Anchor links are helpful in web pages where the length of articles is considerably high. It is a way to enhance the user experience and it is also a fundamental aspect of web development. It reduces the hassle of excessive scrolling, scrolling aimlessly and fatigue in reading. In this article we will understand more about anchor links.
As we have understood that anchor links act as a gateway to the same web page content. These anchor links are elements of HTML. With the usage of these elements a user can jump to a specific part of the content or a different content entirely. This enhances the navigation of the article.
Anchor text helps a lot when dealing with Google Search. With the help of anchor texts you can actually increase the rate of appearance of your web page in the google search results. This happens by using multiple anchor texts and associating them with relevant content. Suppose if you highlight “cute cats” and then link it with a cat web page, google will think that the particular phrase “cute cats” mean that the person wants to go to a cat page and therefore next time if a person searches “cat” on google search then your web page related to cats is most likely to be shown.
The working of anchor links depends on two things, namely, anchor and link. The anchor is the text which when clicked transfers the user to that desired section. The link is the address to the destination section in which the user is trying to go. When we add an anchor link to our web page, the anchor text gets highlighted which when clicked leads to the desired section.
Imagine a long content without being able to navigate. It is very hard to find out where and what exactly we are looking for. Even if there is a “Table of Content” present, we cannot exactly tell how long we have to scroll in order to reach that section. Earlier web pages were used to be made in this manner only.
But after the implementation of anchor links, navigation has been made easier within the web page since it allows the users to quickly jump to the content they have been looking for. It turns off the need for excessive scrolling, wastage of time and effort and fatigue in reading.
It is highly recommended that contents with multiple pages or with extensive material apply anchor links and make their content better and efficient.
Who doesn’t love an organized presentation? Whether it is a room, a desk or your web page. Therefore, it is very important to structure your data, organize it and make it presentable for the user. When you organize your content, your article becomes more presentable to the user and hence enhances the user experience. It enhances the readability of the content and makes sure that the user gets the most out of it.
When the data is unstructured, the user tends to face the fatigue of reading the entire content and it reduces the accessibility to the entire content.
For instance, consider that someone is looking to solve their problem, say X and your content has the solution to the problems A, B & X. If your content is not organized, the user might have to go through searching the solution of X by reading firstly A, then B and then X. Every user is not this patient which might lead to them leaving the website and going to some other. This affects the credibility of the content, and even though our content had the solution for X, we still lost a user. On the other hand, if we had the solution organized, The user just had to click on the required problem and the solution would be in front of them within a few moments. Structured data answers the user promptly.
Therefore, it is very important to make sure that your content is well organized and the usage of anchor links is done properly.
When the data is unstructured, the user tends to face the fatigue of reading the entire content and it reduces the accessibility to the entire content.
For instance, consider that someone is looking to solve their problem, say X and your content has the solution to the problems A, B & X. If your content is not organized, the user might have to go through searching the solution of X by reading firstly A, then B and then X. Every user is not this patient which might lead to them leaving the website and going to some other. This affects the credibility of the content, and even though our content had the solution for X, we still lost a user. On the other hand, if we had the solution organized, The user just had to click on the required problem and the solution would be in front of them within a few moments. Structured data answers the user promptly.
Therefore, it is very important to make sure that your content is well organized and the usage of anchor links is done properly.
Other than the two major advantages, anchor links also offer a beautiful aesthetic to the web page and provide a clean, minimal look to the content. The scrolling needed to do reduces and therefore it provides a good impact to the user. Every article is an opportunity to develop trust in a person. If a person is happy, they might look up your website again for other contents.
Usually it is always advised to use anchor links, but at times where the content is very small (one or two pages long), you may not use an anchor link.
Anchor links can be used in your main content and other contents of the same website as well. Anchor lines act as a gateway to all the other contents of your website and this helps you to increase your reach and enhances the visibility of other contents as well.
Did you know that anchor links affect search engine optimization? When we use An anchor link in our content we are increasing its visibility to the user and not only this, we are also increasing the visibility of other contents to the user as well. Anchor links are applied by using internal links within a website. This increases the link equity throughout the website and it increases the visibility of the key content.
For example if you consider the phrase “how to make a delicious food with tomato and rice” and then link “tomato and rice” to a relevant web page, Google will dedicate that web page to the highlighted keywords and therefore the next time if someone searches for those keywords then the highlighted web page is most likely to be shown.
In short, you can always for this formula:
Relevance + Diversity + Naturalness = Effective Anchor Text
While implying the Anchor link, the developer must be clear about the target link. The target link should be of relevance to the current section where the anchor text is written and thereafter the anchor link is applied. For example, If we are talking about “oranges”, an anchor link to “how to peel oranges” would be more suitable. However, if you imply an anchor link to some other irrelevant stuff in this content, it will become a joke rather than conveying any information. Therefore, relevance is the most important thing in anchor links.
Double check the links which are applied to the anchor link. Many times it has been found that the required anchor links are not leading to their correct destination and some anchor links are not even opening at all. These are big blunders and instantly destroy the credibility of the website. They create an ignorant reputation of the website.
While implementing anchor links, it is on the choice of the developer and the owner of the website if they want to imply smooth scrolling or not. Smooth scrolling is an aesthetic extension to the overall website which gives us a scrolling look whenever the person touches the anchor link. Basically, whenever you touch the anchor link, the website automatically scrolls till you reach that particular content. Technically it is a bit intensive and therefore some low end mobile device users may not like this feature, but it is completely optional.
It is important to understand what are the efficient ways of using an anchor link because it will be a gateway to an entire section or a complete content. It cannot be taken for granted.
For instance, if you want to link a content Which informs on how to correctly peel an orange you can use anchor texts like, “properly peel the orange”. Do not use generic phrases like “Click Here” or “Read More”. Technically it is not wrong to use generic phrases, but it destroys the uniqueness of the content and therefore it should be avoided. Make it a thumb rule.
Here is a basic format of writing and anchor text in html programming language:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang=”en”>
<head>
<meta charset=”UTF-8″>
<meta name=”viewport” content=”width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0″>
<title>Anchor Tag Example</title>
</head>
<body>
<!– Anchor tag with anchor text –>
<a href=”https://www.example.com” target=”_blank”>Visit Example Website</a>
</body>
</html>
Following are some of the basic templates of every anchor text type in SEO. You can also take help of the examples. :
<!– Exact match anchor tag –>
<a href=“https://www.example.com/buy-shoes” target=“_blank”>buy shoes</a>
<!– Partial match anchor tag example –>
<p>Learn more about our <a href=“https://www.example.com/services” target=“_blank”>digital marketing services</a> to improve your online presence.</p>
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang=”en”>
<head>
<meta charset=”UTF-8″>
<meta name=”viewport” content=”width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0″>
<title>Branded Anchor Tag Example</title>
<style>
.branded-link {
color: #3498db; /* Brand color */
text-decoration: none;
font-weight: bold;
}
.branded-link:hover {
color: #2980b9; /* Darker brand color for hover */
text-decoration: underline;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<!– Branded anchor tag –>
<a href=”https://www.example.com” class=”branded-link” target=”_blank”>Visit Example’s Official Site</a>
</body>
</html>
<!– Naked URL Anchor Tag –> <a href=“https://www.example.com” target=“_blank”>https://www.example.com</a>
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang=”en”>
<head>
<meta charset=”UTF-8″>
<meta name=”viewport” content=”width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0″>
<title>Generic Anchor Tag Example</title>
</head>
<body>
<!– Generic anchor tag –>
<a href=”URL_HERE” target=”_blank”>LINK_TEXT_HERE</a>
</body>
</html>
<!– Anchor tag with an image –>
<a href=”https://www.example.com” target=”_blank”>
<img src=”https://www.example.com/image.jpg” alt=”Example Image” style=”width:200px;height:100px;”>
</a>
<!– Long-tail anchor tag with descriptive anchor text –>
<a href=”https://www.example.com/best-practices-for-seo-optimization” target=”_blank”>
Learn the Best Practices for SEO Optimization to Improve Your Website’s Search Engine Ranking
</a>
Anchor text and hyperlink are very different from each other.
Anchor text is a part of the hyperlink. It is the part of the content which is visible to the person reading the web page. A person clicks on the anchor text in order to land to the other directed web page.
Hyperlink on the other hand is a part of the code which is used to link between the targeted website and the current web page. it embeds the anchor text within itself. The programmer programs a hyperlink into the entire html code and therefore the anchor text is visible on the web page which when clicked it takes the user to the targeted website.
With the help of a code we can understand that what is an anchor text and what is a hyperlink:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang=”en”>
<head>
<meta charset=”UTF-8″>
<meta name=”viewport” content=”width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0″>
<title>Anchor Tag Example</title>
</head>
<body>
<p>With the help of a code, we can understand what is an anchor text and what is a hyperlink:</p>
<!– Anchor tag with anchor text and hyperlink –>
<a href=”https://www.example.com” target=”_blank”>This is an anchor text linking to Example Website</a>
</body>
</html>
In this article we learnt about all the things that are needed for an anchor link. We understood the way anchor links work, how to manage them efficiently, what are the things that we should focus on while adding a hyperlink. With all the basic understanding and the programming knowledge from our article, a good anchor link can be applied to the required content. Also, don’t forget that SEO plays a key role along with the Anchor Link.
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