Mike at Simbunch.com has created a very useful little mambot that forces all external links to open in a new window. (free registration required)
What Does It Do?
The mambot can add these tags to all external links:
- target=”_blank” (open the link in a new window)
- rel=”nofollow” (telling search engines to ignore the link)
- both
Personally I don’t agree with people who want to add nofollow to all their external links. It seems overly paranoid and contrary to how the web works. However, opening other sites in a new window is increasingly a good idea.
Why Open In a New Window?
- To keep visitors on your site. Opening in the new window means potential customers don’t have to leave your site.
- Its not 2003 any more. In the bad old days when Internet Explorer 6 ruled the web, opening a new window was a bad idea. It didn’t take more than a few clicks to fill up your screen with new and confusing windows. Now however, tabbed browsing is dominant and for most people a new window means a new tab. Tabs are so uncluttered and easy-to-organize that its no bad thing.
If you’re an SEO Club member, you’ll find a long discussion on this topic by clicking here.