Sharing is Caring
Broken links happen for many reasons:
Broken links are bad for both visitors and website owners. When people click on broken links, they feel frustrated. They might leave your website and never come back. Search engines like Google also don’t like broken links. They can lower your website’s rank in search results.
These are links from other websites that point to your site. If these break, you lose visitors who might have come to your website. Often, these break when you:
Now, let’s learn how to find these broken links and fix them!
For larger websites:
To stay on top of broken links:
If the original page is gone forever:
If you can’t find a good replacement:
Sometimes, you really need that specific content:
If the content is important but gone:
It’s a way to send visitors from an old, broken address to a new, working page automatically.
If you use WordPress:
If you use other platforms:
www.yoursite.com/pets/dogs
And you moved it to:
www.yoursite.com/animals/dogs
Your redirect would look like:
Redirect 301 /pets/dogs /animals/dogs
If the broken backlink pointed to content you deleted:
For very important backlinks:
A polite email like this often works:
Subject: Quick update on your link to our website
Hi [Name],
I noticed your website links to our page [old URL], which has moved to a new address. We really appreciate your link! Would you mind updating it to point to [new URL] instead?
This will help your visitors find the content they're looking for.
Thanks for your help,
[Your Name]If many sites link to a page you removed:
If you moved a whole section of your site:
For old content that still gets traffic:
PDF documents are harder to update:
Broken images are also broken links:
These are especially important to fix:
Footer links appear on every page:
When social media platforms link to your site:
Set up tools that check your links regularly:
For large sites, consider tools that help manage links:
Modern CMS systems help prevent broken links:
These services alert you when they find problems:
For businesses and website owners, having a plan helps:
Schedule regular link checks:
Not all broken links are equally important. Prioritize fixing:
Keep records of:
Create rules for your team:
John, the driving force behind Optisite Rocket, spent 10 fulfilling years as the owner of a contracting company, where he honed his skills and developed a deep love for the contracting industry. Seeing the dismal results from hiring many “experts” to build his website and do his SEO, he realized he needed to learn how to do this himself. This allowed him to build a thriving company in his local area. A sudden injury, however, curtailed his ability to continue hands-on work. Undeterred, John now channels his passion into educating and inspiring others. He aims to equip aspiring professionals with the necessary knowledge and tools to excel in this rewarding field.
Even one broken link can hurt your website. But if you have a very large site, try to keep broken links under 1% of all links. Your goal should always be zero broken links.
Yes! Search engines like Google consider broken links a sign of poor quality. Too many broken links can lower your rankings.
Keep redirects active for at least one year, preferably longer. Some experts recommend never removing redirects for important pages.
A 301 redirect is permanent. It tells search engines the move is forever.
A 302 redirect is temporary. Use 301 redirects for moved pages.
Yes. Broken links can sometimes:
Start with the most important ones:
Use these methods to test redirects:
Optisite Rocket, based in Gainesville, GA, propels your business with expert SEO and website design. From Local SEO to Technical SEO, Link Building, and SEO Audits, we ensure your business stands out online.
5745 Field View Cir.
Gainesville, Ga. 30506
Monday - Friday 9:30 am - 4:00 pm