Before a website goes live, many people focus on visual design and functional development, but often overlook the coordination between website structure and columns. In reality, an unreasonable structure can make it difficult for users to find content and for search engines to crawl, leading to high costs for later modifications. So, how should you plan the website structure and columns during the corporate website development phase to ensure effective coordination?
Understanding the Relationship Between Website Structure and Columns
Website structure refers to the hierarchical relationships between pages, such as homepage, primary columns, secondary pages, and content pages. Columns are names that categorize content by theme, such as "Products," "News," or "About Us." The core of their coordination is that the structure should serve the columns, and the columns should clearly reflect content categories while considering user browsing paths and search engine crawler logic.
Generally, a flat structure is more beneficial for corporate websites, allowing users to quickly find information. A flat structure means minimizing the number of clicks from the homepage to content pages, ideally no more than three. It is recommended to keep the number of columns between 5 and 8; too many can cause user confusion, while too few may miss important content.
Three Steps to Plan Structure Before Launch
Step 1: Organize and Group Content
First, list all content that needs to be presented on the website, such as company introduction, products and services, case studies, news, and contact information. Then, group related content into several major thematic categories. At this stage, focus only on the content itself, not on page design.
Step 2: Determine Column Hierarchy
Based on the content groups, define primary and secondary columns. Primary columns are items on the main navigation, while secondary columns are subcategories in dropdown menus or sidebars. For example, under the primary column "Products," you can have secondary columns like "Product A" and "Product B." The hierarchy should not be too deep; two levels are usually sufficient, with a maximum of three.
Step 3: Check Navigation and Page Links
After defining the columns, verify that the navigation is clear, each column has a corresponding page, and pages are reasonably linked. Especially for service pages and product detail pages, ensure they can be accessed from multiple entry points, such as homepage recommendations, column lists, and related recommendations.
Common Considerations in Column Planning
- Avoid overly generic column titles: For example, "Services" might be too vague; consider using "Technical Services" or "After-Sales Services" instead.
- Consider search intent: Users may enter internal pages directly through search, so each page should clearly belong to a column and provide a link back to the parent page.
- Leave room for expansion: If the company plans to add new product lines or services in the future, the column structure should be flexible enough to adjust without a complete overhaul.
Coordination Between Structure and SEO
A well-planned website structure directly benefits SEO. Search engine crawlers navigate between pages through links, and a clear structure makes important pages easier to discover. It is recommended to use breadcrumb navigation so that both users and crawlers understand the current page's position within the site. Additionally, each column should have its own dedicated page rather than stacking all content on the homepage. Column pages can aggregate related content under that category, improving keyword relevance.
It is important to note that columns should not be forced for SEO purposes. Some companies create columns for multiple keywords, leading to overly long navigation and poor user experience. Columns should prioritize user needs, while SEO optimization can be achieved through page content, title tags, internal links, and other details.
Pre-Launch Checklist
- Does every column have a corresponding page? Avoid empty columns or 404 pages.
- Is the navigation simple and easy to understand? Can users find the target column within 3 seconds?
- Is the breadcrumb navigation configured correctly?
- Are the links between pages closed-loop? Are there any orphan pages?
- Do column names match the page content?
Conclusion
The coordination between website structure and columns is essentially a design of information organization. Taking time to plan before launch reduces the workload of later modifications and helps users and search engines quickly understand the website content. It is recommended that companies communicate thoroughly with development and operations teams during the website development phase to solidify the column structure and page relationships, laying a solid foundation for subsequent operations.