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Practical field guide

How to find and prioritise broken links on your website

A broken link can interrupt the next step a visitor came to take. A link checker can help you find candidates, but each result needs a quick check: the destination may be temporarily unavailable, the address may be wrong, or the page may have moved. Start with pages that matter to customers and decide repairs by traffic impact, content relevance and business importance.

Check whether the destination is unavailable or incorrect

Before editing, separate a temporary access problem from a URL or content mismatch. Check the source page and the destination itself so you know which link needs attention.

  1. Open it again from the source page

    Follow the link as it appears to a visitor, then inspect the address in the browser. A not-found or gone message, a connection error, or a page that will not load can indicate an unavailable destination. If the failure could be temporary, try again later before treating it as permanent.

  2. Look for an incorrect address or page

    Compare the address with the page you meant to share. Look for a misspelling, an outdated path, or a redirect to an unrelated service, location or offer. A page that loads can still be the wrong destination.

  3. Verify where the link should go

    For your own pages, search your site or content manager for the current page and confirm its address. For another organisation’s site, use its official navigation or ask its owner; do not guess a replacement URL.

Match the repair to what you found

The right action depends on whether the link is wrong, the page moved, or the destination no longer exists.

  1. Correct a typo or update a moved page

    Change the link to the confirmed, current destination. If you moved one of your own pages, use the right replacement and update links that still point to the old address.

  2. Recheck a destination that may be temporarily down

    Keep a note to revisit it. If it remains unavailable and the link matters to customers, contact the destination owner or choose a confirmed, relevant alternative.

  3. Remove or replace a link with no useful destination

    If the page is gone and there is no equivalent, remove the link or replace it with a genuinely relevant page. Do not send visitors to an unrelated homepage just to make the link load.

  4. Retest the edited link

    Return to the original page and follow the link again. Check that it reaches the intended content and that the page still gives visitors a clear next step.

Rank repairs by business impact

Do not treat every broken link as equally urgent. Weigh traffic impact, content relevance and business importance together.

  1. Business importance: does it interrupt a customer journey?

    Put links on service, quote, contact, booking, category or other decision pages near the front of the queue when they stop someone understanding an offer or taking a useful next step.

  2. Traffic impact: how often is the page used?

    Give more attention to links on pages that bring visitors or are commonly used to find and compare your services. A broken path on a frequently used page can affect more customer journeys than one buried in rarely visited content.

  3. Content relevance: does the page still support the business?

    Prioritise useful, current content that relates to what you offer. An older, low-relevance article can usually wait behind a broken link on an active service or quote page, unless its traffic or business role makes it important.

  4. A practical order for the queue

    First handle broken links that block key customer actions, especially on important or well-used pages. Then review relevant supporting pages with meaningful traffic. Leave low-relevance, older content for later and decide whether to update, remove or retire it.

Keep a simple repair list

A small log helps you avoid checking the same issue from scratch and makes it clear what still needs follow-up.

  1. Track the finding and decision

    For each candidate, record the source page, destination, what you observed, the customer or business impact, the chosen action and whether you retested it. Mark temporary failures to revisit rather than silently treating them as fixed.

  2. Review links after content changes

    When you move or remove a page, check the links that used to lead to it. Revisit your important customer paths as part of routine website maintenance.

Where Rivetune fits

This guide is a broader, owner-led workflow for reviewing links across your website.

  1. The current product description covers homepage links

    Rivetune’s public site describes checks for links found on a saved homepage. It does not claim to crawl every page on a site or repair links automatically.

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