URL guidelines

URL

URLs should:

be simple, clear and easy to read
use lower case letters only
use dashes to separate words
be SEO friendly - this means they should contain keywords so they rank highly in search engines

See URL standards for GOV.UK for more guidance on best practice URLs.

Examples of good URLs are:

URLs should not contain:

capital letters
dates
acronyms where possible
underscores to separate words

Examples of bad URLs are:

www.essex.gov.uk/ICS - acronyms are unlikely to be SEO friendly or understood by users.

www.essex.gov.uk/Annual-Report-2014 - dates and time-limit the use of URLs. A better approach would be to use www.essex.gov.uk/annual-report so the URL can continue to be used for subsequent years.

www.essex.gov.uk/TLC_PROVIDERS - capital letters and underscores make URLs hard to read.

Short URLs

What are they?

Short URLs, also known as vanity URLs, are unique, short links that redirect users to a web page that has a longer URL. For example:

www.essex.gov.uk/cycling is a short URL that redirects users to http://www.essexhighways.org/Transport-and-Roads/Getting-Around/Cycling.aspx

When to use a short URL

Short URLs should be used for marketing purposes such as campaigns that require a unique campaign identity or have a need for users to remember a web link. They are often used on:

printed material like posters or leaflets
videos
audio (such as radio, podcasts or an automated contact centre message)

They should be clear and easy for people to remember.

When not to use a short URL

Short URLs shouldn’t be used for:

the majority of URLs - there must be a marketing purpose
instances where the original URL is already fit for purpose, for example www.essex.gov.uk/dementia is the original page URL
external websites that are not owned by Essex County Council

Creating short URLs

Short URLs should:

be simple, clear and easy to read
make sense and be easy to remember
use lower case only
not use dashes or underscores – try to use one word but if you need to use 2, they should be joined, for example www.essex.gov.uk/energyswitch
have an expiry date
have a campaign tracking code
have an owner who can confirm when the short URL is no longer in use

Redirects

What are they?

A redirect sends users and search engines to a different URL from the one originally requested.

They are used to prevent broken links.

When to use a redirect

Redirects should be used when:

content is unpublished or archived
URLs are changed – this could be due to a significant change in page title or for SEO reasons
content is moved to a new location, impacting the URL

When not to use redirects

Redirects should not be used:

frequently
for marketing purposes - see short URLs