As you continue to discover more about the benefits of using WordPress, you may occasionally come across the term blogroll.
WordPress refers to a list of hyperlinks pointing to other websites or web pages that display on your sidebar section as a blogroll.
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 links on your blog using the Link Manager plugin for WordPress.
Before WordPress version 3.5 was released, Links were a core feature of the WordPress CMS. From v.3.5 onwards, the Links Manager section was hidden by default in new WordPress installations …
Before …
(The Links Manager feature was part of the admin menu until the release of WordPress v 3.5)
After …
(Links – excluded from the WordPress dashboard menu after WP v3.5)
If your site had a previously active Links Manager section, then it will still be available when your site upgrades to a newer version. If you’ve never used Links Manager, however, or if your WordPress installation is new, then this function will become invisible – you will not see it 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 you can’t see the Links feature when you log into your WordPress dashboard you will need to install a plugin. In this step-by-step tutorial, you will learn how to add, edit, delete and manage blogroll links on your site’s sidebar using WordPress plugins.
Link Manager
(Link Manager – Plugin For WordPress)
Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-manager
Description Of Plugin
You can use this plugin to display the default Link Manager, even if you upgrade to a later version of WordPress or remove all of your existing links.
Note: This plugin adds a single line of code to WordPress 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 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)
Plugin URL
https://wordpress.org/plugins/simple-links/
Description
This plugin recreates the concept of the built-in Link Manager while removing the shortcomings of the deprecated functionality.
How To Install Link Manager
Let’s install the Link Manager plugin.
In your WordPress admin area, go to Plugins > Add New …
(Plugins Menu – Add New)
Click on the Install Plugins > Search tab, then type in “link manager” into the search field and hit Enter …
Find the plugin in the search results screen and click Install Now …
Activate the plugin after installation …
After activation, a ‘Links’ item is added to the dashboard menu …
(WordPress links management menu section)
Plugin Setup
We recommend setting up link categories first before you start adding links. This way, when you create a new link, you can assign your link to link categories you have already created.
Link Categories
To create a link category, go to the main navigation menu and select Links > Link Categories …
(WordPress Links Menu – Link Categories)
You will be taken to the ‘Link Categories’ screen.
Type in the following information:
- Name: Whatever you enter in this field is the category name that will display on your site.
- Slug: The slug is the web address part of your 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.
When finished, click Add New Link Category to save …
(Link Categories area)
The new category will now show in the table …
(Link Categories)
Tip: The default WordPress link category is called Blogroll . Unless you specify a category for a new link, WordPress automatically assigns new links to the default category …
(Default link category name is ‘blogroll’)
You may want to change this to something that your visitors can relate to. This will not only make it easier for visitors, but any new links that you add to your site will automatically be listed under the new category name …
(Consider changing the default ’blogroll’ to something your visitors will understand)
To edit the ‘Blogroll’ link name, hover your mouse over the category name and click on the Quick Edit link …
(Editing the link category name)
Replace both the Name and the Slug with a new category name, and click on Update Link Category …
(Update Link Category)
Replace the category name ‘Blogroll’ with (e.g. ‘Recommended’, ‘Our Sponsors’ etc).
Let’s add a description for this link category. To add a description to an existing link category, click on the Edit link under the category name …
(Link category description)
Enter your description in the ‘Edit Link Category’ page and click Update …
(Edit Link Category page)
Repeat this process and add as many new link categories as your site requires.
Once you have configured your link categories, you can start adding new links.
Adding Links
To add a new link, go to the WP dashboard menu and choose Links > Add New …
(Links – Add New)
This brings up the Add New Link’ screen in your browser …
(Add New Link screen)
You can also reach this page by clicking on ’Add New’ at the top of the main Links page …
(Add New Link button)
The ‘Add New Links’ page is divided into the following sections:
Name, Web Address & Description
This section lets you enter details about your link …
(Name, Web Addressand Description)
Type in information into the following fields:
- Name: Enter the category name here.
- Slug: The slug is the search-engine friendly URL bit of the link category name. Use lowercase letters only without 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
Select a Category and Target for the link …
(Add New Link – Categories & Target fields)
In the Categories section, tick one of the link categories you have already added, or click on the ‘+ Add New Category’ link to add a new category.
Next, select a target frame radio button for your link in the Target section. This lets you specify how you want your link to open when clicked on:
- _blank means that a new, separate browser window will open up to display the information for that link.
- _none means that when visitors click on the link, they will exit your site and a new site 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 ignore this option.
Link Relationship XFN
This section provides some additional link functionality …
(Add New Link – Link Relationship (XFN) area)
Link Relationship (XFN) – XFN stands for XML Friends Network – is a way to define your relationship with the linked person. For example, if you have a professional relationship with Ella Cooper and you link to her blog, you would probably tick co-worker or colleague.
XFN relationships are optional. You can ignore this section and all your links will work just fine. XFN makes your links more understandable to some websites and search engines that use this information.
rel – This field specifies the ‘rel’ attribute that will be assigned to your link. The rel attribute defines the relationship 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. Separate multiple ‘rel’ keywords using spaces.
To learn more about XFN, visit this site:
Advanced
The last section lets you 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) …
(Add New Link screen – Advanced section)
The Advanced link settings section includes the following:
- Image Address: Specify an image to be displayed with the link. Add the 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 will display next to your link.
- Notes: This section lets you add notes 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 blank.
When you are done adding information about your link, click on Add Link to save your new link …
(Click on Add Link to save your new link)
Note: If you select the Keep this link private checkbox, your link will not be visible in your Blogroll section …
(Private link checkbox)
Making links private allows you to add links and then toggle their visibility on and off without deleting these (this is useful if you want to add seasonal links) …
(Toggle link visibility on and off)
To view all the links you have added to the Link Manager, go to the WP admin menu and click on Links > All Links …
(Links Menu – All Links)
The ‘Links’ page will display in your web browser. The list of links displays all your links and link information (e.g. URL, link categories, relationship, etc.) …
(Table of links)
Tip: To display or hide information in the list of links, click on the ‘Screen Options’ tab at the top of your screen …
(Screen Options – Links table)
Display/hide fields on your table of links by ticking/unticking their check boxes …
(Table of links – Show/hide screen options)
Editing Link Information
To modify links in the Link Manager, go to the WP dashboard navigation menu and click on Links > All Links to bring up your list of links …
(Links – All Links)
Locate the item to be edited and click on Edit to bring up the item’s link information …
(Editing your link information)
Edit the link fields …
(Edit Link screen)
After you’re done editing your link, you can:
- Click the Update Link button to save your link details,
- Click on Visit Link to see your link and make sure that you have set up everything correctly (your link will open up in a new window),
- Click Delete to delete the link from your list if you no longer require it …
(Update Link button)
Removing Your Links
To delete links, go to your WP dashboard menu and choose Links > All Links …
(Links – All Links)
The ‘Links’ table will load in your browser.
You can delete links individually, delete multiple links, or perform a bulk delete.
To delete links individually, hover your mouse cursor over the link that you want to remove and click on Delete …
(Deleting your links)
To delete links in bulk, either click on the checkboxes next to individual items that you want to be removed, or select all links by clicking on the main checkbox next to the ‘Name’ column header at the top of the list …
(Delete multiple links)
Choose Delete from the ‘Bulk Actions’ menu, and click the Apply button to remove all selected links …
(Links: bulk-deletion function)
The links you have selected will be deleted …
(Link deletion notification)
Plugin Usage
Now that you know how to set up link categories and how to add, edit and delete links, it’s time to learn how to display your links on your website or blog.
Links Widget
Installing the Links Manager plugin adds a ‘Links’ widget to your ‘Widgets’ section.
To access and configure your Link widgets, click on Appearance > Widgets in your WP dashboard navigation menu …
(WP Appearance Menu – Widgets)
This brings up the ‘Widgets’ screen.
You will see a ‘Links’ widget in the Available Widgets section …
(Links widget)
To make the ‘Links’ widget active, drag it to one of your active widget sections and drop it wherever you want your links section to show up …
(Add a links widget to your WordPress sidebar using drag and drop)
The Links widget offers various configurable settings. You can specify what information you would like displayed about your links and how many links you want to display on your sidebar …
(Link widget - configurable settings)
You can add as many link widgets as you want. This allows you to add and feature specific link categories on your site …
(Add multiple link widgets to your sidebar)
Select a link category to display a specific list of items …
(Link widget settings – Select Link Category)
You can sort links by Link title, Link rating, Link ID, or display links in Random order …
(Link widget options – Sorting options)
Once you are done setting up the links widget, click Save to update your settings. A link section should appear on your website or blog’s 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 help using widgets? We have written a detailed article about using widgets here:
Link Manager – Additional Information
If you have many links, the Links Manager plugin lets you easily administer these using searching, filtering, and sorting features.
Sorting Links
You can sort links by hovering your cursor over the title of the column you want to sort and clicking on the little black triangle displayed next to the column title …
(Sorting your links)
Search Links Function
Search for links using the ‘Search Links’ feature …
(Search your links)
Filtering Your Links
You can filter links by link category …
(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 category links in the ‘Links’ column …
(Search and filter links in the Link Categories screen)
This brings up a list of all links listed under a specific link category …
(Links filtered by category)
Additional Link Options
If you plan to use links extensively on 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 look at using a plugin that can help you administer your links.
Link Library
(Link Library Plugin)
Download Plugin URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-library/
Plugin Description
This plugin gives you the ability to display a list of your link categories with a complete list of links together with notes and descriptions …
(Link Library links. Image source: Link Library plugin documentation.)
Link Library can be used to create a page on your web site containing all the link categories in your Links section, 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 of your link collection that lets your site users become aware of additions to your link library.
To learn more about the benefits of using this WordPress plugin, visit the plugin website:
Congratulations! Now you know how to how to add a blogroll and manage links to other websites and pages in WordPress.
We have written a detailed article on how to create HTML hyperlinks in WordPress posts. For more details:
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"If you're new to WordPress, this can stand on its own as a training course and will stay with you as you progress from beginner to advanced and even guru status." - Bruce (Columbus, Ohio)