Logo Needs a Link

Pressing the logo on a tablet, to get to the homepage

Intro: Visitors are used to logo action

Since the beginning of browsing the internet, people got used to particular standards when visiting various websites. One of the standards is a web­site logo, which has multiple purposes. One of them is implementing a rapid and effective action when a visitor clicks the logo. The logo instantly takes a visitor to the "home" page, no matter how deep and where on the sub-pages a visitor at that moment is.*

“Home” is good, while “Home” & logo is great

People are also familiar with “Home” word-link placed in the main website navigation, which by standard has the same functionality as clicking the logo. Despite website visitors are familiar with the meaning of the “Home” word-link, they many times first click on the logo (instead of “Home”), to get to the home page.
One of the reasons for this decision is simply because they got used to the idea that “logo takes them to the home page”.* Note also that text on the website is generally perceived as a repetitive and a more complex design structure, in contrast to one single, more recognisable and clearer image, symbol or a logo. Not having such an option could be a needless un­sur­passed expectation for your website visitors.

Two examples

Figure 1: A case from www.bmw.com – no link to the home page when clicking the logo. Download item

Figure 2: Same on www.mercedes-benz.co.uk Download item

Final

Decent brands should have decent perception. Make sure to enable a link to the home page on your website logo.

* A “home page” can be described as top-most page in the complete website hierarchy. It many times has a role of the main, starting or first page. When users get lost down below on some sub-sub-sub-page, a home page usually becomes their orientation saver.

Website hierarchy with direct access to home page example
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