Legendplugins

Creating Links with Attributes (nofollow, sponsored, UGC)

Learn how to create affiliate and content links with proper HTML attributes for SEO compliance and transparency. This guide covers nofollow, sponsored, and UGC attributes with step-by-step instructions.

Overview

HTML link attributes help search engines understand the nature and purpose of your links. LegendLinks makes it easy to add these attributes to ensure compliance with affiliate programs and content guidelines.

Why Use Link Attributes?

  • SEO Compliance: Follow search engine guidelines
  • Legal Requirements: Meet FTC and affiliate program rules
  • Transparency: Clearly disclose link relationships
  • Trust Building: Show ethical marketing practices

Link Attributes Guide

Nofollow Attribute

Purpose: Tells search engines not to follow or pass SEO value through this link.

When to Use Nofollow:

  • Affiliate and sponsored links
  • Paid advertisements
  • User-generated content you don't fully trust
  • Links to untrusted external sites

SEO Impact:

  • ❌ No link equity transfer
  • ✅ Maintains your site's SEO integrity
  • ✅ Prevents manipulation of search rankings

Purpose: Identifies links that are part of paid advertising or sponsorship arrangements.

When to Use Sponsored:

  • Affiliate marketing links
  • Sponsored content
  • Paid product placements
  • Brand partnerships with compensation

SEO Impact:

  • ⚠️ May have limited SEO value
  • ✅ Required for affiliate compliance
  • ✅ Provides transparency about paid relationships

UGC Attribute (User Generated Content)

Purpose: Marks content created by users rather than site owners or official content.

When to Use UGC:

  • Forum posts and discussions
  • User reviews and testimonials
  • Social media user shares
  • Community-generated content
  • Guest contributions

SEO Impact:

  • ✅ Natural link equity flow
  • ✅ Indicates authentic user content
  • ✅ Helps search engines understand content context

Decision Table: Which Attribute to Use

Link TypeNofollowSponsoredUGCExample
Affiliate Product Link✅✅❌Amazon affiliate link
Sponsored Blog Post✅✅❌Paid brand partnership
User Forum Post✅❌✅Community discussion link
Customer Review❌❌✅User testimonial with link
Social Media Share❌❌✅User-shared content link
Paid Advertisement✅✅❌CPC/PPC ad link
Trusted Partner Link❌✅❌Sponsored but trusted content
Internal Blog Link❌❌❌Regular content linking

How to Create Attributed Links

Step 1: Access Link Editor

  1. Go to LegendLinks → Links in your WordPress admin
  2. Click "+ Add New" or edit an existing link

Step 2: Configure Basic Link Settings

  1. Target URL: Enter the destination URL
  2. Slug: Choose your short link identifier (e.g., product-name)
  3. Title: Add a descriptive title

Step 3: Set Link Attributes

Scroll down to the "Link Attributes" section:

For Affiliate Links (Most Common):

<!-- Check these boxes: -->
✅ Add nofollow attribute
✅ Mark as sponsored
❌ User Generated Content (UGC)

For User-Generated Content:

<!-- Check these boxes: -->
✅ Add nofollow attribute
❌ Mark as sponsored
✅ User Generated Content (UGC)

For Trusted Sponsored Content:

<!-- Check these boxes: -->
❌ Add nofollow attribute
✅ Mark as sponsored
❌ User Generated Content (UGC)

Step 4: Save and Copy

  1. Click "Save Link"
  2. Use the copy buttons in the link list:
    • URL: Copies just the short link
    • HTML: Copies complete <a> tag with attributes

Advanced: Default Attributes

Set default attributes to apply automatically to all new links:

Step 1: Access Settings

Go to LegendLinks → Settings → General

Step 2: Configure Defaults

// Recommended for affiliate sites:
✅ Default Nofollow: ON
✅ Default Sponsored: ON
✅ Default UGC: OFF

Step 3: Override as Needed

When creating individual links, you can still override these defaults by checking/unchecking the attribute boxes.

Amazon Compliance Mode

For Amazon affiliate links, enable Amazon Compliance Mode for automatic attribute management:

Step 1: Enable Compliance

LegendLinks → Settings → General
✅ Amazon Compliance Mode: ON

Step 2: Automatic Behavior

When you create links to Amazon URLs:

  • ✅ nofollow automatically enabled
  • ✅ sponsored automatically enabled
  • 🔒 Attributes cannot be manually disabled (compliance requirement)

Step 3: Override Prevention

Amazon compliance mode prevents manual changes to nofollow/sponsored attributes on Amazon links to ensure program compliance.

Practical Examples

Example 1: Amazon Affiliate Link

<!-- In your content editor: -->
<p>Check out this amazing product: <a href="https://amazon.com/dp/B08N5WRWNW" rel="nofollow sponsored">Wireless Headphones</a></p>

<!-- LegendLinks generates: -->
<p>Check out this amazing product: <a href="yoursite.com/go/headphones" rel="nofollow sponsored">Wireless Headphones</a></p>

Example 2: User Forum Link

<!-- Forum post with user-shared link: -->
<p>A great tutorial here: <a href="https://tutorial-site.com" rel="ugc nofollow">Learn Web Development</a></p>

Example 3: Sponsored Content

<!-- Paid brand partnership: -->
<p>Read our guide sponsored by TechCorp: <a href="https://techcorp.com/guide" rel="sponsored">Complete SEO Guide</a></p>

Copying Links with Attributes

Method 1: HTML Copy Button

  1. In the links list, look for links with attribute indicators
  2. Click the HTML button (appears when attributes are set)
  3. Copies: <a href="yoursite.com/go/link" rel="nofollow sponsored">Link Title</a>

Method 2: Manual HTML Creation

<a href="yoursite.com/go/your-slug" rel="nofollow sponsored ugc">Link Text</a>

Best Practices

✅ Do's:

  • Always use nofollow + sponsored for affiliate links
  • Use ugc for user-generated content
  • Enable Amazon compliance mode for affiliate sites
  • Set appropriate defaults to reduce manual work
  • Regularly audit your links for proper attribution

❌ Don'ts:

  • Don't use sponsored without nofollow for affiliates
  • Don't forget UGC for user-generated content
  • Don't override Amazon compliance settings
  • Don't use attributes inconsistently across similar links

Troubleshooting

Attributes Not Appearing

Problem: HTML copy doesn't include attributes Solution:

  • ✅ Ensure attributes are checked when creating the link
  • ✅ Save the link before copying
  • ✅ Check that the HTML button appears (only shows with attributes)

Amazon Links Not Auto-Attributing

Problem: Amazon links don't get automatic attributes Solution:

  • ✅ Enable Amazon Compliance Mode in settings
  • ✅ Ensure target URL contains "amazon." or "amzn.to"
  • ✅ Save and re-edit the link

Default Attributes Not Working

Problem: New links don't get default attributes Solution:

  • ✅ Check settings are saved
  • ✅ Clear browser cache
  • ✅ Hard refresh the link creation page (Ctrl+F5)

Related Documentation

Need help? Check our FAQ or contact support.