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Although a website is a completely abstract entity, it follows many of the principles of material reality. Namely, a website performs best in the outside world if it is able to “hold together” according to its own internal structure. This is a simplified way of explaining the importance of a “tightly-knit” link structure for your website.
Designed properly, a user on your website should, from any page, be able to find any other page on your website in two clicks or less. If your website contains information on a relatively wide range of topics, however, the user should have easiest access to other pages on the site related to the type of information he/she is currently investigating.
The simplest link structure is a hierarchical one. In other words, the deeper you drill down into the larger category structure of a site, the more links you are presented with, which direct explicitly to the type of informaion you are seeking.
Another way to create a link structure is relational in nature. Rather than adhering to a strictly hierarchical structure, a relational structure contains links on every page which are loosely associated with the topic of the page in question. Relational link structures are more fluid in nature, and consequently, more difficult to actualize.
The simplest and least effective technique is the “global link structure.” In the extreme case, every page would be exactly the same except for the shifting content. Headers, left/right nav bars, and footers remain the same, linking to the same global categories no matter where you are in the site’s architecture.
Getting the perfect link structure for your website is a difficult, though highly desirable goal. If you would like assistance in building a well structured site, or feel that your current one needs improvement, contact informationarchiTECH for a free consultation.
