As you continue to discover more about WordPress, you may occasionally come across the term blogroll.
A blogroll is a list of hyperlinks pointing to external sites or blogs displayed on your sidebar.
According to official WordPress documentation …
“The term ‘blogroll’ was originally used because it was a list of links to other blogs, but you can include links to any sites.”
You can add a link section using the Links menu in your Dashboard. These links will display on your sidebar or footer if you have added the Links widget.
Before WordPress v 3.5 was released, Links were a built-in feature of the WordPress CMS. After version 3.5, the Links manager and blogroll sections were removed …
Before …
(WordPress Links Manager Feature – pre v.3.5)
After …
(Post v 3.5 – no WordPress Links Manager)
If you’ve had an earlier version than v3.5 installed and updated your installation, the Link Manager would have been removed, unless you’ve previously used it.
How To Add A Link Section To WordPress
You can add a link section to your sidebar menu by creating a custom menu, or use a plugin like the one shown in the tutorial below.
If you can’t see the Links feature when you log into your WordPress admin area you will need to install a plugin. This step-by-step tutorial will show you how to add and manage links on your sidebar using plugins.
Link Manager
(Link Manager Plugin)
Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-manager
Plugin Description
You can use this plugin to restore the default Links feature on your WP dashboard, even if you upgrade WordPress to a later version or remove all of your existing links.
Note: This plugin adds a single line of template code to restore the hidden feature. The last time we checked, this plugin had not been updated for some time, but it should still work fine. If you don’t want to use the Link Manager plugin, then use the plugin below instead, or contact us for help editing your template code.
Simple Links
(Simple Links)
Download URL
https://wordpress.org/plugins/simple-links/
Description
Simple Links recreates the concept of the built-in WP Links Manager while removing the shortcomings of the deprecated feature.
How To Install The Plugin
Let’s install the Link Manager plugin.
In the WordPress dashboard menu, select Plugins > Add New …
(Plugins – Add New)
Select the Install Plugins > Search tab, then type in “link manager” into the search field and hit Enter …
Locate the plugin in the search results screen and click Install Now …
Activate the plugin …
After the plugin is activated, a ‘Links’ section will show up in the WP sidebar menu …
(Links management menu section)
Plugin Setup
Before you start adding any new links, it’s a good idea to first set up your link categories. This way, when adding a new link, you can assign your link to a link category you have already created.
Link Categories
To create a new link category, go to your WP dashboard navigation menu and click on Links > Link Categories …
(Links – Link Categories)
This brings up the ‘Link Categories’ page in your browser.
Enter information into the following fields:
- Name: Enter the category name here.
- Slug: The slug displays in the search-engine friendly URL of the link category name. It must be in lowercase letters and contain no spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display a link category description.
after entering your information, click the Add New Link Category button to save …
(Link Categories)
The link category will display in the list …
(Link Categories page)
Tip: Blogroll is the default link category name. Unless you specify the category when creating a link, WordPress will assign new links to the default category …
(Default link category name is ‘blogroll’)
You may want to change this default link category name to something that will make sense to your visitors. This not only makes it easier for users of your site, but any new links that you add to the Links section will automatically appear under the new category name …
(we recommend changing the default link category name to something your visitors will relate to)
To edit the default category name, hover your mouse over the item and click on Quick Edit …
(Editing the default link category name)
Change both the Name and the Slug with a new category name (remember to keep the slug in lowercase letters and replace all spaces with a hyphen), then click on the Update link Category button …
(Editing the default link category)
In our example, we’ve replaced the category name ‘Blogroll’ with a more suitable name (e.g. ‘Recommended’).
Let’s insert a link category description. To add a link category description, hover over the item name and click Edit …
(Link category description)
Add your link category description field and click Update …
(Edit Link Category area)
Repeat this process to add as many new link categories as you need.
Once you have set up your link categories, you can add new links.
How To Add Links
To create a new link, select Links > Add New in your admin menu …
(Links Menu – Add New)
This brings up the Add New Link’ page in your web browser …
(Add New Link screen)
You can also access this screen by clicking on ’Add New’ in the main Links screen …
(Links page – Add New Link button)
The ‘Add New Links’ page includes a number of sections:
Name, Web Address & Description
Enter your link details in this section …
(Name, Web Address& Description – Add New Link)
Type in the following information:
- Name: Enter the link category name.
- Slug: The slug is the search-engine friendly URL part of your link category. It must be in lowercase letters and contain no spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display your link category description in the links section, or as a tool tip when visitors hover over the link name with their mouse.
Categories & Target
Select a Category and Target for the new link …
(Categories & Target fields – Add New Link screen)
In the Categories section, select a link category you’ve already added, or click on ’+ Add New Category’ to create a new category.
Also, select a target frame for your link in the Target section by choosing one of the radio buttons. This lets you specify how the link should open when a visitor clicks on it:
- _blank means that a new window will open up in their browser to display the content for that link.
- _none means that when visitors click on your link, they will leave your site and a new website or page will load in your browser window instead.
- _top opens the link at the top level of the frame system if you’re using frames. If you don’t use frames, or if you don’t know what frames are, then just ignore this option.
Link Relationship XFN
This area provides some additional link functionality …
(Add New Link – Link Relationship (XFN))
Link Relationship (XFN) – XFN stands for XML Friends Network – allows you to define your relationship to the linked person. For example, if you have a professional relationship with Mia Schwartz and you link to her blog, you would probably tick co-worker or colleague.
XFN relationships are optional. You can leave everything in this section blank and your links will still work. XFN makes your links more understandable to some sites and search engines that use this information.
rel – This field lets you specify the ‘rel’ attribute that will be assigned to your link. The rel attribute defines what relationship exists between the current document and the linked document. For example, if you don’t want search engines to follow your link, type nofollow into this field. Other ‘rel’ attributes include author, index, start, help, etc. Separate multiple ‘rel’ keywords with spaces.
You can learn more about XFN by visiting this site:
Advanced
The last section of the Add New Link’ page lets you specify Advanced features for your links (You can leave these fields empty unless there’s a good reason to use them) …
(Advanced link settings)
The Advanced link settings section includes the following options:
- Image Address: Lets you specify an image to be displayed with the link. To use this feature, add the URL of where the image is located and make sure that your image is small (around 16×16 like a favicon).
- RSS Address: If your theme allows it, the RSS feed associated with the link will be displayed next to your link.
- Notes: Add notes about the link in this section for your own internal reference.
- Rating: You can add a rating score to the link if you would like to sort links by rating (see the ‘Links’ widget section below).
Enter information in the above fields or just leave this section blank, as these fields are not essential for links to work.
When you are done adding information about your link, click on Add Link to update your link settings …
(Click on the Add Link button to save your new link)
Note: If you tick the Keep this link private checkbox, the link will not be visible when links are displayed on your site …
(Make links private by selecting the checkbox)
Making links private allows you to add links and then toggle their visibility on or off without deleting these (this is useful if you want links to display during certain times and hide them when they are no longer required) …
(Toggle link visibility on and off)
To see all the links you have added to the Link Manager, go to the dashboard navigation menu and select Links > All Links …
(WP Links – All Links)
This takes you to the ‘Links’ page. The Links screen displays a list of all your links and link information (e.g. link URL, categories, relationship, etc.) …
(Links page)
Tip: To display or hide options in the Links page, click on the ‘Screen Options’ tab near the top of your screen …
(List of links – Screen Options)
Display/hide information on your Links table by selecting/deselecting their checkboxes …
(Show/hide links)
Editing Link Information
To edit links in the Link Manager, choose Links > All Links in your admin menu to bring up your table of links …
(Links Menu – All Links)
Locate the link you want to edit and click on Edit to bring up the link’s details …
(Editing link information)
Make changes to your link …
(Edit Link page)
After you’re done editing the link, you can:
- Click the Update Link button to save your link details,
- Click on Visit Link to check that you have set up everything correctly (your link will open up in a new window),
- Click Delete to delete the link if it’s no longer required …
(Edit Link: Update Link button)
How To Remove Your Links
To remove links from the Link Manager, click on Links > All Links in the main admin menu …
(Links – All Links)
You will be taken to the ‘Links’ screen.
You can delete links individually, delete multiple links by selecting their check boxes, or delete all your links.
To delete individual links, hover over the link you want removed and click on Delete …
(Deleting links)
To delete a number of links at once, either tick the check boxes next to individual items that you want deleted, or select all links by clicking on the main checkbox next to the ‘Name’ column header …
(Delete multiple links)
Select Delete from the ‘Bulk Actions’ menu, and click Apply to remove all selected links …
(Links: bulk-delete function)
The links you have selected will be removed …
(Deleted links notice)
Plugin Usage
Now that you know how to configure link categories and how to add, edit and delete links, it’s time to learn how to make links display on your site.
Links Widget
The Links Manager plugin adds a ‘Links’ widget to your ‘Widgets’ section.
To access and configure your Link widgets, select Appearance > Widgets in the WP dashboard menu …
(Appearance Menu – Widgets)
This loads the ‘Widgets’ screen in your web browser.
You will notice that a ‘Links’ widget has been added to the Available Widgets section …
(Links widget)
Drag the ‘Links’ widget to one of the active widget sections in the Widgets screen and drop it wherever you want your links to show up …
(Adding a links widget to your widget bar)
The Links widget provides various configurable options. For example, you can specify what information you want to display about your links and how many links you would like displayed on your sidebar menu …
(Link widget options)
You can also add as many link widgets as you want. This allows you to create and display link lists on your site …
(You can add a number of link widgets to your widget bars)
You can create and display links for a specific category …
(Link widget options – Select Link Category)
You can sort links by Link title, Link ID, Link rating, or display links in Random order …
(Link widget settings – Sort by options)
Once you are done configuring your Links widget, click Save to update your settings. Your links should show up immediately on your website or blog’s sidebar …
(Links can be displayed on a sidebar)
As the above example shows, you can display specific links to your site visitors (e.g. a list for a specific link category only), and add multiple lists of links to your sidebar menu.
Need more help using widgets? We have written a detailed article on widgets here:
Link Manager – Additional Information
If you have loads of links, the Link Manager plugin lets you easily administer these using filtering, sorting, and searching features.
Sort Links
You can sort links by hovering your cursor over the title of the column you want to sort and clicking on the little triangle displayed next to the column title …
(Sorting links function)
Search Your Links
You can search for links using the ‘Search Links’ button …
(Search links function)
Filter Your Links
You can filter links by link category …
(Filtering links by link category)
You can also search and filter links in the Link Categories screen. Use the ‘Search Link Categories’ button to find link categories, or click on the category links in the ‘Links’ column …
(Search and filter links in the Link Categories page)
This displays a list of all links listed for a specific link category …
(Links filtered by category)
Additional Link Options
If you plan to use links extensively on your website or blog, or if you would like to add a page containing a list of links to your site (i.e. not just add links on your sidebar), then you may want to consider using a plugin that can help you administer your links, like Link Library.
Link Library
(Link Library WordPress Plugin)
Plugin Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-library/
Plugin Description
Link Library lets you publish a list of all your link categories and a complete list of all your links together with notes and descriptions …
(List of links created with Link library. Image source: Link Library plugin website.)
Link Library creates a page on your site that contains all the link categories in your Links section, plus all links defined for these categories. You can select a sub-set of categories to display or not display, show only one category at a time, display a search box and find results based on visitor queries, display a form to accept user submissions that can be moderated by a site administrator, and even generate an RSS feed of your links that lets your site users become aware of additions to your link library.
Go here to learn more this handy plugin:
Congratulations! Now you know how to how to add and manage links in your WordPress sidebar menu.
We have also written a comprehensive article about how to add HTML hyperlinks into WordPress posts here:
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"This is an awesome training series. I have a pretty good understanding of WordPress already, but this is helping me to move somewhere from intermediate to advanced user!" - Kim Lednum