Can I put hyperlinks from my own website direct to product providers' websites?
Linking off from your own website to others for additional information and services is an accepted part of web-design.
Hyperlinks are extremely easy to set up and if providers offer interesting customer facing material on their sites, it can often add a degree of third- party credibility to your own site.
However, there are a number of issues you need to be aware of when introducing hyperlinks.
Many providers offer services and sell direct to the general public via their sites. You may not wish to overtly promote these to your potential customers or encourage their use, as you may end up being removed from the education and buying processes.
In addition when implementing the link, do not try and frame the provider site within your own site, as this indicates a more formal sort of relationship. Similarly, while text links are fine, use of another company's logo is subject to all of the usual trade-marking issues.
Finally, it is considered good practice to inform the provider that you are planning to link to their site. A brief email to the contact address on the site should suffice.
