Links

Visible Text Requirement

A link must always have visible text. This ensures that users, including those with assistive technologies, can perceive and interact with the link. In the State of Nevada CMS remove any elements that are not used as they will create links with no visible text. This is pointless because if a user cannot see the link they cannot click on it.

Avoid "Link to..." Redundancy - Best Practice

The link text should not redundantly state its "link to..." nature. Screen readers already announce the role before reading the link text, and redundant information can be confusing.

Links Visually Distinguishable from Non-Links

Link text must be distinguished using a minimum of two methods and must be visually distinguishable from surrounding non-link text. On State of Nevada CMS websites, we use underlining and color to distinguish links. Non-link text should not be the same color nor should they be underlined.

Consistent Link Text

Links leading to the same destination must be consistently identified with the same, or very similar, link text across all pages of the site. This consistency aids users in understanding the purpose of the link consistently throughout the website.

Clear and Understandable Purpose

The purpose of each link must be readily understandable and distinguishable from other links on the same page. Ideally, this distinction should be evident from the link text alone, or at least from the immediate surrounding context.

Do not use "Click here..." or any ambiguous form of this language as link text must be readily understandable and distinguishable from other links on the page.

URLs as Links

To make hypertext links more accessible, avoid using long URLs as link text. Instead use concise, meaningful text and embed the long URL in the link text. No one wants to hear a long URL being read out to them as it is much more meaningful to hear the link text instead.

The text for links should be descriptive for where the link will go and it should make sense if read out of context from the rest of the text on the page. This is important because screen reader users can have the software read just the links on a web page.