As you continue to learn more about using WordPress, you may occasionally come across the term blogroll.
WordPress refers to a list of hyperlinks pointing to other sites or 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.”
The Links Manager lets you easily add external links to a widgetized theme.
Before the release of WP v3.5, Links were a visible feature of the WordPress CMS. From v 3.5 onwards, the Link Manager section was kept hidden by default in new WordPress installations …
Before …
(WP Links Menu – pre v 3.5)
After …
(The Link Manager feature is no longer included in WordPress after WordPress version 3.5)
If you’ve had an earlier version than v 3.5 installed and upgraded your installation, then the Link Manager would be removed, unless you have 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 the Links menu section is not displayed when you log into your WP admin area, you can add it by installing a plugin. In this tutorial, you will learn how to add and manage links on your sidebar using plugins.
Link Manager
(Link Manager – WordPress Link Management Plugin)
Plugin Download URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-manager
Description
This plugin restores the built-in Links 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 template code to WordPress to restore the hidden feature. When we last checked, the plugin had not been updated for a while, but it should still work fine. If you don’t want to use this 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 attempts to recreate the same concept as the built-in Link Manager while removing the shortcomings of the deprecated functionality.
Plugin Installation
To install the Link Manager plugin, follow these step-by-step instructions:
In the WordPress admin area, select Plugins > Add New …
(Plugins – Add New)
Select the Install Plugins > Search tab, then 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 you’ve activated the plugin, a ‘Links’ section will show in the dashboard menu area …
(WordPress links management menu)
Setting Up Link Manager
We recommend setting up link categories first before adding links. This way, when you add a new link, you can assign your link to link categories you have already created.
Link Categories
To create a new link category, go to the dashboard navigation menu and choose Links > Link Categories …
(WordPress Links Menu – Link Categories)
You will be taken to the ‘Link Categories’ page.
Type in the following information:
- Name: What you enter here is the link category name that will display on your site.
- Slug: The slug displays in the SEO friendly URL of the link category name. Use only lowercase letters without spaces (use hyphens to separate words).
- Description: Some themes may display your link category description. (Optional)
When finished, click the Add New Link Category button to save …
(Link Categories)
Your new category will be added to the list …
(Link Categories screen)
Tip: WordPress calls its default link category Blogroll . Unless you specify a category for a link, WordPress automatically assigns new links to the default category …
(Default link category name)
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 assigned to the new category name …
(we recommend changing the default ’blogroll’ to something your visitors will relate to)
To change the ‘Blogroll’ link name, hover your mouse over the category name and click on Quick Edit …
(Quick Edit)
Replace both the Name and the Slug with a new category name, and click on Update Link Category …
(Editing the default link category name)
Replace the category name ‘Blogroll’ with a name more suitable to your purposes (e.g. ‘Recommended’, ‘Links’ etc).
Let’s insert a description for this link category. To add a link category description, hover over the link category name and click Edit …
(You can add/edit your category description)
Add your link category description field and click Update you’re done to save your settings …
(Edit Link Category screen)
Repeat the above process to add as many link categories as your site needs.
Once you have set up your link categories, you can add your links.
Adding New Links
To add a new link, go to the WP navigation menu and click on Links > Add New …
(Links – Add New)
The ‘Add New Link’ page will load in your browser …
(Add New Link page)
You can also access this screen by clicking on the ‘Add New’ button in the main Links screen …
(Links screen – Add New Link button)
The ‘Add New Links’ page has the following sections:
Name, Web Address & Description
Enter your link details in this section …
(Name, Web Address, Description section)
Enter information into the following fields:
- Name: What you type here is the link category name that will display on your site.
- Slug: The slug displays in the search-engine 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)
Categories & Target
After adding your link details, select a Category and Target for the new link …
(Categories & Target section)
In the Categories section, select one of the link categories you’ve 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 where you want your link to open when visitors click on it:
- _blank means that when visitors click on your link, a new browser window will open up to display the content associated with the 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 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) – Add New Link page)
Link Relationship (XFN) – XFN (XML Friends Network) is a way to define your relationship with the linked person. For example, if you have a professional relationship with Amber Jenkins and you link to her blog, you would probably tick co-worker or colleague.
XFN relationships are optional for WordPress links. You can ignore this section and all your links will work just fine. XFN makes the links defined on your site more understandable to some sites and search engines that use this information.
rel – This field specifies 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, enter nofollow into this field. Separate multiple ‘rel’ keywords using spaces.
You can learn more about XFN by visiting this site:
Advanced
The last section of the Add New Link’ screen allows you to specify 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 link settings)
The Advanced section contain the following fields:
- 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 link’s RSS feed can be displayed next to your links.
- Notes: This section lets you add notes 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 ignore this section.
When you are done adding your new link information, 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 …
(Private link checkbox)
Making a link private allows you to add a link and then toggle its visibility on and off without deleting it (this is useful if you want a link to display during certain periods and hide it after it’s no longer required) …
(Toggle link visibility on and off)
To see all the links you have added to the Link Manager, go to the WP admin menu and click on Links > All Links …
(WP Links Menu – All Links)
This loads the ‘Links’ table in your web browser. The Links table displays a list of all your links and link information (e.g. URL, categories, rating, etc.) …
(Links table)
Tip: To view or hide options in the Links table, click on the ‘Screen Options’ tab near the top of your screen …
(Screen Options – Links screen)
Enable/disable fields on your Links table by selecting/deselecting their checkboxes …
(Show/hide links)
How To Edit Link Information
To modify links, go to the WP admin menu and select Links > All Links to bring up the list of links …
(Links Menu – All Links)
Locate the link to be edited and click on Edit to bring up the item’s link details …
(Editing link information)
Edit your link fields …
(Edit Link screen)
After editing your link, you can:
- Click the Update Link button to save and update your link details,
- Click on Visit Link to check that you have set up your link’s URL correctly (your link will open in a new window),
- Click Delete to delete the link from your list if you no longer require it …
(Edit Link: Update Link button)
Removing Your Links
To remove links, go to your dashboard navigation menu and choose Links > All Links …
(WordPress Links Menu – All Links)
This loads the ‘Links’ page in your 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 on Delete …
(Deleting links)
To delete a number of links at once, either click on the check box next to each item that you want to remove, or select all links by clicking on the main check box next to the ‘Name’ column header …
(Deleting multiple links)
Choose Delete from the ‘Bulk Actions’ menu, and click the Apply button to remove all selected links …
(Links: bulk-deletion function)
Your links will be deleted …
(Deleted links message)
Plugin Usage
Now that you know how to configure 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 Link Manager plugin adds a ‘Links’ widget to your ‘Widgets’ section.
To access and configure your Link widgets, click on Appearance > Widgets in the WP admin menu …
(Appearance – Widgets)
The ‘Widgets’ page will load in your web browser.
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 widget bars and drop it wherever you want the links section to display …
(Drag and drop the links widget to add it 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 want displayed on your sidebar menu …
(Link widget - configurable settings)
You can add multiple link widgets to your sidebar and footer. This lets you create and feature various link lists throughout your site …
(Add multiple link widgets to your sidebar)
You can select a link category …
(Link widget options – Select Link Category)
You can sort links by Link title, Link rating, Link ID, or display links in Random order …
(Link widget options – Sort by options)
After setting up your Links widget, click the Save button to update your settings. Your link section should display on your 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 with widgets? We have written a detailed article on using widgets here:
Links Manager – Additional Information
If you have many links, the Link Manager plugin lets you easily administer these with filter, search, and sort 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 black triangle displayed next to the column title …
(Sorting links)
Find Links
Find links using the ‘Search Links’ feature …
(Searching links function)
Filter Links Function
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 search for link categories, or click on the category links in the ‘Links’ column …
(Search and filter links in the Link Categories page)
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 lots of links to your website, or if you would like to add a ‘Links’ page 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 Links Management Plugin)
Download Plugin URL
http://wordpress.org/plugins/link-library/
Plugin Description
Link Library allows you to display a list of your link categories with a complete list of all your links plus descriptions and notes …
(Link Library links. Image: Link Library plugin documentation.)
This plugin creates a page on your website containing a list of all of the link categories in your Links section, plus 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 link collection 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 detailed article on adding links in your WordPress content. Go here to learn more:
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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