Design Guidelines: Links

Links are the backbone of the web. Without them the web would not exist, yet after years there are still some of us that make elementary mistakes when using links. I will take you through a view best practices.

  • First and foremost: Links should be identified as being links. This is one of the biggest mistakes being made when using links.
  • Multiple words can be used to explain a link, but be sure to keep it short (2-3 words are enough).
  • Avoid saying “click here”. This tells the user nothing about where they are heading.
  • Group links that correspond with each other together. This is something a bit more related with Information Architecture but we can all try to take care that we are grouping links right.
  • Clickable images should be indicated as such. A rollover or image border change will suffice.
  • Do not confuse links with menus. Once clicked, it should not present a new set of options. It can/should result in an on-screen change or a new screen/window/tab.

I am sure there are a lot more examples of good practices when it comes to linking, feel free to add some.

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Date Posted

Tuesday, January 8th, 2008

Category

Design Guidelines, Interaction, Usability.

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One Response to “Design Guidelines: Links”

im suden Says:

Differentiate followed and unfollowed links.

Perhaps more contentiously:

Maintain system defaults (i.e. blue and purple). Google does this. This may be slightly anachronistic now: I think users are familiar with web designers who do all sorts of things with links (as it’s pretty easy to style anchors). On the other hand, this may not be a good thing – as ever, simplicity should rule here. Underlining is a solid, easy-to-understand rule.

January 26th, 2008 at 9:31 am

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