SEO involves a vast array of elements. Content, keywords, link building, and more – and trying to juggle all of these can be difficult. The wide scope of SEO also means you can easily overlook certain aspects – one such case is SEO breadcrumbs.
What are SEO breadcrumbs? How important are breadcrumbs for SEO? And, more importantly, how can you successfully implement a breadcrumb SEO strategy? We answer all of these frequently asked questions – and more – below!
Breadcrumbs SEO: What Is It?
Let’s start from the beginning of breadcrumbs SEO. Have you ever heard of a breadcrumb trail? It was popularised in Hansel and Gretel, and its legacy lives on – at least in some small way – with breadcrumbs SEO. As you may gather from its inspiration, breadcrumbs are a website navigational feature.
The trail of breadcrumbs, however, takes the form of website links. These are typically displayed towards the top of a website, below the navigation bar, to give users an easy way to track their current position on a site.
Here’s a quick example of breadcrumbs in action:
Homepage > Blog > On-Page SEO > What Are SEO Breadcrumbs?
Look familiar? That’s because you can see it at the top of this very page! These breadcrumbs display how you got to this current page and make it effortless for you to backtrack if you need to. Simply put, they’re a handy UX feature that makes it easier for users to navigate a website.
Different Breadcrumb Types
That’s right – it’s important to note there isn’t just one breadcrumb type. In fact, there are multiple options – and here are the most common breadcrumbs:
- Hierarchy-based breadcrumbs: This is the most common breadcrumb type and is the one used in our example above. It shows users their current position in your site structure, including how to get back to previous sections.
- Attribute-based breadcrumbs: An e-commerce store will often use this breadcrumb type, as it displays the attributes clicked on by a user. Example: Home > Men > Coats & Jackets > Denim
- History-based breadcrumbs: Effectively, this breadcrumb type acts like a browser history, where it shows the different pages a user has visited on a website. Example: Blog post 3 > Home > Blog post 1 > Blog post 2 > Current page
You now know about breadcrumbs and the different types to use. Next, you might wonder, what is the link between breadcrumbs, SEO and your website’s search ranking performance?
Let’s take a closer look.
Do Breadcrumbs Help SEO?
Are breadcrumbs good for SEO? Is breadcrumb important for SEO? These are common questions we receive regarding the whole subject of breadcrumbs Yoast SEO strategy. For a wholesale answer, our response is a resounding yes.
With breadcrumbs, SEO performance is enhanced in numerous ways. Here are the main ways it helps to improve your website’s standing with those all-important search engines:
Enhanced UX
When you improve your website’s user experience design, it naturally comes with advantages. This is the case when breadcrumbs are used. With the enhanced navigation it provides, users are much less likely to get lost while browsing your site.
This ease of navigation keeps your users happy. They won’t get frustrated when searching for a way to return to a previous page. The result: they stick around for longer – an important metric when Google ranks your site’s overall performance.
Reduced Bounce Rates
Extending on from the previous point, another answer to the commonly queried ‘are breadcrumbs important for SEO?’ question is that they help to reduce bounce rates.
Think about it: organic search is the main way new users will find your website. That means they might land on blog posts or product pages rather than your homepage. Due to this, you must provide them with a guide to reach other areas of your site – particularly if their requirements haven’t been met by the initial page they landed on.
They Make Google Happy
If you want to know why a breadcrumb SEO strategy is important, look no further than this particular benefit. Google loves breadcrumbs; it uses them as a factor when contextualising and categorising content.
To further display how enamoured it is with breadcrumbs, Google even incorporates them into its search results. It does so because breadcrumbs are used to help potential visitors further understand your content and decide if it meets their needs before clicking through to your site.
With that said, you cannot expect breadcrumbs to simply appear in Google SERPs. You have to utilise structured data – which is where the Yoast SEO breadcrumbs feature can help.
Breadcrumbs Yoast SEO: How to Add Breadcrumbs with Yoast
You know what is breadcrumbs in SEO terms. Now, it’s time to learn how to add breadcrumbs to your website. The good news is there are various ways to add these all-important breadcrumbs. For instance, WordPress boasts numerous all in one SEO breadcrumbs plugins, and one of the most effective is Yoast SEO.
With its support for breadcrumbs, Yoast SEO is an excellent way to implement breadcrumbs on your website – especially if you already use this tool for your SEO efforts. The Yoast SEO breadcrumbs feature isn’t just to incorporate this function into your website, either. It has all the necessary support required to get your breadcrumbs set up for Google.
Of course, if you don’t want to use the Yoast SEO breadcrumbs feature for whatever reason, other alternatives are available that will supply you with the breadcrumb-related benefits you desire.
Breadcrumbs Mistakes to Avoid
You cannot simply add breadcrumbs without any planning. Do this, and it could lead to more problems than positives.
With this in mind, here are some mistakes to avoid:
- Don’t be obtrusive: Yes, you want your breadcrumbs to be easy to find. However, it’s important to get their placement and text size right.
- Avoid a duplicate navigation bar: If you mimic the navigation bar with your breadcrumbs, it serves no additional purpose.
- Use the right breadcrumbs type for your site: You’ve seen the breadcrumb types available in the section above. Ensure you select the one that’s most appropriate for your website.
Avoiding these easy mistakes gives you the best chance of maximising the performance of your breadcrumbs – and by extension, your SEO strategy.
Naturally, this can all be rather complicated for beginners or those who don’t have the time to tackle the task. If that’s you, fear not; our experts can help. Whether you have a question or two or need assistance with an entire SEO strategy for your website, our knowledgeable gurus have got your back – so don’t hesitate to get in touch!
