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Using Anchor Tags to Improve Navigation and Search Rankings Sitewide

Boost your website’s functionality and improve user navigation while optimizing your real estate content for search engines.

Table of Contents

  1. Why This Feature Matters

  2. Before You Begin

  3. Link to An Anchor on the Same Page

  4. Link to an Anchor on a Different Page 

  5. Best Practices

  6. Troubleshooting Common Issues

  7. FAQs

Why This Feature Matters

Anchor tags let a reader jump to a specific section of a page without scrolling manually. On a real estate content page, that means you can keep key details like a listing summary, community highlights, or a call to action visible near the top, while linking a "Read More" prompt down to fuller content below.

Anchor tags also work as shareable deep links. Once an anchor exists on a page, you can share the page's full URL followed by #AnchorName anywhere, email, social, a text, and it will take the reader straight to that section instead of the top of the page. That makes anchor tags useful both for organizing a single page and for pointing people directly to the part of your content that matters to them.

Because visitors aren't confronted with a wall of text up front, anchor tags can also support longer time-on-page and lower bounce rates.

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Before You Begin

  • You'll need edit access to the content page in the Sierra Client Admin Area (CAA), under Content > Content Pages.
  • Anchor tags work within the same page's content editor. They're set up using the editor's built-in Anchor and Link tools, the same rich text editor used to build content pages generally (see Using the Content Editor to Create Content Pages & Blog Posts).
  • Have both sections of content ready before you start: the shorter top section a reader sees first, and the longer section you want them to jump to.

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Link to An Anchor on the Same Page 

  1. Open the page in the content editor.

    Go to Content > Content Pages in your Sierra CAA and open the page you want to edit.
    content_page

  2. Confirm both content sections are in place. Make sure the top section (what readers see first) and the lower section (the fuller content) are both drafted in the content area before you add the anchor.anchor_tag

  3. Click into the lower section of the page and position your cursor exactly where you want readers to land, for example just before a specific paragraph or heading. 

  4. Click the Anchor icon in the content editor toolbar. In the Insert/Edit Anchor popup, enter a short anchor name. Click Insert. An anchor icon will now appear at that spot in the editor. 

  5. Add the link text in the top section.
    Scroll to the top section and type the text you want readers to click, for example "Read More." 

  6. Highlight the text you just typed, click the Link icon in the toolbar, and in the Link URL field enter # followed by your anchor name exactly as you typed it, for example #ReadMore. If the anchor already exists on the page, it may appear as a selectable option in the Link tool instead of needing to be typed manually. Click Insert. 

  7. Click Save and View to open the page in a new tab, then click your linked text to confirm it jumps to the correct section.  

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Link to An Anchor On a Different Page 

Use this when you want to send a reader from one page straight to a specific section on another page, for example, linking from your homepage to a specific section of your About page.

1. Create the anchor on the destination page first
Follow steps 3–4 above on the page that contains the section you're linking to. The anchor has to exist there before you can link to it.

2. Highlight your link text on the source page
On the page you're linking from, highlight the text you want readers to click.

3. Open the Link tool and enter the full URL
Click the Link icon. In the Link URL field, enter the destination page's full URL followed by # and the anchor name, for example www.example.com/about#ReadMore.anchor_different_page

4. Set additional link options
Consider checking the option to open the link in a new window, and adding a title for the link, particularly useful when linking off the current page so readers have context before they click. 

5. Save and test
Click Save and View, then click the link to confirm it lands on the correct page at the correct section.

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Best Practices

  • Keep anchor names short and descriptive, with no spaces or special characters.
  • Match the anchor name exactly in both the anchor and the link, including case, since anchor links are case-sensitive.
  • Test every anchor link after publishing to confirm it jumps to the right section.
  • Use anchor links sparingly. A page with too many jump links can feel cluttered and undercut the navigation benefit you're going for.
  • For cross-page anchor links, consider opening the link in a new window and adding a descriptive title so readers have context before they click away from the current page.
  • Anchor links make good shareable deep links. If you want to point someone directly to a section of a page, share the full URL with #AnchorName attached rather than just the page URL.

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Troubleshooting Common Issues

  • The link doesn't scroll to the target section.
    Check that the anchor name in the Link URL field matches the anchor name exactly, including case and spacing. Even a small mismatch will break the jump.

  • The anchor icon isn't showing after you insert it.
    Reload the content editor or remove and reinsert the anchor. This usually refreshes the visual indicator.

  • Nothing happens when you click the link on the live page.
    Confirm the page was saved and republished after adding the anchor and link, not just previewed.

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FAQs

  • Can I have multiple anchors on a single page?

     Yes. Each anchor just needs a unique name so the links don't conflict. 

  • Can I link from a different page to this anchor?

     Yes. This uses a different setup than a same-page anchor link. See Link to an anchor on a different page above. 

  • Will this work on mobile devices?
    Yes, anchor links are fully supported on mobile-friendly pages.

  • Can I use an anchor link to share a specific section of my page elsewhere?
    Yes. Copy the full page URL with #AnchorName added to the end and share it directly. Clicking it takes the reader straight to that section. 

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