Hahaha. Wishful thinking.
They’re just Sitelinks.
They have nothing to do with the status of any web site and everything to do with Google’s search results and their users - the surfers conducting searches.
Webmasters would like to think that the occurrence of Sitelinks bestows a certain status upon their humble web site and that some how, in some way, they’re directly responsible.
Arrogance?
Ignorance?
Maybe a little of both.
How does Google compile the list of links shown below some search results?
The links shown below some sites in our search results, called sitelinks, are meant to help users navigate your site. Our systems analyze the link structure of your site to find shortcuts that will save users time and allow them to quickly find the information they’re looking for.
We only show sitelinks for results when we think they’ll be useful to the user. If the structure of your site doesn’t allow our algorithms to find good sitelinks, or we don’t think that the sitelinks for your site are relevant for the user’s query, we won’t show them.
C’mon now - let’s look at this realistically. Google initially displayed site links for the larger, more popular sites. Stands to reason. Try something new and collect a bit of data regarding the use before using it on a larger scale (as they are now).
This has led to the illusion to some that Google would only display sitelinks for larger, more important sites (read = “authority sites”).
It’s really simple if you just take a moment to look at the overall picture, that is if your head isn’t too swollen. I’m sure you realize that sitelinks are predominantly displayed when a surfer searches for a particular company, site or product. It stands to reason that if you’re searching for a particular site that the additional links displayed might be of use to you.
Google tells you up front that they’re shortcuts designed to save users time and help them find the information they might be looking for, and if they are not relevant to the searchers query, they won’t be displayed.
If you some how think that because sitelinks are displayed when a person searches for your domain or company name you’re on the same playing field as Yahoo!, DMOZ, Microsoft, or the Philadelphia Museum of Art, you’re sadly mistaken.
Please, tell me how this makes Fuzzuck.com an “authority” or affords me any special status with Google?
Seems a little ridiculous once you’re grounded, doesn’t it?
Update: Since sitelinks come and sitelinks go, the above example may not be a very good one. But I can ask the same question about this example.
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March 14th, 2008 at 2:04 pm
Pingback from Dirsensei Web Directory Blog » Blog Archive » Google Sitelinks For Web Directories
March 1st, 2008 at 10:23 am
aviva
Good article, and I agree completely. However, I do think that in earlier times, when Google “displayed site links for the larger, more popular sites” it did mean something. Also, if you’ve got a generic category domain - e.g. widgets.com - getting sitelinks for the term “widgets” is very helpful as it pretty much fills the SERPs above the fold with links to your website.
March 11th, 2008 at 1:41 am
JamieG
The points are clearly made out but I wonder if it had only remained a chosen few that were given this navigational status would it have been the same story?
Would the avivadirectory’s of this world, who if I’m not mistaken, were the primary abusers of Page Rank, have taken advantage of this status and used it as a selling point as they did high PR?
That’s not an accusation or aspersion on avivadirectory, because for all intent and purpose they claim to have cleaned up their act? It’s just a logical though.
I suppose we will never know now because there are so many people working it out how easy it is to get this status and that as sure as eggs are eggs is going to make Google rethink yet again.
I looked at the link that claims to make fuzzuck an authority btw, it did not show you as being one?
March 11th, 2008 at 8:19 pm
Fuzzuck
Hi JamieG - there is no status associated with sitelinks.
Other than slighting Aviva Directory have you ever contacted any one there?
As for Fuzzuck.com’s sitelinks, they come and go and I’m not sure that I claimed they make Fuzzuck any sort of an authority?