As you continue to discover more about the benefits of using WordPress, you may occasionally come across references to the term blogroll.
A blogroll is a list of links pointing to other sites or pages 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 display a featured links section on your website using the WordPress Link Manager plugin.
Prior to the release of WP v3.5, Links were a core feature of the WordPress CMS. From version 3.5 onwards, the Link Manager section was removed …
Before …
(Links – included in the WordPress menu until the release of WordPress v3.5)
After …
(Post v3.5 – no WP Links Manager)
If you have had an earlier version of WordPress than v.3.5 installed and updated your installation, the Link Manager would have been removed, unless you have previously used it. If you’ve never used Links Manager, however, or if your WordPress site installation is new, then this function will become invisible – it will not display on the menu.
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 the Links feature is not displayed when you log into your WP dashboard, you can add it by installing a plugin. This tutorial explains how to add and manage links on your sidebar using WordPress plugins.
Link Manager
(Link Manager)
Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-manager
Description
This plugin restores the default Links Manager, 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 WordPress to restore the hidden feature. The last time we checked, this plugin had not been updated for a while, but it should still work fine. If you don’t want to use the Link Manager plugin, then use the one below instead, or contact us for help editing your template code.
Simple Links
(Simple Links WordPress Plugin)
Download URL
https://wordpress.org/plugins/simple-links/
Description
This plugin recreates the same concept as the built-in Link Manager while addressing the shortcomings of the deprecated feature.
Plugin Installation
Let’s install the Link Manager plugin.
In your WordPress administration area, select Plugins > Add New …
(Plugins – Add New)
Click on 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 installation …
After activation, a ‘Links’ section will show up on your WP dashboard menu …
(WordPress links management menu)
Plugin Setup
We recommend setting up link categories first before you start adding any new links. This way, when adding a new link, you can assign the link to link categories you have already created.
Link Categories
To create a new link category, go to the navigation menu and click on Links > Link Categories …
(WP Links Menu – Link Categories)
This brings up the ‘Link Categories’ page.
Type in information into the following sections:
- Name: Whatever you type here is the category name that will display on your site.
- Slug: The slug shows up in the SEO friendly URL of the link category name. It must all be in lowercase letters and contain no spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display a link category description. (Optional)
When finished, click Add New Link Category to save …
(Link Categories)
The link category will now show in the list …
(Link Categories)
Tip: WordPress calls its default link category Blogroll . Unless you specify a category when adding a new link, WordPress automatically assigns new links to the default category …
(Default link category name is ‘blogroll’)
You may want to change the default link category name to something better suited to your business. This not only makes it easier for users of your site, but any new links that you add to the Links section will automatically be assigned to the new category name …
(we recommend changing the default link category name to something your visitors will relate to)
To change the ‘Blogroll’ link title, hover your mouse over the list item and click on Quick Edit …
(Edit the link category)
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 …
(Edit the default link category)
Replace the category ‘Blogroll’ with a more suitable name (e.g. ‘Recommended’, ‘Our Partners’ etc).
Let’s create a link category description. To add a description to an existing link category, hover over the item name and click Edit …
(Link category description)
Add your description in the ‘Edit Link Category’ screen and click Update done to save your settings …
(Edit Link Category screen)
Repeat this process and add as many different link categories as your site requires.
Once you have finished configuring your link categories, you can start adding new links.
Adding New Links
To add a new link, go to your WP dashboard menu and select Links > Add New …
(Links – Add New)
The ‘Add New Link’ screen will display in your browser …
(Add New Link page)
You can also access this page by clicking on ’Add New’ in the main Links page …
(Links – Add New Link button)
The ‘Add New Links’ page is divided into several sections:
Name, Web Address & Description
Enter your link details in this section …
(Name, Web Address, Description – Add New Link)
Type in information into the following sections:
- Name: What you enter in this field is the link category name that will display on your site.
- Slug: The slug displays in the web address 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 your link category description in the links section, or as a tool tip when visitors hover over the link name. (Optional)
Categories & Target
After typing in your link details, select a Category and Target for the new link …
(Add New Link screen – Categories & Target)
In the Categories section, select a link category you have already created, or click on the ‘+ Add New Category’ link to add a new category.
Also, select a target frame radio button for your link in the Target section. This lets you specify where you want the link to open when clicked on:
- _blank means that a new, separate browser window will open up to display the content for that link.
- _none means that when visitors click on your link, they will exit your site and a new site or page will load in your browser window instead.
- _top opens links at the top level of the frame system if you’re using frames. Ignore this option if you don’t use frames, or if you don’t know what frames are.
Link Relationship XFN
This section provides some additional link functionality …
(Add New Link screen – Link Relationship (XFN))
Link Relationship (XFN) – XFN (XML Friends Network) is a way to define your relationship to the linked person. For example, if you work with Aaron Schwartz and you link to his blog, you would probably tick co-worker or colleague.
XFN relationships are optional. You can leave everything in this section blank and all your links will work just fine. XFN makes the links defined on your site more understandable to some websites 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 is used to define 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, help, index, start, etc.
You can learn more about XFN by visiting the site below:
Advanced
The last section allows you to specify Advanced features for your links (You can leave the fields in this section blank unless there’s a good reason to use them) …
(Add New Link – Advanced link settings)
The Advanced link settings section includes the following:
- Image Address: Lets you specify an image to be displayed with the link. To use this feature, add the URL of your image 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 the links.
- 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 want to sort links by rating (see the ‘Links’ widget section below).
Enter information in the above fields or just leave this section blank.
When you have finished adding information about your link, click on Add Link to save your new link …
(Click on the Add Link button to save your new link)
Note: If you tick Keep this link private, your link will not be visible in your Blogroll section …
(Private link checkbox)
Making a link private allows you to toggle its visibility on and off without deleting it (this is useful if you want to use seasonal links) …
(Toggle link visibility on and off)
To view a list of all your links, choose Links > All Links in your WP admin menu …
(Links Menu – All Links)
The ‘Links’ screen will load in your browser. The table of links displays all of your links and link information (e.g. link URL, link categories, visibility, etc.) …
(Table of links)
Tip: To display or hide fields in the Links table, click on the ‘Screen Options’ tab near the top of your screen …
(Links table – Screen Options)
Display/hide information on your table of links by selecting/deselecting their check boxes …
(Table of links – Show/hide screen options)
How To Edit Link Information
To modify links, go to your WP dashboard navigation menu and select Links > All Links to bring up the list of links …
(Links – All Links)
Locate the item you want to edit and click on Edit to bring up the item’s link information …
(Editing links)
Change the link details …
(Edit Link page)
After you’re done editing the link, you can:
- Click on Update Link to save and update your link details,
- Click on Visit Link to make sure that you have set up the link’s URL correctly (your link will open in a new window),
- Click Delete to remove the link …
(Update Link button)
How To Remove Links
To delete a link from the Link Manager, select Links > All Links in the main dashboard navigation menu …
(Links Menu – All Links)
You will be taken to the ‘Links’ screen.
You can delete links individually, delete multiple links by selecting their check boxes, or perform a bulk delete.
To delete individual links, hover your cursor over the link you want removed and click Delete …
(Deleting links)
To delete a number of links at once, either tick the check boxes next to individual items that you want removed, or select all links by clicking on the checkbox next to the ‘Name’ column header …
(Delete multiple links)
Select Delete from the ‘Bulk Actions’ menu, and click the Apply button to remove your selected links …
(Links: bulk-deletion function)
Your selected links will be removed …
(Link deletion notice)
Plugin Usage
Now that you know how to set up link categories and how to add, edit and delete links, it’s time to make links display on your website or blog.
Using The Links Widget
The Links Manager plugin adds a ‘Links’ widget to your ‘Widgets’ section.
To access and configure your Link widgets, go to your navigation menu and click on Appearance > Widgets …
(Appearance – Widgets)
This brings up the ‘Widgets’ page.
You will see that a ‘Links’ widget has been added to the Available Widgets section …
(Links widget)
Drag the ‘Links’ widget to one of the active widget bars in the Widgets page and drop it wherever you want the links to show up …
(Adding a links widget to your widget bar)
The Links widget offers various settings. For example, you can specify what information you would like to show about your links and how many links you would like displayed on your sidebar menu …
(Link widget - configurable settings)
You can also add as many link widgets to your sidebars and footers as you want. This lets you add and display various links on your site …
(Add a number of link widgets to your sidebar)
Select a link category from the ‘Select Link Category:’ drop-down menu …
(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 – Sorting options)
Once you are done configuring your links widget, click Save to update your settings. Your link section will show on your sidebar …
(Links can be displayed on your site’s 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 help using widgets? We have written a comprehensive article on adding widgets. If you would like to learn more here:
Link Manager – Additional Information
If you have many links, the Link Manager plugin allows you to easily administer these with filtering, sorting, and searching functions.
Sorting Links
You can sort links by hovering your mouse cursor over the title of the column you want to sort and clicking on the little triangle displayed next to the column title …
(Sorting your links)
Find Your Links
Find links using the ‘Search Links’ button …
(Find links)
Filtering Links Function
You can filter links by link categories …
(Filter your links by categories)
You can also search and filter links in the Link Categories page. Use the ‘Search Link Categories’ button to search for link categories, or click on the links in the ‘Links’ column …
(Search and filter links in the Link Categories screen)
This brings up a list of all links grouped under a specific link category …
(Links filtered by category)
Additional Link Options
If you plan to add a lot of links to your website or blog, or if you would like to add a ‘Links’ page to your site (i.e. not just add a links section to your sidebar), then you may want to look at using a plugin that can help you administer links.
Link Library
(Link Library)
Plugin Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-library/
Plugin Description
The Link Library plugin gives you the ability to display a list of all your link categories with a complete list of links plus notes and descriptions …
(List of links created with Link library. Image source: Link Library plugin documentation.)
Link Library creates a page on your website that contains all the link categories in your Links area, and all links defined for these categories. Additionally, 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 for your links so that your site users can become aware of any additions made to to your link library.
To learn more about Link Library:
Congratulations! Now you know how to add external links to WordPress.
We have written a comprehensive article about how to easily add HTML links in WordPress posts & pages. Go here to learn more:
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