Anyone who has spent any time on the internet has come across breadcrumbs, whether they know it or not. Breadcrumbs are used as secondary navigation on websites, but they hold benefits for SEO, too.
What Are Breadcrumbs?
Breadcrumbs are a navigational element utilized on many websites and are typically located near the top of each page, below the navigation bar or menu.
They tell visitors where they have been on a website and how they got there. For instance, breadcrumbs may display a user’s path from the homepage to the about us page, and finally, to the contact us page.
Multiple types of breadcrumbs exist, including location-based breadcrumbs. Also called hierarchy-based breadcrumbs, this type follows the site structure, telling visitors where they are and how to return to the homepage or a previous page along the site path.
For instance, on a car dealership website, location-based breadcrumbs may look something like this:
Home > Service & Parts > Service Department > Tire Service
Another type, history-based breadcrumbs, simply display each page the user has personally visited in sequence, regardless of how they correlate with the site’s structure.
Thirdly, attribute-based breadcrumbs are based on attributes that users have clicked to arrive at each page of their journey.
Each time a visitor chooses a selection such as a category, that attribute shows up in the breadcrumbs. Users can then backtrack via breadcrumbs if they’ve drilled down too far, or want to revisit previous categories or themes.
Now that you know more about breadcrumbs and what types you can use on your site, let’s understand how they can improve SEO.
SEO Benefits of Using Breadcrumbs
Many people associate website breadcrumbs with improving user experience, or helping visitors navigate a site more easily. That is undoubtedly one benefit of breadcrumbs, but there are SEO advantages as well!
Did you know that since 2018, Google has included breadcrumbs on search engine results pages (SERPs)?
Google uses breadcrumbs to help categorize and contextualize content, which means this optional website feature is more important than ever.
When breadcrumbs show up in SERPs, they help users understand how a page fits within your site, even before visiting the page. This can help improve the click-through rate (CTR) from the search results page.
Lastly, using breadcrumbs may help reduce bounce rate and keep visitors on your site longer. When users can easily revisit previous pages — or discover related content within your site structure or a particular category or attribute — they may linger longer.
Breadcrumbs are just one of the many tools to have in your SEO toolkit. Since they also help enhance user experience, their usage is a no-brainer.
Just remember, breadcrumbs shouldn’t replace your site’s navigation bar, and they should not be identical to the main navigation, either.
For assistance with determining which type of breadcrumbs are ideal for your website and industry, or other SEO tips and tricks, reach out to the experts at fusionZONE Automotive.
