Setting Up An SEO Strategy: On-Page Optimization
Lately we have been focused on Search Engine Optimization (SEO) on the blog. We started out by looking at what SEO is and its importance. We also touched on the different pieces of it and the different ways to optimize your website for search engines. However, on our last blog, we pivoted to focus specifically on improving SEO strategy. Last time we focused on keyword research, and today we’re going to move forward to on-page optimization.
At its heart, the goal of on-page optimization is to make sure that you are formatting your content in a way that search engines can better categorize it. Yes, you still want your content to be relevant to your audience, and you want to provide a great user experience. However, you also want search engines like Google to know how to analyze your content and categorize it correctly. So, yes, those pesky keywords will continue to be important. Now, the goal is not to keyword stuff; that would negatively impact a user’s experience of your website. There are ways, though, to optimize key elements without impacting the quality of your content.
On-page optimization can essentially be broken into two categories: pre-click and post-click. Let’s give a quick look at both of these areas.
Pre-click on-page optimization:
Think of this half of the equation as what is visible to users before they click on a result on a search engine page. The goal of this step is to encourage people to click on your listing. Here are a few elements you can pay attention to in order to improve your pre-click optimization:
Title Tags
Title tags are essentially the most important places to include keywords. They are the first part of the listing that a user sees after they run a search, so the title tags have a heavy impact on where your web page ranks. Be sure to use natural language and give a descriptive and engaging title. A helpful format to consider when titling might be “Primary Keyword - Secondary Keyword - Brand Name.”
Meta-Descriptions
A meta-description tag is that little piece of descriptive text that you see beneath the URL on a results page. So, meta description tags are not going to be visible on the main content of a page; they’re only visible in the SERPs and in the source code. They’re not a direct ranking factor for SEO, but they can still encourage someone to click on your link. Keep them short, though; two sentences at the most is recommended, and don’t overwhelm them with your keywords.
URL
Technically, URL stands for “Uniform Resource Locator,” but I think it’s fair to say that we all just call them web addresses. URLs also appear on results pages with the title tags and meta-descriptions. They’re not as impactful as title tags when it comes to SEO, but it’s a good thing to have your URL titled similarly to the main heading of the page. Shorter URLs are preferred, so shorten them where you can if your main heading is lengthy.
Post-click on-page optimization:
Meanwhile, this half of the equation is about what is visible to users after they click on your search engine link and arrive on your website. It includes optimizing the following:
Headings & Main Copy
It’s no surprise that the words on your website are just as equally important when it comes to SEO. Headings are key since they outline what the content on the page is about. Users will scan the header before reading the text underneath, and the header tags can be used to outline the hierarchy of the content, which helps with the indexing process.
The main copy is why users are visiting your page to begin with, so search engines will pay close attention to the content within it. The copy should be long enough to thoroughly explain your topic and help the search engine understand what the page is about. Also, while keywords will probably appear, try not to use them too much in the main copy. Use synonyms or close variations of the keywords if they can be used in a natural way. If you use keywords too often, search engines may categorize it as more like spam.
Hyperlinks
Hyperlinks are the pages you are linking to, and they also play a role in helping the search engines better categorize your content. They help to establish relevance to your content, and the more internal links your web page has, the more important it’s deemed by the search engines.
Images
Image optimization can help add relevancy to your page, and the main way that can be accomplished is by utilizing alt text. The alt text should be added to images because it’s often read out to visually-impaired users who rely on screen readers. This alt text is also analyzed by search engines, so it’s a chance to include some additional keywords. These descriptions don’t need to be long, usually up to five words is enough. Also, always make sure that your images are web-friendly by using the correct type of file and high quality images.
On-page optimization isn’t just about ensuring better SEO; it’s about improving user experience. It can make sure that the people who are being routed to your website are actually finding content that they’re looking for, which will keep them on your page for longer.
Have you attempted to optimize any of these areas? Comment and let us know.
One of the services we offer here at The Digital Shore is web design, so if you’d like more information on our process, you can click here (hyperlink).
We’ll keep talking about the components of an SEO Strategy in the coming weeks, so stay tuned.