WordPress SEO – 404 Page

Creating a unique 404 page really is one of the most overlooked elements in a search engine optimization campaign. Clients become so consumed with creating content, links and all the other on-page and off-page factors that go into optimization that they ignore the importance keeping users on their site once a problem arises. By neglecting your 404 page, you’re missing a valuable opportunity for customer retention.

At some point, users are going to meet your 404 page. They’ll click on a broken link, try to access a bookmarked page that no longer exists, mistype a URL, or maybe they’ll just get bored and start making up their own URLs for your site. Stuff happens. Leaving them a piece of rope to help them find their way back can be crucial to your search engine optimization goals.

Let’s be frank. Default 404 pages suck. They’re cold and don’t offer any value to users.

The best 404 pages are the ones that blend in with your site, are simply written, don’t scare away users and encourage visitors to continue interacting with your site. Your 404 page should absolutely have:

• An apology for the error
• A prominent search box
• A link to your site map
• A link to your home page
• Links to the other main areas of your site

Or you can simply add codes below to your 404.php
[php]<h3>Something to read?</h3>
<p>Want to read something else? These are the 20 latest updates:</p>
<ul><?php wp_get_archives(‘type=postbypost&limit=20&format=html’); ?></ul>
[/php]

You can see various amazing 404s at creative, imaginative 404 pages.