The missing link
Creating links > Link to other pages on group websites, including products, services, FAQs and biographies. > When referring to presentations and archive webcasts, provide links. > Create “new window” links to websites of other companies mentioned, to prevent the user leaving the site completely. > Link to background on terms that aren’t included in notes to editors. If you don’t approve of Wikipedia’s version, invest in developing an industry-leading glossary. > Annotate references to past events with a hyperlink date direct to the statement, for example (09/06/2005).
Think about expressions such as: > “As part of our commitment to invest $X in Y over the next five years...” When was the commitment was first announced? Was a strategy outlined at the time? > “At the interims I announced the start of a strategic review…” Link to that statement and presentation. > “Owing to the recent decline of X…” Could this be illustrated with a chart and sourced? > “We expect to recommend a full year dividend in line with our policy...” Link to where it can be found so as to help readers unfamiliar with the policy.
Implementation > Anyone involved in the drafting of the release can do it. Simply add the hyperlinks in Word before converting to a PDF. > Be sure to test hyperlinks before distribution; no links is better than dead links. > When uploading to the website, ensure the links conform to the site’s linking format. It is customary for links to proprietary content to open in the same window, links to external sites in a new window.
Search engines > Internal links are among the most overlooked aspects of search engine optimization. > Done properly, an internal linking structure, which uses key word phrases as hyperlinks, can drastically improve page rankings. > Don’t overdo it. A page pointing to one other page has more weight than if it points to thousands.
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