Principle 2: Operable
Use descriptive links that prime users to the content that sits behind them
Link text should be unique within a page, should be meaningful when read out of context, and should help users to know something about their destination if they click on it. Link text such as “Click here” and “More” fail to meet these criteria. Consider the various ways users interact with links:
Screen reader users can generate a list of links and navigate them alphabetically. Redundant or ambiguous link text such as “More” is meaningless in this context. Users of speech recognition technology can select a link with a voice command like “click” followed by the link text. Therefore it is also helpful to use unique link text that is short and easy to say.
Best practice
Publishing effective link text
Try to always use link text that meets the criteria explained above. For example, consider the following two examples, where the link text “click here” does not meet the criteria:
Nope ⛔️ : To ensure you get all information about getting the best experience at the University click here
Better ✅ : For more information, visit getting the best from your University experience
For repetitive links e.g. read more links for blog posts
If link text is added at the end of repeated blocks of text, for example “Read more” links at the end of short teasers for blog posts, there are a variety of acceptable techniques for making those links more accessible, without adding clutter or sacrificing readability. For example, the aria-label or aria-labelledby attributes could be added to the link, providing more descriptive link text specifically for screen reader users.