On-page SEO or on-site SEO is the practice of making web pages more understandable for search engines and users. On-page SEO is usually divided into a few categories. Some of them are: content, optimizing title tags, internal links, and URLs
Let’s start with a quote from Google itself: The most basic signal that information is relevant is when a webpage contains the same keywords as your search query. If those keywords appear on the page, or if they appear in the headings or body of the text, the information is more likely to be relevant.
To oversimplify things, the more closely your content matches the query used by the user, the higher it will be ranked on the search engine ranking page (SERP).
This doesn't mean that keywords are the only thing you need to think about. We will go over some of the additional suggestions below.
The second half of SEO optimization is, of course, Off-Page Optimization.
The URL to this page is “on-page-seo-checklist”, it tells users and Google, what the content of this page is about.
Having keywords in your URL will improve your click-through rate because users are more likely to click on links that clearly have the information they are interested in.
The shorter the URL the easier it is for users to remember it. Short URL is pleasing to the eye and some studies show that it's also more pleasing to Google itself.
It is much easier to mistype a long URL, and if it's too long, it can make users suspicious of what they are actually clicking on.
If possible, use the URL Shortener service for the best results.
As mentioned in some of our other articles on-page SEO is what keeps your users engaged once they arrive at your website.
Having keywords in your heading tags won’t help you immensely with Google rankings, but it will definitely improve your user experience.
Most users quickly skim through your web page, just to check if it actually contains the information they are looking for, and then go back and read the article.
Things like an introduction, headings, and a summary will catch their interest.
Your title tag is the most important on-page SEO factor.
It's because it gives Google a high-level overview of what your page is all about. It doesn't mean that you need to start the title with your keyword, but the closer it is to the beginning the better.
It gives higher visibility to both Google and users alike
Google gives more importance to the beginning of every page since that is what users will see when opening your page.
Also, when showing the preview of your page on their results page, the first paragraph(s) will be shown, and if present, the keyword will be specially highlighted, which improves click-through rate (CTR). So f you look for “running”, you will see something like this from Wikipedia.
Most traffic from organic search comes from long-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords usually contain 6 to 8 words typed in the Google Search box. They represent the phrases actually used when searching for something.
For example, users usually don't search for “how to draw”.What they actually look for is “how to draw step by step”, “how to draw for beginners”, “learn how to draw tutorial”...
Some of the most popular modifiers are:
Sadly, or luckily, Google still cannot see images as we can and that is where it needs some help from us.
The first important fact is the image’s name, so let's say we name this image “boy and his dog.png”
That is a good start, but we should use alternative text to give Google more information about what's going on in the picture.
Let’s say you want to rank on “Learning to drive”. You would probably want to mention that keyword a few times in your content. But that might oversaturate your page and make it feel a bit forced. Google will recognize that.
What you need to do is use synonyms and LSI Keywords.
So if you use keywords from our previous example, you can check google suggestions and include those on your page
Now you should include some LSI keywords. They help Google understand the bigger picture and the complete theme of your page.
You can use readymade tools like LSI Graph or create them on your own.
So for “Learning to drive” LSI keywords could be: Study, Car, Beginner, Guide, Instructor, Road Signs… And basically, anything from that could be related in any way to your main keywords.
Using internal links will keep your users involved and longer on your site. People don’t like to find pieces of information and visit multiple sources to get the whole picture. If you can not provide everything in one place, you sure can link to other related topics that you wrote about.
I.e. You are looking at On-Page SEO, so you might be interested in information on what SEO is and how it works or what the other half of SEO is.
That way you ensure that your website is well connected and easy to navigate.
If the goal is to keep users on your site, you might ask: Why would I use external links and send them away?
Well, there are a few reasons. The first reason is building trustworthiness. If you are linking to websites that are well known and trusted by everybody, let's say Wikipedia, that shows Google that your content can also be trusted because you are using them as a reference.
Other reasons could be for your own personal benefit like sharing your affiliate links or linking to your other websites or services you provide.
External links could also help you with getting backlinks, which are an important part of off-page SEO. You create links to some other website, and to return the favor, they're creating links that are pointing back to your site, so you are both benefiting from that arrangement.
This is a big and definite yes!
Although off-page SEO will bring traffic to your page, that means nothing if your users don't spend enough time browsing your content and interacting with your pages.
You want to build a brand and provide useful information so they keep coming back, link to your content, and of course if possible tell a friend!
