SWAP LINK

Replace standard links with shorter links which have a better chance of being indexed by search engines. This includes improved links in your merchant.mvc (4.x only) and the module generated sitemap files. The sitemap file generation is the most common usage of this module, however, you may find the link replacements within merchant.mvc of benefit too.

Features: - Remove the store_code portion of the link urls when only one store is in the domain (4.x only) - Implement rollover bullets in the left category column (4.x only) - Link text below the thumbnail image, e.g. click to enlarge (4.x only) - Generate static html sitemap files linked to all of your categories and products

Feature Details.
Shorter URLs (4.x only) Convert your links to shorter URLs with this module if you are using the OpenUI. You can use URLs which are similar to the original URL links, but with the Store_Code removed if you only have one miva merchant store in your domain. This shortened URL is swapped with the original URL links for the category names in the category tree and the product names on the various list pages and category pages. These shorter (modified URLs) can be indexed by most search engines. By using this method, you don't need an external handler file and will still get the store indexed. You have the option of turning this feature off if your version of the OpenUI has the same ability built in. If you have the ability to re-write the .htaccess file on your domain, you can use directory style links within the merchant.mvc pages. This feature is not included for Merchant 5.x, as you can do most of this with the built-in page templates.

Rollovers (4.x only) Optionally adds rollover bullets to the left of the category names in the category column. These bullets contain links in the standard URL format for Merchant so that each category has two links on the storefront. As an added feature, if the store is a single store in the domain, the URL is optimized for search engines by removing the redundant store code which has been found to hinder search engines. This optimized URL is used with the optional bullets in the category column and also with the thumbnails on category pages.

Thumb Text (4.x only) Optionally adds text or image below the thumb on category pages, e.g. Click to Enlarge or More Info.

Emporium Plus (version 4.x) currently has this module installed and you can see how the category and product links have been swapped for better search engine indexing.

Site Map Files The Swap Link module can further enhance your chances of search engine optimization (seo) by producing static sitelink*.htm files which list all of your categories and products with the shorter links. This feature works with both MMUI and OpenUI stores. This feature is configurable to allow you to optimize the sitelink pages with meta tags, key word rich text, etc. The site link pages are generated very quickly through admin. You can optionally include the price and a brief description of the item. The brief description uses either the Flexible Product Description module pseudofield called "brief" or the first 100 characters of the full product description. As long as you don't go overboard with your narrative (top of page) text, each page will be less than 100K. If multiple pages are required to include your whole catalog, a link to the next page is included on each page. If you have the ability to re-write the .htaccess file on your domain and know how to write the .htaccess file, you can use directory style links on the sitelink pages. See the install doc for more information on this feature. If you are using the Search Friendly Link module, you can optionally make the sitelink page links compatible with that format. You can even include the affiliate link. The limitations listed below do not apply to this paragraph.

Limitations:

OpenUI look and feel only. While it can be used in a MMUI store (like this one), the editing is complex and I do not provide instructions so that you could do it yourself, as anticipated support would be significant.

If you have replaced the standard layouts (product line or product expanded) with custom, 3rd party module solutions, then the swap links will not be generated for those particular pages.

Category links use the standard category tree (column). If you have removed the left hand category column, then the swap links cannot be generated.

Online overview and initial setup instructions for our MIVA Merchant modules.

Screen shot showing admin interface for merchant.mvc links

Screen shot of admin interface for site link file

Create sitelink.htm file to enhance search engine visibility

^keyword~search engine optimization submission links short url category rollover store4 ^User Interface:~If 4x, requires OpenUI