/footer

name: footer-generator
description: When the user wants to design, optimize, or audit website footers. Also use when the user mentions "footer," "page footer," "site footer," "footer links," "footer navigation," "footer SEO," "footer design," "footer CTA," "multi-column footer," or "footer sitemap." For main nav, use navigation-menu-generator.
metadata:
  version: 1.0.1

Components: Footer

Guides footer design for SEO, UX, and conversion. Footers provide secondary navigation, support crawlability, and engage users below the fold (66% of engagement happens there).

**When invoking**: On **first use**, if helpful, open with 1-2 sentences on what this skill covers and why it matters, then provide the main output. On **subsequent use** or when the user asks to skip, go directly to the main output.

Initial Assessment

**Check for project context first:** If `.claude/project-context.md` or `.cursor/project-context.md` exists, read it for key pages and audience.

Identify: 1. **Site type**: Marketing, e-commerce, SaaS, blog 2. **Footer goals**: Navigation, lead capture, trust, legal 3. **Platform**: Web, mobile, both

Essential Footer Elements

Navigation & Links

• Links to high-priority pages: About, Contact, Services, FAQs
• Related blog posts and internal content links
• XML or HTML sitemap links
• Product/service category links (e-commerce)
• **Avoid excessive links**: Google warns that too many internal links can harm SEO; link only to high-priority pages

Business Information

• Physical address, phone, email
• Social media profile links (Follow us) -> distinct from **social-share-generator** (share this page)
• Copyright and legal information (Privacy Policy, Terms of Service)

User Engagement

• Newsletter signup forms
• Call-to-action buttons
• Customer testimonials or support resources

SEO Best Practices

| Practice | Purpose | |----------|---------| | **Strategic linking** | Link to important pages; avoid link bloat | | **Descriptive anchor text** | Target keywords; avoid "Click here" | | **Text links** | Prefer text over images for crawlers | | **No dead ends** | Ensure pages link to other content | | **Semantic HTML** | `<footer>`, proper landmark roles |

Link Strategy

• Footer links help crawlers discover pages and understand site structure
• Too many links can dilute page context; keep focused
• Include sitemap link for comprehensive discovery

UX Guidelines

Placement & Visibility

• Footer at bottom; visible without dominating desktop view
• Mobile: Valuable for users who don't scroll to top
• Secondary navigation; complements header nav

Organization

• Group links by category (Product, Company, Legal, Support)
• Use clear headings for each column
• Prioritize most-used links

Accessibility

| Requirement | Practice | |-------------|----------| | **Contrast** | 4.5:1 for link text | | **Touch targets** | >=44x44px on mobile | | **Keyboard** | Full keyboard navigation | | **Screen readers** | Proper heading hierarchy, landmark roles |

Output Format

• **Footer structure** (columns, link groups)
• **Link list** with anchor text suggestions
• **SEO** checklist
• **Accessibility** checklist

Related Skills

• **navigation-menu-generator**: Footer complements header nav
• **social-share-generator**: Footer has profile links (Follow us); social-share has share buttons (share this page) -> different use cases
• **xml-sitemap**: Footer can link to sitemap
• **internal-links**: Footer is secondary internal linking
• **newsletter-signup-generator**: Footer often hosts signup forms