Google sitelinks began appearing first as a small experiment a few years ago. They now tend to be quite common place. Google introduced them as a quicker way for web users to find specific information. Rather than navigating through a website, you can simply click a sitelink on a search engine results page (SERP) – and go to a specific section (or web page) of a site.
Here is a an example:
You will notice that in addition to the common snippet format (title, short summary and web address), a list of links are shown below the search result. In this case, there are eight (which is the maximum).
Who gets sitelinks?
It appears to be:
1) Sites that tend to be large
2) Sites that get fairly high natural search traffic
3) Sites that have search engine-friendly navigation
4) Sites that have useful information related to user’s queries
5) Sites that have domain names that have been registered long ago
Sitelinks are completely automated by algorithms and determined by Google. Currently, website owners (or webmasters) cannot provide input into the sitelinks appearance or selection process. You can however have a sitelink blocked if you determine it is inappropriate or incorrect.
It is common belief that only the best sites get sitelinks – and that it enhances a website’s visibility and reputation.
How is your site appearing in SERPs?