Broken Website Links Mean Broken Business | VIS® Australia

Broken Website Links Mean Broken Business

Broken Links

Just imagine… someone invites you to their house. But…when you reach there, you find the door is locked. Nobody’s home!

This is exactly how someone visiting your website would feel if they click to a certain page to find some information, but are unable to access.

It is understandable that business websites need to be updated frequently. However, many people fail to take a careful measure while removing website pages, or changing URL details.

When you update your URL, or delete a certain webpage, if the broken link is left in its place. However, there’s high possibility that those links are either already indexed by Google or are linked to other social media or bookmarked by visitors.

When your clients and prospects visit the changed webpage, they’re taken to the infamous ‘404 Error’ page.

404 Page Not Found

So, what happens when they refer to that link in future? Only a broken link is left in its place. It might not seem a big deal but believe it – it is a great turn-off for your users because you are not creating a positive experience for them.
Such bad user experience will eventually hurt the reputation and damage the integrity of the website and in turn, the brand.

That’s why Broken links mean broken business opportunity!

Below is an explanation – why broken links are bad for businesses and how broken links affect your website performance and your SEO.

1) You tend to lose out your clients and customers

You saw this amazing ad about Christmas offer – And you click on the ad.
But this is what you get to see- ‘A Broken Link!’

How disappointing is that? Surely, your clients will lose interest in your website and then in your products. They will immediately switch to another better option if they can’t find what they’re looking for, meaning losing a potential customer.

2) It causes frustration and irritation

Client Frustration

Nothing is more frustrating than finding a link you are trying to access is broken. The users’ faith and trust in your website and brand will diminish as they find your website is less reliable and stable.

3) It will hurt your conversion rates

How many of you have skipped making a purchase decision just because of a broken link provided in the site or any other sources? For sure, you have skipped at least once.

Do you then check for other ways to purchase the products? Or, an easy escape would be switching to other options?

Same is the case when other visitors encounter your link broken, the purchase won’t be made. As a result, conversion can’t be made which can negatively affect your conversion rate.

4) It negatively impacts your SEO

What are search engines for? – to provide your users with the best and most relevant information possible. For online businesses, it is more than important to have the correct links on every channel. But broken links on your website results in your site being less likely to show up in the SERPs. This damages your website reputation which will ultimately hurt your search engine rankings. As a result, your website will be less likely to rank better in the search results.

How do you Identify Broken Links?

Broken Link analysis is a must to have high rankings in the search engine. Broken link checkers such as Google Analytics, Google Webmaster, etc help you to identify broken links. An instant fix of these broken links means improved search rankings, and increased web traffic. Making it more desirable and likeable to be shared by others.

We hope this article was helpful to you.

If you are still confused when it comes to SEO and website maintenance, book your 30-minutes FREE Consultation at https://bit.ly/2GgBJ3k.

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