We all have our own ways of setting up our blog.
Some have the blog posts listed on the home page, some have a static page.
Some of us list our services…some of us have an about page (which I thoroughly recommend you do have).
But other than your blog posts, the most important pages are as follows. Google expects to see and will give your blog extra credence if they are found.
Privacy
This is the page where you tell your visitor what you do with any data they give you.
You can see my privacy page by clicking in the link below and copy it if you wish.
https://www.webuildyourblog.com/privacy-policy/
Disclaimer
You also need to add a ‘Disclaimer’ page. This is the page that stipulates what you mention on your blog may not suit everyone and not everyone will get the same results. Click the link below to see my disclaimer page and you can copy it:
https://www.webuildyourblog.com/disclaimer/
Affiliate Disclosure
I believe in being totally open and honest with my visitors. If I am going to make some income from someone clicking on a link on my site, I like to tell them and so should you. This page tells my visitors that I make an income using affiliate links on my blog. Click the link below to see my “Affiliate Disclosure” page and you can copy it:
https://www.webuildyourblog.com/affiliate-disclosure/
As I say I believe the above 3 pages, Privacy, Disclaimer and Affiliate Disclosure are ‘must-have’ pages and Google looks for such pages.
However, there are 2 more that I have recently added to my site:
Material Reprint – Licensing Center
I was getting fed up of people copying my blog posts…so I thought I would add this page:
https://www.webuildyourblog.com/material-reprint-licensing-center/
It may help deter some people from copying my content or at least I can contact them and demand some money from them.
Testimonial Disclaimer
This one I only added the other day. I was in discussion with a client of mine and the question came up about testimonials and the FTC Guidelines.
After a while the client asked, “Whether the FTC guidelines for testimonials were relevant for blogs?”
I’ve never really thought about it…until the question was asked.
But they must be relevant…so I added my testimonial disclaimer page:
https://www.webuildyourblog.com/testimonial-disclaimer/
Important: If you do decide to use any of my pages (Privacy, Disclaimer, Affiliate Disclosure, Material Reprint – Licensing Center, Testimonial Disclaimer) as the basis for yours, please make sure you change any relevant text to mention your blog site, your email addresses and not mine!
(Oh and I won’t come after you for copying these specfic pages!).
What’s your views? Any specific pages we should be adding?
Please share your views in the comments below.
Hi Andrew,
I have just started a blog and I am about to these pages, and specifically the Privacy page, and the Affiliate Disclosure. The latter is particularly important given the FTC guidelines.
Matthew
I hope they help!
Andrew
I have 3, you have 5, I’ll be back to steal. lol
Btw, 2 links leading right back to your homepage…is this a keyword in the footer thing?
Dennis
Go ahead and steal. Yes, links in my footer.
Andrew
Do two different keyworded links in the footer leading nowhere but the homepage actually help that much?
Dennis,
I think so!
But who really knows…I haven’t tested it.
Andrew
Are you testing it now or just decided to do it for the hell of it?
I just forgot almost of these page. Let’s me added it to my tech news blog, is it needed ?
Tony
I think so…hence the post!
Andrew
I have all the pages on my blog already from the beginning because Andrew taught me how to do it in his Income Blogging Course. You really need these pages just because….Google loves them!!
David
Kind words – thank you!
Andrew
Y’know, I hadn’t even considered some of those other pages, especially the disclaimer page. The FTC can be scary when they want to be!
Delena
Delena
I really do think the pages are worth adding.
Andrew
I’m actually in the process right now of writing our TOS, privacy policy and other pages.
You gave me some good ideas, thanks for the awesome post.
– Jenny.
Jenny
I’m glad the post helped.
Andrew
Hi Andrew,
I’ve never read a blog post quite like this before. In fact, I had no idea that Google would give a blog ‘extra credit,’ so to speak, for having these pages.
Well, as my blog doesn’t yet have any of these pages, I guess I should get started!
Thanks for the advice!
Petra
Petra
You are welcome…I hope the pages make a difference if not to Google but to your visitors as well.
Andrew
Andrew, Thank you for your post The Pages Google Wants To See On Your Blog. Indeed As I say I believe the above 3 pages, Privacy, Disclaimer and Affiliate Disclosure are ‘must-have’ pages and Google looks for such pages.
Alex,
You’re welcome!
Andrew
On your Disclaimer section, I have to say that I’ve always kept fine print such as that on my Terms and Conditions page…
Sonny
As long as you have it somewhere…that’s great!
Andrew
Thanks for your awesome post Andrew! You made me realize I lack some pages in my blog which are essential for Google to love my site. Thanks again! I’ll be coming back for more.
You’re welcome, John.
Andrew
I have all but the last two. Not sure how much I actually need a Testimonial Disclaimer. The Material Reprint – Licensing Center page is very interesting. Will that actually hold up? Ever had to invoice anyone, and did they pay?
Alan
The Testimonials page is dependent upon whether you have testimonials on your page. I do…hence I created it.
Re: Ever had to invoice anyone, and did they pay?
Yes and yes!
Andrew
I have some testimonials, so I should perhaps get a page up.
That’s interesting, and surprising. Anything extra you had to do to get them to pay? Or, did you just point them to your page and request the money, with them agreeing?
Very intrigued. 😉
Alan,
When writing to them I did mention the DMCA rules and said I’d write to Google if no payment was forthcoming.
Andrew
Hi Andrew,
Thank you for this information.
A while back I read an email from another affiliate marketer advising that there are certain pages that Google looks for and gives additional credit for… and one of those pages he sited was a DMCA page (Digital Millennium Copyright Act).
For some inexplicable reason, at that time, I thought it was the same thing as an affiliate disclosure page.
However, after reading this post and perusing the one I added to my site I don’t think it is.
Are you familiar with DMCA and have you ever heard that it too is a page that google likes to see on sites/blogs?
Don
Don,
I am aware of the DMCA (in fact I’ve had to use it). I think working on this could be added to my Material Reprint License page.
Thanks for sharing.
Andrew
I think that as we share ever-increasing amounts of information online, these pages make just as much sense to protect yourself legally as they do to ‘please’ Google. Thanks for sharing Andrew.
Tom
You’re welcome.
Andrew
Those pages that you listed, I assume they’re in line with FTC’s guidelines. Do the guidelines apply for sites not based in the US?
Alfee,
It is mainly aimed at sites that reside in the USA.
But what determines the base of the site?
The hosting company, where the owner lives, the domain (.co.uk or .com)?
I recommend they are added to any site irrespective of where they reside.
Andrew
Hello Andrew. It seems Google doesn’t really love the content of my site. Thanks for posting this informative article. I will fix the problem immediately.
Andrew
Why do you think Google doesn’t like your content?
Andrew
Andrew, do you use some cool WP plugin for your footer? You have so much good info there, and it seems I cannot get anything into my footer other than what’s there. I would like to have all the links you talk about in my footer.
Suzanna
Suzanna
No, it’s nothing to do with a WP plugin.
I use the Headway theme and it makes it much easier to do.
What theme you using?
Andrew
Andrew,
my theme is called “student participation learning”, it’s built on Kubrick… I just went to look and there’s a simple footer.php, so I added my links (all that you recommend) manually to it. It was a bit of a work, but it’s just once for all. I really like my cute theme, so I thought it was worth it 🙂 Thanks again for the great post.
Suzanna
Suzanna
I see!
Excellent.
Loved your latest post as well.
I am trying to eat more healthy. I need more ideas for healthy snacks!
Andrew
My favorite during summer time is: frozen blueberries, Stevia (natural sweetener) and kefir (or greek yogurt). You blend it together, the blueberries will defrost in the kefir/yogurt and make it half freeze… it tastes like the best ice cream, yet it is super healthy. I eat it almost every day during hot weather days 🙂
hi andrew,
i just wondering if you let me copy and paste all the text under the privacy link u provided above.
I’ll use it after I modified it but if you did not permit me its okay I wont use them.
I am very new in Blogging and now I feel very very energize when people do read what you post in ur blogs.. 🙂
Thanks for your kind help
Demy
That’s fine, you can use.
Andrew