As of today Google will allow you to see and optionally disallow which links on your site have been identified as candidates for appearing as “sitelinks” directly in Google search results. (see Google’s press release)
What are Sitelinks?
Sitelinks are shown when a website is considered a leader in a particular search term. The sitelinks are a list of key navigational links on the site and they appear below the standard website listing (see snapshot).
To view and manage your sitelinks, go to the Webmaster Tools Dashboard and click the site you want. In the left menu click Links, then click Sitelinks.
How is this Helpful?
First of all, only a lucky few will ever have a top ranking where sitelinks are shown so this is really just a feature for a small percentage of sites. That said, if your site is fortunate enough to have a sitelink list you may want to disallow links to areas within your site that may be out of date or that are under construction. It is also possible that allowing a particular sitelink may mess up your ideal sales funnel.
All-in-all, I think sitelinks is a great addition to the webmaster toolset and it is yet another example of Google listening closely to the webmaster community – kudos to them!
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