Business owners, who want more from their websites, should always avoid using ‘click here’ as the link text.
The use of action-oriented keywords gets the best results. This is the simplest and easiest way to better your website’s effectiveness, user experience, and SEO rankings. Do not use the term ‘click here’, ever.
There are so many great reasons to never use the term ‘click here’ as your anchor text. (anchor text is the words that make up your link.) However, there isn’t ONE good reason to use it. Pardon my bluntness but using the term ‘click here’ is simply laziness.
Break your click-here habit now. When you’re creating copy on your website, take a minute and think, where am I asking, or suggesting, my readers go? In this article, maybe I want to suggest you read about website strategy. (see what I did there?). This is an excellent example of using action keywords as your linking text.
4 reasons to never use ‘click here’ as your link text, + 1 tip.
#1: More clicks = more business
You get more clicks when you label links with both an action and keywords. Using the combination of action text and keywords quickly relays exactly why the visitor should click. It’s best to use your customer’s most commonly used words (keywords). When you give better clues, It’s human nature to click the link.
Which link above would you click on first? Most all people will click on the ‘Buy Mulch’ link before the ‘click here’ link.
Okay, if getting more clicks (conversions) isn’t enough to convince you to use action words, here’s another:
#2: More website traffic
Using good keywords on your button link helps the search engines better understand how to find product or service information on your website. If they can find it, they will offer your website up in the search results. This then brings more qualified traffic to your website.
The term ‘click here’ disadvantages you by losing a prime opportunity to give search engines more fuel. Using the action puls keyword, ‘buy mulch’, gives the search giants a distinct and accurate clue as to which page on the Internet sells mulch.
Now you have two fantastic reasons to use good-quality keywords as your link text.
- More clicks (conversions)
- More website traffic
Clicks and traffic are measurable so you can document your results with empirical data.
#3 Better ADA accessibility
Clearly using action words as your linking text is a better, more inclusive user experience. People with visual disabilities use screen readers when visiting your website. Using your action words allows them to better purchase, sign up for, or otherwise do business with you.
An excellent website user experience simply is better for business.
#4: Professionalism
Using action keywords is more professional.
A fourth, but less measurable, reason to use action keywords as your hyperlink text, is subtly you’re telling your website visitors, you have a higher level of sophistication and professionalism. It’s part of website psychology and one way we clue our visitors that we are a knowledgeable organization. Professionalism breeds credibility. And credibility is what you ultimately want when trying to better sales results.
A tip
Many of my customers ask, ‘but how will people know it’s a link?” or “where will people know to click?”
These are valid questions. The answer is to make sure to use underlined text as links. This has been an Internet standard from the beginning of the public WWW in 1991.
Bonus tip: Don’t use underlines to emphasize your point, online. It will most certainly be confused with a link. Using underlined text will result in a poor user experience.
This may sound obvious to some, but many of my customers’ expertise is in other fields. This is why there are web designers!
There you have it, four excellent reasons to avoid using the term ‘click here’, plus not only one tip, but a bonus tip too.