What Are Breadcrumbs & Why Do They Matter For SEO?

What Are Breadcrumbs In SEO?

Breadcrumbs are automated internal links that allow users to track their location on a website and their distance from the homepage.

You’ll usually find them at the top of a website or just under the navigation bar.

Just like internal links, they help keep users on a website and help them find the information they are looking for. If they feel disoriented, they can use breadcrumbs links to go one level up and continue their journey on the website rather than clicking a browser’s back button.

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4 Common Types Of Breadcrumbs

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1.???? Hierarchy-Based Breadcrumbs (a.k.a., Location-Based Breadcrumbs): The most common type of breadcrumbs that tell users where they are in the site structure and how to get back to the homepage.

For example: Home > California > San Francisco

2.???? Attribute-Based Breadcrumbs: These breadcrumbs are commonly used on e-commerce sites to show what attributes the user has clicked.

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3.???? Forward Or Look-Ahead Breadcrumbs: This type of breadcrumb not only shows the user’s current path within a website’s hierarchy but also provides a preview of the next steps they can take.

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4.???? History-Based Breadcrumbs: This type of breadcrumb is rarely used and shows users what other pages on the site they have visited, similar to a browser history.

For example, if you were searching for SEO news and read three different articles, the breadcrumbs might look like this: Home > SEO article 1 > SEO article 2 > Current page.

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4 Common Mistakes When Using Breadcrumbs For SEO

1.???? Don’t Go Too Big or Too Small – Aim For Just Right

2.???? Don’t Just Repeat Your Navigation Bar

3.???? Don’t Ditch Your Navigation Bar In Favor Of Breadcrumbs

4.???? Use The Right Type Of Breadcrumbs

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How To Implement Breadcrumbs In WordPress

Breadcrumbs are an incredibly useful navigation element for both users and search engines — and they are easy to add to your site.

·?Use Yoast SEO: If you already use Yoast, adding breadcrumbs will only take a few steps. Simply log in and follow these steps to implement breadcrumbs.

·?WordPress Plugins: If you use WordPress, there are several plugins that can add breadcrumbs in a few steps. I like Breadcrumb NavXT because it is easy to implement and generates locational breadcrumbs that can be customized as needed.

· WooCommerce Breadcrumb Plugin: If you have an e-commerce site that uses WooCommerce, consider using their breadcrumb plugin, which allows you to restyle the built-in WooCommerce breadcrumbs.

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Finally, your site builder or WordPress theme might have a built-in breadcrumb feature.

Shopify, Wix, or Squarespace sites have built-in features you can enable on their settings page.