Websites with illogical URLs can not only confuse a website's visitors, it can also confuse search engines as well. Which one of these URLs tells a better story of what's behind the link?
- URL 1: https://blockbuster-movies.com/most-popular/2015/romantic-comedies/
- URL 2: https://blockbuster-movies.com/movies/display?=romanticComedies
In the case of URL 1, the website address clearly demonstrates that the web page will most likely display a list of the most popular romantic comedies of 2015.In the case of URL 2, the user wouldn't be able to logically deduce the content behind the link. If given a choice between URL 1 and URL 2, most users would click URL 1 because they feel more confident that the page will be relevant to the topic due to the structure and use of keywords in the URL.Google has always utilized a web page's URL in the search algorithm and now they are taking things a step further by helping users decipher these URLs in an effort to make them feel even more confident that they are going to be directed to a web page that is relevant to their search.Here's what Google has said, straight from the Official Google Webmaster Central Blog:
Well-structured URLs offer users a quick hint about the page topic and how the page fits within the website. To help mobile searchers understand your website better when we show it in the mobile search results, today we’re updating the algorithms that display URLs in the search results to better reflect the names of websites, using the real-world name of the site instead of the domain name, and the URL structure of the sites in a breadcrumbs-like format.
Here's an illustration of what the new search results would look like. It is also important to note that these updates will only be reflected in the mobile search. To read more about why catering to mobile search users, read our blog about Google's latest search algorithm update favoring mobile-friendly websites.
Along with this update, Google is introducing support for Schema (Read: What is Schema.org Structured Data?).If you don't have a responsive website, know how to edit your web page URLs with the proper redirection techniques, or know how to implement schema into your website - it's time to hire a developer.
