As you continue to learn more about WordPress, you may occasionally come across something called a blogroll.
A blogroll is a list of hyperlinks pointing to other sites or blogs displayed on your sidebar section.
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 site using the Link Manager plugin for WordPress.
Before WordPress version 3.5 was released, Links were a built-in feature of the WordPress CMS. From version 3.5 onwards, the Links manager and blogroll sections were hidden by default in new installations …
Before …
(WordPress Links Feature – pre v 3.5)
After …
(Post version 3.5 – no WP Links Manager)
If you have had an earlier version than v 3.5 installed and upgraded your installation, then the Links Manager would have been removed, unless you’ve previously used it. If you’ve never used Link Manager, however, or if your site installation is new, then this function will remain hidden – it will not display on your dashboard 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 visible when you log into your WP admin area you will need to install a plugin. This tutorial shows you how to add and manage blogroll links on your site’s sidebar using plugins.
Link Manager
(Link Manager Plugin)
Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-manager
Description Of Plugin
This plugin displays the Links Manager, even if you upgrade WordPress to a later version or remove all of your existing links.
Note: All this plugin does is add a single line of template code to restore the hidden feature. When we last checked, the plugin had not been updated for some time, but it should still work fine. If you don’t want to use this plugin, then use the one below instead, or contact us for help editing your site’s template code.
Simple Links
(Simple Links – Links Manager Plugin For WordPress)
Download URL
https://wordpress.org/plugins/simple-links/
Description Of Plugin
Simple Links recreates the concept of the built-in Link Manager while addressing the shortcomings of the deprecated feature.
Plugin Installation
Let’s install the Link Manager plugin.
From the WordPress admin menu, select Plugins > Add New …
(Plugins Menu – Add New)
Click on the Install Plugins > Search tab, type ”link manager” into the search field and hit Enter …
Find the plugin in the results area and click Install Now …
Activate the plugin …
After activating the plugin, the ‘Links’ feature is restored to the WP sidebar menu area …
(WordPress links menu)
Plugin Configuration
Before you start adding links, it’s a good idea to set up your link categories. This way, when you create a new link, you can assign the link to a link category you have already created.
Link Categories
To create a link category, go to your WP admin menu and select Links > Link Categories …
(Links Menu – Link Categories)
You will be taken to the ‘Link Categories’ page.
Type in information into the following fields:
- Name: Whatever you enter here is the link category name that will display on your site.
- Slug: The slug displays in the URL of the link category. 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)
after entering your information, click the Add New Link Category button to save …
(Link Categories)
The category details will be added to the list …
(Link Categories page)
Tip: Blogroll is the default link category name. Unless you specify the category when adding a new link, WordPress will assign new links to the default category …
(Default link category name)
You may want to change this to something better suited to your business. This will not only make it easier for users of your site, but any new links that you add to your site will automatically be assigned to the new category name …
(Consider changing the default link category name to something better suited to your business)
To edit the ‘Blogroll’ link name, hover your mouse over the item and click on the Quick Edit link …
(Quick Edit)
Change both the Name and the Slug with a new category name, then click on the Update link Category button …
(Quick Edit)
Replace the link category name ‘Blogroll’ with an appropriate links section name (e.g. ‘Recommended’, ‘Special Deals’ etc).
Let’s create a description for this link category. To add a description to an existing link category, hover over the link category name and click Edit …
(You can add/edit your category description)
Add your description in the ‘Edit Link Category’ page and click Update finished to save your settings …
(Edit Link Category page)
Repeat the above process and add as many link categories as your site requires.
After configuring your link categories, you can start adding new links.
Adding Links
To create a new link, click on Links > Add New in your admin menu …
(Links Menu – Add New)
This brings up the ‘Add New Link’ screen …
(Add New Link page)
You can also reach this screen by clicking on the ‘Add New’ button at the top of the main Links screen …
(Links – Add New Link button)
The ‘Add New Links’ page has several sections:
Name, Web Address & Description
This section lets you enter details about your link …
(Add New Link page – Name, Web Addressand Description section)
Type in the following information:
- Name: What you type in this field will display as the link category name.
- Slug: The slug appears in the search-engine friendly URL of the link category name. Use only lowercase letters and do not include spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display your link category description. (Optional)
Categories & Target
Select a Category and Target for your new link …
(Categories & Target – Add New Link page)
In the Categories section, select one of the link categories you have already set up, or click on the ‘+ Add New Category’ link to create a new category link.
Also, select a target frame for your link in the Target section by choosing one of the radio buttons. This lets you specify where you want the link to open when clicked on by visitors:
- _blank means that a new web browser window will open up to display the content associated with the link. This allows your visitors to access the link information without leaving your site
- _none means that when a visitor clicks on the link, they will exit your site and a new website or page will load in your web browser window instead.
- _top opens links 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 section provides some additional link functionality …
(Link Relationship (XFN) fields)
Link Relationship (XFN) – XFN stands for XML Friends Network – is a way to define your relationship to the linked person. For example, if you work with Dexter Fields and you link to his blog, you would probably check co-worker or colleague.
XFN relationships are optional for WordPress links. You can ignore this section and all of your links will still work. Defining relationships with 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 specifies 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. Separate multiple ‘rel’ keywords with spaces.
You can learn more about XFN by visiting this site:
Advanced
The last section allows you to enter Advanced features for your links (some themes will ignore this. You can ignore this section, unless there’s a good reason to use it) …
(Advanced link settings)
The Advanced section contain the following fields:
- Image Address: Specify an image to be displayed with the link. To use this feature, add an image URL and make sure that your image is small (around 16×16 like a favicon).
- RSS Address: If your theme allows it, the link’s RSS feed can display next to the link.
- Notes: Add notes about the link in this section for your own internal reference.
- Rating: 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 ignore this section.
When you have finished adding your new link information, click on Add Link to update your link settings …
(Click on Add Link to save your new link)
Note: If you select the checkbox next to Keep this link private, the link will not be visible when links are displayed on your site …
(Make your links private)
Making links private lets you add links and then toggle their visibility on and off without deleting these (this is useful if you want links to display during certain periods and hide them when not required) …
(Making links private toggles their visibility on and off)
To see all the links you have created, go to the WP dashboard navigation menu and select Links > All Links …
(Links – All Links)
This loads the ‘Links’ screen in your browser. The Links page displays a list of all your links and link information (e.g. URL, link categories, visibility, etc.) …
(List of links)
Tip: To view additional fields in the Links table, click on the ‘Screen Options’ tab at the top of the screen …
(Table of links – Screen Options)
Display/hide fields on your Links table by ticking/unticking their check boxes …
(Links table – Hide or show screen options)
Editing Your Links
To edit links in the Link Manager, choose Links > All Links in the main dashboard navigation menu to bring up the list of links …
(WP Links Menu – All Links)
Locate the item you want to edit and click on Edit to bring up the item’s link details …
(Editing link information)
Make the changes you want to your 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 see your link and make sure that you have set up your link’s URL correctly (the link will open in a new window),
- Click Delete to delete the link from your list if you no longer require it …
(Update Link button)
How To Remove Your Links
To delete a link, go to your dashboard menu and select Links > All Links …
(WordPress Links – All Links)
This loads the ‘Links’ page in your web browser.
You can delete links individually, delete multiple links by selecting their check boxes, or perform a bulk delete.
To delete individual links, hover over the link that you want removed and click Delete …
(Deleting links)
To delete links in bulk, either click on the check box next to every link that you want to be removed, 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 delete all selected links …
(Bulk-deletion of links)
The selected links will be deleted …
(Deleted links notice)
Using The Plugin
Now that you know how to configure link categories and how to add, edit and delete links, let’s show you how to display links on your site.
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 the dashboard navigation menu and choose Appearance > Widgets …
(Appearance – Widgets)
This brings up the ‘Widgets’ screen in your web browser.
You will see a ‘Links’ widget in the Available Widgets section …
(Links widget)
Drag the ‘Links’ widget to one of the widget sections in the Widgets page and drop it wherever you would like the links to show up …
(Drag and drop the links widget to add it to a widgetized menu)
The Links widget includes various configurable settings. You can specify what information you want to show about your links and how many links you want to display on your sidebar …
(Link widget - options)
You can also add multiple link widgets to your sidebars and footers. This allows you to create and display a number of links throughout your site …
(You can add multiple link widgets to your widget bars)
Select a link category from the ‘Select Link Category:’ pull-down menu …
(Link widget options – Select Link Category)
You can sort links by Link ID, Link title, Link rating, or display links in Random order …
(Link widget options – Sort by options)
After configuring your Links widget, click Save to update your settings. A link section should appear on your sidebar …
(An example of how 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 about widgets. Go here to learn more:
Links Manager – Additional Information
If you have many links, the Link Manager plugin allows you to easily administer these with filter, sort, and search features.
Sorting Links
To sort links, hover your mouse cursor over the title of the column you want to sort and click on the black triangle displayed next to the column title …
(Sorting your links)
Search Your Links
Type a search term into the search field and click the Search Links button to search for links …
(Searching your links)
Filtering Links
You can filter links by categories …
(Filtering links by categories)
You can also search and filter links in the Link Categories screen. Use the ‘Search Link Categories’ button to search for link categories, or click on the links in the ‘Links’ column …
(searching and filtering links in the Link Categories screen)
This brings up a list of all links grouped under a specific link category …
(Links filtered by category)
Links – Additional Options
If you plan to add a lot of links to your website, 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 links, like Link Library.
Link Library
(Link Library WordPress Plugin)
Plugin Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-library/
Plugin Description
The Link Library plugin allows you to publish a list of all your link categories with a complete list of links plus descriptions and notes …
(Link Library links. Image: Link Library plugin website.)
Link Library creates a page on your web site that contains a list of all of the link categories in your Links area, and all links listed in 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 that lets your site users become aware of additions to your link library.
Go here to learn more this plugin:
Congratulations! Now you know how to how to add a blogroll and manage links in your WordPress sidebar menu.
We have written a comprehensive article on adding hyperlinks to WordPress. To learn more, go here:
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"Wow! I never knew there's so much to learn about WordPress! I bought one of the WordPress for Dummies three years ago, such authors need to be on this course!" - Rich Law, Create A Blog Now