Good and Bad Navigation

The Force may well have worked for Luke Skywalker, but your users are not Jedi’s… They need to be shown a clear, well-defined path they can follow.

Navigate This, if You Can

Keyword prominence and relevance should be your primary concern in terms of creating effective copy for a Web site, but it all starts with the navigation on the site. You have to be clear and concise in your offering. JavaScript has its place, but Google can’t see it. That means that without a site map it can’t index your site; the Googlebot will just get stuck on your home page. Graphical representation of buttons looks great, but Google can’t see the words you added to the graphics, making those links redundant. Simple, honest text links work well for human users and robots. Anything else is actually detrimental to your site and its potential for being ranked.

Irrelevant Navigation

Most Web site design aficionados will sign the praises of keeping the navigation consistent throughout a site to promote familiarity and ease of use, but Google doesn’t need to have its hand held so tightly- in fact, it would prefer it if the navigational options altered as it entered different sections or areas of the site. For example, let’s say you have a B2C and a B2B offering on your Web site. you will always rank higher on Google if the navigation alters with the section of the site users find themselves in. your navigation should always be subject-specific and dense in relevant and related keywords. If I’m in the personal banking section of a Web site, there’s no need to show me your business banking options- they’re irrelevant to me and to Google.

The Three-Click Rule

This dates back to dawn of the Internet but remains true- your user needs to conclude a visit to your site within three clicks of the mouse. If you’re selling products, that third click should be for adding the item to user’s basket. If your site is there primarily to provide information and prospect for new clients, that third click should be to your “contact us” page or to an online inquiry form. If it takes more than three clicks for users to complete their interaction with your site, you must revisit the process.