If you’ve ever clicked on a link expecting helpful information—only to land on a depressing 404 Page Not Found—you know exactly how frustrating broken links can be. It’s like being promised pizza and getting a salad. Nobody wins.
The funny thing? Even the little “SEO expert” monkey in our image seems to understand the struggle. And while the meme gives us a laugh, it also highlights a bigger point: broken links can quietly sabotage your website, your user experience, and your SEO performance.
In this blog post, we’re going deep (but keeping it fun) into:
- What broken links actually are
- How they impact your SEO
- The pros (yes, there are a couple) and cons
- How to find and fix them
- Why regular maintenance is essential
- And how an agency like Exultant Digital keeps your website performing at its best
Let’s dive in and make sure your site isn’t full of potholes that Google (and your customers) trip over.
What Are Broken Links? (And Why Do They Happen?)
Broken links—also called dead links—are links that no longer lead anywhere. They might take a user to:
- A 404 Not Found page
- A deleted or moved webpage
- A URL with a typo
- A page on another site that no longer exists
- A page blocked by a server or permission settings
Here’s the kicker: broken links are extremely common. A site might have dozens of them and never know—until customers start complaining or traffic drops.
Common causes include:
- You deleted or renamed a page
- You moved content without redirecting it
- The site you linked to removed their page
- You mistyped a URL
- Plugins, tools, or third-party resources stopped working
- A platform migration (like switching from Squarespace to WordPress) created URL changes
Broken links are like small cracks in your foundation. One isn’t a big deal—but dozens or hundreds hurt your website’s credibility and performance.
Why Broken Links Hurt Your SEO
Most business owners are surprised to learn broken links can affect SEO in multiple ways. They’re not always the No. 1 ranking factor, but they are absolutely a piece of the puzzle.
1. They Hurt User Experience (UX)
If someone clicks a link expecting value and instead lands on a broken page, they’re more likely to:
- Bounce off your site
- Lose trust in your business
- Abandon your website before exploring further
Google pays close attention to how users behave on your site. Frustrated visitors = poor engagement = lower rankings.
2. They Disrupt Google’s Crawling Process
Googlebot crawls your site following links, mapping your pages, and indexing content.
When your links are broken:
- Waste crawl budget
- Lead Googlebot to dead ends
- Make your site harder to understand
- Reduce the number of pages Google actually indexes
If search engines can’t move through your site smoothly, they can’t rank you effectively.
3. They Dilute Link Equity (AKA Ranking “Juice”)
When you link internally, you pass authority from one page to another.
But if those links are broken?
- The authority flow stops
- Important pages receive less ranking power
- Your site structure becomes weaker
A single broken link is a leak. Dozens? It’s a flood.
4. They Signal Poor Website Maintenance
Google (rightly) assumes a site full of broken links is:
- Not updated
- Not maintained
- Less trustworthy
- Less user-friendly
Search engines prefer fresh, functional, well-structured websites—and broken links are the opposite.
Are There Any Pros to Broken Links? (Surprisingly, Yes—but Only for Strategy)
While broken links are a problem for your website, they can be beneficial when analyzing other people’s websites.
Here’s how:
1. Link Building Opportunities
Marketers sometimes use broken links on competitor sites to create backlinks:
- Find a broken link on another site
- Recreate a similar or better resource
- Ask the site owner to swap the dead link with yours
This tactic works because website owners value fixing their own broken links.
2. They Show You What Content People Value
Sometimes a piece of content gets moved or deleted by accident.
Finding a link that is broken can reveal:
- Popular old content
- Pages people still try to access
- Opportunities to revive or repurpose valuable information
But again—these “pros” only help when you’re evaluating external websites. On your own website, broken links should be eliminated quickly.
How Broken Links Affect Small Businesses Specifically
Small businesses often have limited budgets and rely heavily on organic traffic and customer trust.
Broken links can:
- Reduce the number of leads
- Make your site feel outdated
- Frustrate potential customers
- Lower your local SEO performance
- Make Google prefer competitors
- Hurt your Google Business Profile click-through rates
In industries like home services, restaurants, retail, real estate, or local professionals, trust is everything. A single broken page can be enough for a customer to go elsewhere.
How to Find Links That Are Broken on Your Website
Fortunately, you don’t have to manually click every link like the little “SEO monkey” in the image.
Here are reliable tools that scan your site for problems fast:
Free Tools
- Google Search Console
Shows crawl errors, broken pages, and indexing problems. - Broken Link Checker (Browser Extension)
Quick way to scan individual pages. - Ahrefs Free Broken Link Checker
Helpful for checking backlinks and internal links.
Paid Tools (More Accurate & Thorough)
- Ahrefs
Excellent site audits and link reports. - SEMrush
Great for ongoing SEO monitoring. - Screaming Frog
The gold standard for crawling entire websites. - Sitebulb
Ideal for technical SEO audits.
Manual Checks (for Smaller Sites)
If your site has fewer than 20–30 pages, you can:
- Click important pages and menus
- Test internal links
- Review blog posts
- Revisit high-traffic pages
Manual audits take time but can catch things automated tools miss.
How to Fix Broken Links (Step-by-Step)
Finding broken links is half the battle. Fixing them is where the magic happens.
1. Replace the Link with the Correct URL
If you moved a page, simply update the link to the correct destination.
2. Set Up 301 Redirects
If the page is gone forever, redirect old URLs to:
- A new relevant page
- A category page
- A homepage (last resort)
301 redirects pass most of the link equity and ensure users land somewhere useful.
3. Restore the Deleted Content
If a page disappeared accidentally, re-upload it.
Google loves when useful content comes back.
4. Remove the Link Completely
If a link no longer serves a purpose:
- Delete it
- Add new content in its place
Keep the page clean, helpful, and current.
5. Replace External Links with Better Sources
If an external website went offline:
- Link to a similar resource
- Or create your own version and link internally
This helps both SEO and user experience.
How Often Should You Check Your Site for Broken Links?
Most small businesses should do an audit:
- Every 3 months (recommended)
- Monthly if you publish a lot of content
- Immediately after redesigns, migrations, or adding new pages
Broken links tend to accumulate quietly. Regular maintenance prevents big problems.
Why Working With a Digital Marketing Agency Helps
Fixing one broken link is easy.
Fixing 50+ links across multiple pages, blog posts, menus, plugins, redirects, tracking codes, and legacy URLs? Not so fun.
That’s where an expert team (like Exultant Digital) steps in.
Here’s what we handle:
- Full website audits
- Fixing internal + external broken links
- Repairing redirect chains
- Setting up proper URL structures
- Improving crawlability
- Maintaining site health long-term
- Enhancing local SEO for visibility
- Optimizing your Google Business Profile
- Strengthening overall site performance
You deserve to be the expert at your business—not at crawling URLs like a tiny laptop-using monkey.
Final Thoughts: Don’t Let Broken Links Break Your Website
Broken links may seem small, but their impact on SEO, user experience, and website trust is huge. They’re one of the easiest problems to fix—and one of the most important issues to keep an eye on.
When you clean them up, you’ll benefit from:
- Better rankings
- Better engagement
- More trust
- Smoother user experience
- Stronger site authority
And if the image taught us anything, it’s this:
Even a monkey knows broken links matter… so your business should too.
If you want a clean, high-performing site without the technical headaches, Exultant Digital has your back. We’ll keep your website healthy, your SEO strong, and your customers clicking all the right links.