I’ve decided to write a follow up post to our recent article on breadcrumb SEO since many of you have asked me about the best way to integrate breadcrumbs with WordPress. First, if you are still not sure about this navigation style then please take a quick look at the benefits of breadcrumbs for your site or blog.
Let’s Look at the Plugins
Breadcrumb NavXT happens to be my favorite and based on the configuration options available, it is also the most powerful. Yoast breadcrumbs is another powerful plugin, but it still lacks many options when compared to Breadcrumb NavXT. There are also other plugins available although I recommend using NavXT or Yoast.
Integration Instructions – Using Breadcrumb NavXT
- Download Breadcrumb NavXT
- Install and activate the plugin using the plugins manager on the Administration panel
- Configure your settings using the Setings > Breadcrumb NavXt
- Add the Breadcrumb PHP code to your existing theme templates
Tips for Configuring Breadcrumb NavXT
There are a few suggestions I have to optimize this plugin’s SEO performance:
- To make sure we are not sending all of our link juice off the page, make all breadcrumb links “NoFollow” by using rel=”nofollow” HTML tag. Do this for each type of link (Posts & Pages, Categories, Tags, etc). Here is a screenshot of how I do it on MarketingWiseGuy.com:
- I also recommend that you do not link the current page to itself by leaving the “Link Current Item” option as unchecked.
Adding the PHP Code to Your Template
Adding the code is pretty simple. First, find the best spot for your breadcrumb navigation. The exact files you will need to edit will vary depending upon your theme and the location of your breadcrumb trail, but most likely it will need to be placed in the “header.php” file or at the very top of your individual page files (“page.php”, “single.php”, “archives.php”, “search.php”, “404.php”). There is a small chance that your theme includes this function already, so check to see if it is working before you add this code.
Add this code wherever you want the breadcrumb navigation:
<div>
<?php if(function_exists('bcn_display'))
{ bcn_display(); }
?>
</div>
That’s it! Of course you can continue to customize this plugin using the built in options or by adjusting your style sheet. If you struggle with any part of this tutorial then take a look at the Official Installation Guide. Thanks for reading, if you have any questions or comments please share below.
