer links have always been a controversial topic in the world of SEO. While some think they are necessary for high ranks, others believe they could really harm your site’s SEO.
So, what’s the truth? Are footer links bad for your SEO?
By reading on, learn more about footer links and whether or not they affect your SEO.
Definition of footer links
To understand and examine if footer links are bad for SEO, first, let’s define what footer links are. Footer are the links present at the bottom of a website’s main page or each individual page. Footer links are also known as boilerplate links or sitewide links.
Footer links are like the unsung heroes of a website – often overlooked but essential to provide the best user experience. They are the small navigational indicators that direct site users to key pages and resources. Footer for SEO can be internal links that link to other pages on your website or external links or backlinks that link to other websites.
Consider footer links as the map and compass that help users make their way through the wide landscape of your website, ensuring they remain interested in the content you have to offer. So, if a user wants to learn more about the “Terms and Conditions” of the website, all you have to do is include a link to it in the footer. This will make it simpler for your users to find the page they want.
Does footer link affect SEO?
Footer help Google determine the value of the information on your page and whether they are there for user guidance or are added just for SEO purposes. Therefore, we can say that website footer links can impact SEO in a positive and in negative way.
Because footer links are frequently used to manipulate search engines, some people think they can harm your site’s SEO. If you add a bunch of irrelevant or low-quality links to your footer, Google may see this as an attempt to manipulate rankings.
However, if used correctly, where you add footer links to enhance the experience of the users visiting your website, Google will see it positively and crawl through it, and you will be able to improve your website SEO.
Types of footer links:
While some footer SEO practices may be manipulative, there are some ways in which footer can be used safely. Here are some footer link types listed that you can use by being under the radar:
• Copyright Details
• License
• Privacy Policy
• Terms and Conditions
• Contact us
• Social Media Info
• Branding
• Achievements
• Reviews
• Recent Articles
• FAQs
How to use footer links to boost SEO in 2023?
As the links in the footer are typically areas of the website that are rarely seen and rarely clicked, they are generally negative for search engines.
Users will engage with the details more if you utilize footer links strategically and include the most crucial ones, which will help your footer link SEO practices. You can follow these steps to optimize your footer.
Make crawling easier through internal linking
Internal links are hyperlinks that link to information on your own website. This help develops your website’s design and makes it easier for the Google bots to crawl your page successfully. If a website is well-constructed with internal links in the footer to index, things are made much easier for Google robots to crawl through the correct content.
It will take less time to search through every page of your website if there are internal links. If the pages are well-indexed and categorized, users who search for terms related to your website will see them on the search engine result page. Additionally, Google bots will search for the appropriate data and support a higher SERP result for your website.
Add more relevant details
As we have said, a footer serves as your website’s map and compass. Whether you make it plain or complex is entirely on you. You can offer simple details that are simpler for the user to find, or you can add more relevant information that would simplify navigation.
The user journey on your website will be improved if more obvious signs and links connect the pages, ultimately improving the user experience. They will stay on your website longer if they have a more enjoyable experience.
Finally, the engagement measure will increase, and when visitors use the internal links to go between pages, it will increase sales of your goods.
Website Footer SEO Best Practices
The bottom part of a webpage is not just meant for the page visitors but also for search engines. The information given in the footer area plays a crucial role in improving the site’s organic SEO. Additionally, it also aims to provide visitors with additional content to enhance the user experience.
Here is some key footer best practices that can enhance your website footer design:
Logo and brand Imagery
Similar to your top navigation, it is advisable to incorporate your brand imagery into your footer navigation. This is a way to connect your business logo design and brand’s value at the end of the page and create a cohesive brand experience for your viewers. Integrate brand imagery in top and footer navigation for a cohesive experience. Encourage users to create a logo, enhancing engagement and reinforcing brand identity.
Effective Site Navigation
You can use the footer to share information about the products or services you offer. The links in the footer are like an alternative way to find your way around the website. They help visitors explore and find out more about what the company does. Thus, you can consider the footer as a safety net for visitors who might not be sure what they are searching for on the website.
Incorporate Contact Information
Adding contact information in an easily accessible way is crucial for establishing trust with your intended audience and showing that you are a real business. To foster trust, think about featuring contact information such as physical address, phone number, email address, or your operating hours.
Include the Frequently Neglected Privacy Policy, Copyright Notice, and Terms of Service
Three of the most often overlooked footer components that should be included on every website’s footer are a copyright notice, a link to your terms of service, and a privacy policy. These components are not just mere legal requirements but add credibility to your brand. And it’s essential to seize every chance to establish trust with your customers.
Easily accessible Support
Many times, visitors turn to your footer when they have any questions before or after buying your service/product. Therefore, it is a good idea to incorporate links to additional support channels like the help center or other online support options, along with contact details.
If your website has a large collection of useful content, you can also think of adding an on-site search box to assist them further.
Highlight Essential Company Information
Your website’s footer can serve as an excellent location to showcase essential company details. This may include links to sections such as the “About US” page, career opportunities, events, press releases, customer reviews, a complete product inventory, category listings, and any important business affiliations.
Add Social Media Icons on the Website
Although many companies place links to their social media buttons in the top portion of their landing page, adopting this approach can result in an increase in bounce rate. This is because it might encourage visitors to immediately navigate to your social accounts before exploring your services.
About 72 percent of websites include social media link icons in their footer, making them a common element in e-commerce website design. However, you need to understand that you include it in the footer not just because you want to follow the crowd but because it serves as social proof that your website is credible.
Call-to-Action
Adding a call-to-action at the bottom of your website is an effective means to improve the quality of your landing page.
A concise and compelling call-to-action that encourages people to engage in actions like signing up via email, requesting a demo, starting a free trial, or seeking consultation is a good way to maintain audience engagement and can significantly boost lead generation.
Examples of Footer Links
You can follow these examples for your website footer:
Amazon
As we know, amazon is a huge website with millions of pages and listings of almost all the products that you can imagine. This gives them the opportunity to add numerous links in their footer.
However, Amazon has created a very relevant footer where they added all the links that cater to the customer’s needs.
Under each footer link, you’ll find neatly organized links, ensuring that site visitors can easily locate the information or services they are seeking.
Apple
While most people commonly associate Apple with products like the iPhone, iPad, and MacBook, Apple has over 50 products and services. This is without counting all the variations of their products and services.
Apple has intelligently organized its footer links into distinct website departments, making it effortless for users to locate the information or services they require.
Apple effectively includes links to every product and service group in its footer, which helps direct users to the products they are interested in and also boosts sales.
Conclusion
Placing links in the footer can be helpful in improving your position on SERP when used correctly. They can genuinely help your SEO if you add relevant, high-quality links to your footer and use them for improving user experience and internal linking. They can, however, affect your SEO if you use them to manipulate search engines. Finally, as with any SEO tactic, it’s all about utilizing footer links in a strategic and thoughtful way.
FAQ
Why use footer SEO?
Footer links can be used as internal links on a website, which can help improve the user experience by helping navigate through the website. Users can easily look for relevant and essential information utilizing footer links.
Is WordPress footer links important?
The WordPress footer is an ideal space to include a new call to action or elements that can enhance conversion. Several WordPress themes are easy to use and make it simpler for users to browse through the website.
Should you add more internal links to your footer?
Internal links can help increase the visibility of your page, but cramming your webpage with too many of them might cause problems. Google won’t crawl your website if there are more than 150 internal links, which could reduce traffic and visibility.
Are Internal Links In Header and Footer Treated Differently?
No, internal links in the header and footer are handled equally. The content area, however, is managed quite differently.
Does the external link in your footer add SEO value?
You should not use external footer links as part of your SEO strategy as they are considered bad, whereas internal footer link can be advantageous. Google tend to assign less value to external links in footers, and an excessive number of such links can have adverse effects on your ranking.
On the other hand, strategically positioned internal footer links enhance the user experience and contribute positively to SEO.
What is fat footer?
The “fat footer” refers to the space located between the primary content and the global footer on websites. This particular content area is optional and not recommended for every website.
