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What is Website Structure?
Website structure is basically a layout of how you present your content on your website. It shows how you organize your websites’ posts and pages. They often have a variety of interrelated topics. This structure deals with content grouping, linking and serving it to the targeted audience or the site visitors.
This Structure is inclusive of tags, internal links, categories, navigation and directions, titles, images, external links, etc. All these help to improve the site structure or layout. If a person or a developer has followed all these niches well, it will become more feasible for the user to find out your website. It will also help Google to index your website URLs better.
When a business adds numerous blog posts and product pages, they must ensure that all things must be arranged in a manner that it won’t confuse neither Google nor the visitors. It must be noted that the audience can easily find out what they are looking for. The site should be organized neatly.
What is the Importance of Website Structure?
There are many reasons which show the importance of structure. These are as follows:-
- Acts as a guide for Google – Search Engines must understand what your site is about and what product you are dealing in with. The well structured site helps Google to understand where to get the most essential content. Googlebot, the crawler of Google crawls the links of websites, both internal and external to fetch information.
A business’ website structure plays a crucial role in guiding Google. It helps Google to figure out the interrelatedness between multiple sites and pages.
2) Never make Competing Content – Many websites create multiple contents on the same topic which will ultimately confuse the Search Engines like Google. Google won’t be able to understand which of the content is more suitable for the visitors.
Unless we ourselves tell Google which content they should show to the visitors. A business must arrange the content depending upon the degree of importance it holds. If you don’t tell Google which post is more important, all your posts may end up competing with each other.
3) Important for User Experience – Website Structure is the most important thing for user-friendly experience. If your audience is able to easily find out the answers of their questions, they will have a good browsing experience over your site.
It will help to enhance the chances of sales. People may also subscribe to your newsletters or may visit your site again. Google also helps to rank the sites like this. But one must make sure that your site should be well structured and fairly navigated.
What are the Different Types of Website Structure?
Website Structure is of 2 Types:-
- SILO Structure
- Flat Structure
Let’s learn about both the structures in detail. Description about these are as follows:-
What is a SILO Structure?
A SILO Structure is a type of Website Structure in which the whole website holds same grouped and interlinked content on a specific topic.
The diagram elaborates how a SILO structure actually works.
The diagram represents how the silo pages are inter-connected. There are many silos and all the posts of each silo are inter-linked with each other.
But in this website structure one must note that the content of each silo is different and not linked to the content of other silo.
In this, each topic is further divided into categories and sub-categories. These are often focused on aspect of main topic. The main topics are often about the theme or the products that a website offers.
Each sub-category includes numerous pages which provides deeper information about that specific topic. Each page is internally linked with another page to create hierarchy and enhance the user-experience.
SILO Structure contains isolated content. This structure is the most popular and holds many benefits. The benefits are as follows:-
1) Helps Google to reach out to your pages
2) Improves Site Rankings
3) Enhances User Experience
Must read Website Architecture: 10 Ways to Improve Yours and Make Search Engines Love You
1) Helps Google to reach out to your pages
SILO Structure is a website structure in which the content is interlinked and inter-connected. The interlinked content helps the Google to find the content more easily.
It is highly recommended to use SILO structure in order to improve your reach. It basically creates a hierarchy between the content. It gives content, a logical presentation.
2) Improves Site Rankings
As the pages are interlinked, it increases both quality and quantity of web page. It enhances the backlinks.
PageRank helps to increase the score of webpage depending upon the quality and quantity of linked pages.
3) Enhances User Experience
This Website Structure is totally interlinked which helps in navigating the user better throughout the website.
As it bring forwards related topics in hierarchy, it improves user friendly experience.
It helps the users to find the relevant content easily.
Alongside, also know :- On Page SEO :- Top 23 Factors That You Must Consider
What is a Flat Structure?
Flat Website Structure is the type of structure in which the pages of the website are accessible via the home page.
One can reach out to different pages from main navigation or menu in a limited number of clicks.
The hierarchy in this structure is lower than in silo structure.
As the flat structure contains pages with limited clicks, the audience will be able to find the information faster, hence increasing user-friendliness. Flat structure works well on both laptops and mobiles, as being mobile-friendly.
Although this website structure holds many advantages, the negatives sides cannot be ignored too. The following are the limitations of flat structure:-
- As the website consists of numerous topics and pages, it might confuse some visitors.
- It will be difficult for website developers to maintain flat structure throughout.
- In e-commerce website, product categorization in important.
SILO v/s FLAT
The difference between two website structure is as follows:-
| BASIS | SILO | FLAT |
| 1. Hierarchy Type | Deep Hierarchy | Shallow Hierarchy |
| 2. Content Focus | It mainly focus on single topic | It covers different topics |
| 3. Navigation | Prominent and Separate categories | Easily accessible via menu |
| 4. User-experience | topic specific paths are often intuitive for certain content | Feasible to get information in just few clicks |
| 5. SEO Emphasis | Keyword Optimization helps in ranking it better | Overall website structure is necessary in this to rant site |
Also Know How to build a better website architecture
Conclusion
The two website structure SILO Structure and Flat Structure both are good depending upon the content of the website.
SILO is best for the websites containing numerous contents. SILO optimization can be done for specific keywords.
While Flat Structure is for medium sized websites, containing straightforward content. It provides simple navigation hence become both user and SEO friendly.
SILO provides wider variety of content or in-depth exploration to the users and provide them comprehensive information on specific topics. It gives a sorted structure to multifaceted complex websites.
On the other hand, Flat website structure provides lesser navigation levels. As it does not offers extensive menus it is also mobile-friendly.
In contrary to above mentioned advantages of both website structures, there are many challenges with which a website developer have to deal with. They are as follows:-
Silo structure requires careful maintenance to keep it distinct and relevant. If there are many silos, it may become complicated and might effect user-experience. It is less-intuitive for the visitors who seek broader content.
Whereas in Flat structure, the business won’t be able to cope up with it if the business is vast and have product vast variety and diversification. It might require additional keyword optimization in contrast to SILO one.
In conclusion, both SILO and Flat structure own both negative and positive sides. Both the structures are good depending upon what type of website is.
Silo website structure will be of great help if the business is big and covers large variety of products. But if one needs simple website with great user-friendly experience, Flat structure is good to go.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1. What are the two main types of website structures?
Ans :- SILO Structure and FLAT Structure.
Q2. What is the main difference between SILO and Flat structure?
Ans :- SILO structure is best for businesses with vast variety of products whereas flat structure is meant for medium sized businesses.
Q3. What is hierarchy type of SILO structure?
Ans :- SILO structure is a deep hierarchy.
Q4. Which website structure holds shallow hierarchy?
Ans :- Flat Structure.
Q5. State any 1 advantage of both SILO and FLAT structure.
Ans :- SILO structure provides in-depth information of each and every topic and provides a sorted structure to complicated websites. Flat structure provides simple navigations to the user and helps to enhance the user-friendliness of website.
Q6. State any 1 disadvantage of both SILO structure and FLAT structure.
Ans :- SILO structure might get complicated in long run because of a lot of silos. Flat structure can not cope up with businesses having vast variety of products.
Q7. What is the importance of a website structure?
Ans :- there are mainly three importance : 1) It acts a guide for Google, 2) Avoid creating competing content within the website, 3) Important for enhancing user-friendly experience.
