What is the webpage fold?

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   Georgie Loweryposted 11 years ago

   What is the webpage fold?
   
   I see a lot of talk, okay, arguments, about text "above the fold." First of all, what does that mean and secondly, is it good or bad? Forgive me, I use to write webpages way back in the day when folks still used HTML, but I'm old now and out of the loop (also slightly insane, but I'm okay with it). Thanks in advance for answering!
   
   

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2. 93

   FatFreddysCatposted 11 years ago

   This is just a guess, but in broadsheet newspapers, (i.e. larger sized papers that are "folded" in the middle, as opposed to tabloid sized) the most important stories of the day are positioned on the front page "above the fold," this way these stories are the first things readers see when they pick up the paper.
   
   In webpage/online writing terms, I imagine the "fold" would be the point where the reader reaches the bottom of his or her screen and has to begin "scrolling" down to continue reading. I guess the idea is you have to have'em hooked before they reach that point, so they keep reading rather than clicking off to find something else.

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      Georgie Loweryposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Sounds like a good guess, Mr Cat. And look at you with your 100 Hubber score!

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      FatFreddysCatposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I work for a newspaper so I'm mainly familiar with the "above the fold" phrase in that context...and thanx! I'm going to enjoy my 100 while it lasts.

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3. 63

   Sapperposted 11 years ago

   The fold is the point where you have to scroll to see more. Everything you can see when you first open the page is above the fold, everything after you start scrolling is below.
   
   Nobody argues about text above or below the fold, it's about ads, specifically how many, are above the fold. Having ads above the fold isn't bad, but too many is. One is fine, two can be if the header isn't too big, or there isn't tons of blank space on the sides.
   
   It's one place where Google kinda messed up. They pay more for clicks and impressions the higher on the page the ad is, the penalize the domain for having too many ads above the fold.
   Mind = Blown

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      Georgie Loweryposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      You are right, it was ads and not text. Great answer, thank you!

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   Alastar Packerposted 11 years ago

   Should someone with a lot of older comments delete them or not?.

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      Sapperposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Nope, comments are fine. I don't know how much, or if at all, they help (Google doesn't release a whole lot about how the algorithms work exactly) but they won't hurt.

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      sparksterposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Judging from personal experience I would say keep as many comments as you can (unless they are SPAM or offensive), it definitely helps generate traffic.  My most popular hubs have loads of comments and it keeps people coming back to see what's new.

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   rfmoranposted 11 years ago

   It's what you see on your screen before you scroll down. The name comes from the newspaper industry. In a non-tabloid paper, what appears above the fold is what grabs the most attention because it can be viewed without having to pick up the paper.

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