The 3-Click rule is a basic rule of web design stating that a web site’s navigation should be so simple that a visitor never has to click more than three times in order to reach the content they’re looking for. In other words, visitors should never have to visit more than three p.ages after the homepage in order to find what they’re looking for. But just how valid is this rule, particularly when it comes to advertising for cosmetic surgeons?
Good Internet advertising for cosmetic surgeons often involves a content-heavy website. By infusing your site with lots of valuable and keyword-rich content about plastic surgery, you can increase your rankings in search engines and satisfy visitors to your site. With all this content, however, the 3-Click rule can be a hard one to follow.
The theory behind the 3-Click rule is that this allows visitors to quickly find the information that they’re looking for. Internet users often complain about sites where finding what they’re looking for is difficult or time-consuming. However, these complaints may very well have more to do with poor site organization or an ineffective navigation system. While the 3-Click rule may be a good guideline, it’s far more important that your website have an effective navigation system that allows your visitors to quickly and easily get to where they want to go. Even while adhering to the 3-Click rule, websites can still prove frustrating for visitors if they have a complex navigation system or confusing site organization. In truth, a visitor may be no more likely to leave a site after three clicks versus ten clicks.
An effective navigation system is one which allows your visitors to create a mental map of your site. In addition, your content must logically and intuitively organized. Don’t allow your visitors to get lost within your website. Instead, clearly display your site structure for them. You can provide them with a site map, tree navigation or breadcrumb navigation, which is basically that listing at the top of a page appearing like You are here: Home > Procedures > Rhinoplasty’.
There is one important aspect of the 3-Click rule. The fewer levels that your website has, the easier your promotion. Search engine spiders don’t always index all of your levels and may, in fact, leave after indexing only a few. The search engines tend to apply greater value to the content placed higher up in your structure. As such, be sure to place your more important pages higher up. There are, however, cases when some of your content even important content may not make it to those high levels. In these cases, make certain that you deep submit your important pages directly to the search engines.