Navigation Menu Management

Creating and Organizing Site Navigation

Menus are how visitors navigate your website. A well-organized menu structure helps users find what they need quickly and improves overall user experience.

Understanding the Menu Interface

The screenshot shows the Primary Menu editor, which is typically the main navigation menu that appears in your site header.

Menu Structure Breakdown

Each menu item consists of two parts:

Left side: Label (What visitors see)

Right side: Link/URL (Where it goes)

From the Screenshot:

Let's analyze the menu items shown:

1. Genel Konular → /category/genel

• Label: 'Genel Konular' (General Topics in Turkish)
• URL: /category/genel
• Type: Category archive page
• What it shows: All posts filed in the 'Genel' category

2. Turizm → /category/turizm

• Label: 'Turizm' (Tourism)
• URL: Internal link to tourism category
• What it shows: Posts about tourism topics

3. Google → /category/google

• Label: 'Google'
• URL: Technology category focused on Google
• What it shows: Posts about Google products, services, news

4. İstanbul → /category/istanbul

• Label: 'İstanbul'
• URL: Location-based category
• What it shows: Content related to Istanbul

5. Aksaray → /category/aksaray

• Label: 'Aksaray'
• URL: Another location category
• What it shows: Content about Aksaray region

Menu Features

Drag to Reorder (Six Dots Icon)

The six-dot icon (⋮⋮) on the left of each item is a drag handle. Click and hold it to reorder menu items by dragging up or down.

Why reordering matters:

• Most important items should be first (left in horizontal menus)
• Group related items together
• Consider user priorities and common paths

Add Sub Link Button

Each menu item has a '+ Add Sub Link' button. This creates dropdown menus.

Example hierarchy:

• Services (parent)
  • Web Design (sub-item)
  • SEO (sub-item)
  • Marketing (sub-item)

Use sub-menus when:

• You have related items that belong under a main category
• You want to keep the main menu clean and uncluttered
• You have a deep site structure with multiple levels

Avoid sub-menus when:

• You only have 2-3 sub-items (better as main menu items)
• Items aren't truly related to the parent
• You need more than 2 levels deep (gets confusing)

Menu Item Types You Can Add

1. Category Links

Links to category archive pages showing all posts in that category.

URL format: /category/[slug]

Best for: Blog-focused sites, news sites

2. Custom Pages

Links to static pages you've created.

URL format: /about, /contact, /services

Best for: Essential site information

3. External Links

Links to other websites.

URL format: https://example.com

Best for: Partner sites, resources, social media

4. Custom Links

Any URL you want to link to.

URL format: Any valid URL

Best for: Flexibility, special pages

Menu Planning Best Practices

Keep It Simple

• 5-7 items max in the main menu
• More than that becomes overwhelming
• Use dropdowns for additional items

Logical Order

• Most important first: Home → About → Services → Blog → Contact
• User journey: Think about how users navigate
• Consistent: Keep the same order across all pages

Clear Labels

• Descriptive: Use 'Our Services' not 'What We Do'
• Concise: 1-2 words ideal, 3-4 maximum
• Action-oriented: 'Get Started' better than 'Introduction'

Mobile Consideration

• Menus collapse to hamburger menu on mobile
• Test on phones to ensure readability
• Keep labels short so they don't wrap

Testing Your Menu

After making changes:

1. Click 'Save' to apply changes
2. Use 'View Site' to see the live menu
3. Test every link to ensure it works
4. Check mobile view - resize browser or use phone
5. Ask someone unfamiliar with your site if they can find key pages