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Provide Context in Link Text and Surrounding Text
Readers use links as guideposts when scanning, so take full advantage of them and word your link text appropriately. Effective link text also creates adequate context for readers and reduces the likelihood of readers becoming disorientated.
This additional information helps readers understand where each link leads and why it was chosen.
Weave Link Text into Sentence Structure
Make the text of the link meaningful and part of the natural syntax of the sentence.
Do not make the link text refer to the mechanism of the online display tool, as in “click here” or “go here”. On exception is where the reader needs to see the URL of the web document.
Note that using a list of links is usually preferable to embedding links in the text. Placing links at the end of a topic is also preferable.
Choose Key Words or Phrases for Link Text
Choose key words or phrases in text that best represent the content of the destination.
Choose and Appropriate Length for Link Text
A link that is the length of a complete sentence is too long and difficult to read. One to three words usually works best, as long as those words are context-rich. Using more words is acceptable if they provide helpful context.
Write Scannable Link Text
Write links as though your reader were scanning only the links on the page. As the eye processes the page, it jumps to the links, so make them self explanatory and scannable.
Make Link Text Conceptually Similar to Titles or Headings
Check that the text of all or most of the links in the topic are conceptually similar to the title or heading of the associated destination.
Use consistent wording for the link text that leads to the same link destination, if possible. For example, if you have a Feedback Form link at the top of your page, do not then have a Feedback Page link elsewhere in the same document.
Do Not Use Quotation Marks around Link Text
Quotation marks around link text unnecessarily clutter the text.
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