Optimization for pages with lists of data

[kadesmith]

I am looking for some ideas on what best practices are for pages that contain lists similar to this page:

http://www.backcountrysecrets.com/outdoor-sport/15/places-to-swim-and-swimming-holes.aspx

Is it better to break up the list into seperate pages of 25 listings or keep everything on the same page?

[applesofgold]

The general rule is to have no more than 100 links per page, so you can probably increase this page from an SEO stand-point and still be OK.

However, you also want to consider user-experience. Will the page look more tidy or be more functional for the visitor at 25 listings per page or at 50 or a 100?

We recently had a similar issue on a site I was working on at http://babynamesdiary.com/baby-names-and-meanings/ - which uses databases for baby name ideas and we opted to go with 25 names per page, but also included a list of name origins at the bottom (which is like category pages) to help both the visitors to the site and also help our SEO.

What I find is that the best method is a balance of visitor experience and good SEO (but always place visitor experience first and the rest should naturally follow).

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