If you are looking to place content in a search results page or archive, there are a couple of ways you can do it. You can opt to use pagination; or you may decide that infinite scrolling is the best choice for you. There is no one size fits all choice; there are pros and cons to each option.
In this article, we are going to explain what both of these options entail, including their good and bad points.
What is infinite scrolling and what does it mean for you?
If you have ever taken a look at a news page on a social media site, you have probably come across infinite scrolling. As the name suggests, this is the process whereby you continue to scroll down the page, to access the next part of the story, or piece of information.
This can be a good thing if you do not know what you are looking for; you get to search through all of the content present, for a part that interests you. The process is also pretty seamless and straightforward. It’s also easy for news providers to keep updating this type of page; with additional information being added at the top of the screen.
One of the main negatives of the infinite scrolling option, from a user perspective, is that you cannot keep a record of where you find something. If you want to find a piece of information again, you need to start from the beginning and search.
SEO can also be adversely affected by using infinite scrolling. Content is hidden until it is scrolled down to. This hidden content is indexed, but the process is not easy, so it may not be a good idea to go there. As you may have noticed, infinite scrolling is also often slow. Slow page loading is not good, if you want to achieve high search engine rankings.
What are the benefits of pagination?
Google itself uses pagination, in its search results pages. Each page of results is listed numerically. If you are searching for results, you can choose to open a specific page, or simply click to go to the previous, or the next, page.
Once you find what you are looking for, you then have a good idea where it’s located. This makes it easier for you to locate the information again. Added to this user advantage, is a major advantage from an SEO point of view. The pages link to each other, and previous and next tags are also used. This means that Google is able to see pages more easily, and see how they are all related. This is a big help when it comes to SEO.
More often than not, you will find that pagination is the best choice, for SEO. This does not mean you should automatically opt for pagination. You need to make the choice based on your own circumstances and requirements. If you need help making this decision, click this link for further information and advice.
