Do I need a link to my blog from the navigation menu?

Dear Sara,
Hoo-hoo! That’s a great question, and I’m here to help you navigate through it.

While having your blog visible in your navigational menus is beneficial, it’s not always necessary if your primary goal is SEO rather than direct promotion (but see point #6 for why I’m not sure you want to write content expressly and solely for SEO vs. to be useful to the reader). Let’s look at a few considerations to help you decide:

1. Crawlability

Search engines need to find and crawl your blog content in order to index that content. Ensuring your blog is linked somewhere on your site (even if not in the main navigation) helps with index coverage. A footer link or sitemap can also suffice.

2. User Experience

Consider your users’ journey. If your blog content provides value and enhances user experience, making it easily accessible can be a plus. Even if it’s not front and center, having a blog link in secondary navigation or in a relevant section can be helpful.

3. Internal Linking

Internal links are crucial for SEO. Ensure your blog posts are linked within your site’s content, directing traffic and link equity to and from relevant pages. This helps search engines understand the structure and importance of your content.

4. Content Discovery

If your blog has valuable content that answers users’ queries, making it discoverable can improve engagement and SEO. Consider featuring some key blog posts on relevant pages rather than hiding the entire blog.

5. Branding and Trust

A blog can build trust and authority in your niche. Even if it’s not a primary promotional tool, accessible content can showcase your expertise and provide additional value to visitors.

6. Helpful Content

It’s essential to create content that is meant for and useful to the user/reader. Google’s Helpful Content Update, now part of their core algorithm, emphasizes the importance of content created with the reader in mind. Writing content “just for SEO” without considering the user’s needs is not recommended by us or by search engines. Ensure your content serves a purpose beyond SEO.

In summary, while it’s not essential to have your blog in the main navigation, it is important to ensure it’s discoverable and well-integrated within your site structure for both SEO and user experience. Think strategically about how and where to place links to your blog content from both your navigation and from within the body copy of your other content.

Happy blogging, and good luck with your SEO journey!

Tot ziens (See you later!),
Yoasie 🦉