Where to put the site map link? Options

[Jonathan]

Hello.

I notice when I use a bit of code for something, that the originator has their hyperlink in the code. I figure the owner gets a link from whoever uses the code on their site?

Some bits of code only go in the head and they have the originators url too. Does that mean links in the head count? If so...

SITE MAP

Can I put a link to my sitemap in the head section of every page? Will that ensure the site map is the first link found on every page by a spider, without having to display the link at the top of a page?

Much obliged, Jon.

[Black_Knight]

Links in the code are usually there as credit for the author, not for link popularity. They are not typically crawled or counted by spiders. They're just there for those who want to borrow the code to know who wrote it, or where to seek permission to reuse it.

[john928]

I put my sitemap on my index page at the bottom so that the search engines can find it and crawl it just like any other internal link on my site.

[TechEvangelist]

I also add the site map link to the footer, but I include it on every page.

[john928]

I've only got mine on the home page.

[Webby]

Sitemaps have usability function as well as an SEO function so I therefore generally try and get them on everypage. Dont btw feel the need just to have 1 sitemap page. If you have a large site do not cram 100+ links on one page. Have multple sitemaps for example A-C | D-F etc. Or a category sitemap or country sitemap for example for a hotel booking site. Sitemaps should not be in the head but in the body text for the reason Ammon mentions (they don't count or get followed).

Alan

[cre8pc]

For SE crawlers, I'm in the habit of sticking a text link at or near the top of the homepage.

For crawlers and human visitors, I like to also place a text link in the footer of every page. It's a pretty handy page and many people like the convenience of sitemaps, esp. for larger sites or if they're in a hurry.

[Scratch]

I vote for text link at the top of every page, in the header.

Site map is one of those I'm currently thinking up a term for: like About Us (sometimes), Help (often), Contact Us (often), Log in...

I'm currently calling them "free global links" as distinct from Level-one links.

L1 links represent the main sections of your site, such as you'd have on your tabs or main horizontal nav bar. They're peers of each other, and have similar amounts of content in.

Free global links aren't sections of the site in the same way. They're supporting roles, maybe separate microsites, or they're discrete functions or one-pagers.

Does that make sense?

[amjid]

Scratch,

I understand where you are coming from. I think Steve Krug called them 'utility items', while I've heard others call them the 'housekeeping' menu.

I've always had difficulty determining exactly what types of links go there so your description was useful.

I had a big discussion with a collegue today on this topic. He is adament that 'News' go into the 'housekeeping menu'. His thinking is that for the particular site in question, news is a global area. When I suggested making it a Level 1 section, he felt it didn't contain enough content to warrant that position... hmm I'm still of the view it doesn't belong in housekeeping, but can see his point to a certain extent... just don't agree with it :twisted:

Peace

Amjid

[Scratch]

Amjid, I can see both sides of that one.

If News is just the occasional press release, then maybe you could say it's playing a supporting role, it's not really what the main web site is about, and therefore a housekeeping spot is right.

However, if that News is part of the site's core goal / purpose, then only having a small amount of information there shouldn't necessarily keep it from being a full L1 link.

A lot of sites have a one-page About Us or Contact Us as L1, but maybe that applies more to marketing sites where there isn't much competition for L1 spots.

[glyn]

I put a site map at the bottom of every page and I include it in the footer information with the privacy policy, copyright info and contact details. I also have the email address for contact that is never info, webmaster or sales by default and this address either gets stored off-the-page in Javascript or encoded in hex or binary and then recompiled on the fly.

[Scratch]

Hey Glyn, please would you put a tutorial on that (obfuscating email addresses) in the Tutorials section??

[glyn]

Would love to but don't have the time.

ps. I'm sure I'd reallu upset all those hidden text demons as well...sorry cloaking....sorry ip delivery...sorry optimised text....

I'm hoping to relase a book at xmas though so it'll be in that.

[linker]

ps. I'm sure I'd reallu upset all those hidden text demons as well...sorry cloaking....sorry ip delivery...sorry optimised text....

How would that upset those guys

[eitemiller]

Put the link at the top, as close to it as possible. Don't use hidden text or anything, just put it up there. The unfortunate thing one has to think of - this means your users will stumble accross it. Make your sitemap as attractive as possible - yes, it is for the SE's, but your users will see it as well. Do break it up into chuck if it is large - links that go past the 101k mark (text, graphics are not included in that figure) are useless. I also keep mine to 100 links per page or less.

[randfish]

Have to agree with miller.

Having the sitemap link the first spiderable link on my site means that Google returns frequently to that page. Since the sitemap has links to all the other pages, those pages get spidered right away. It's a big help when trying to get new pages listed in the SERPs.