On-page optimization is one of the most important features for ranking high in Google and other search engines.
On-page SEO factors are what Google’s crawl spiders look for when indexing a website. The more of the ranking factors they find, the greater the value your site proves to give, and thus the higher rankings you’ll get.
Google uses about 200 ranking factors in its algorithm to rank a site, and therefore, it is easy to get confused when choosing which factors to focus on.
All 200 on-page SEO factors do not matter, there are some that are much more important than the others. It is, therefore, possible to get top rankings on search engines with only these important on-page factors, provided that it is performed correctly.
We have tried to compile the most important components that can help your site to increase search engine rankings so dig right in.
SEO-friendly URLs / URLs
Search engines will not rank your site if they can not find it. So, therefore, it’s extremely important to ensure that search engines can detect the content of the site and that they can do it quickly and easily.
- Make sure that the main pages are reached from the first page
- Internal links pointing to relevant pages (avoid broken links)
- The site’s sub-pages are arranged in a logical, branch-like structure
- The URL (pages, categories, etc.) should reflect the site’s structure
Avoid this:
Do not create complicated URLs, for example, www.yoursite.com/p=453?de4rio3m8
Long URLs tend to be bad for the user experience and this search engine rankings, for example: www.yoursite.com20/2/2018/searchengineoptimization-on-page factors
Here’s what your URLs should look like:
Try to keep it short and concise:
www.yoursite.com/ketword or www.yoursite.com/product category/product
The advantage of using keywords in URLs is that it sends a clear message to users about what the page is about before clicking the link. This is great for the user experience, and Google favours websites with such URL structure.
Include your keyword in the page title
The title is one of the most important SEO factors that Google focuses on. Each page, subpage or blog post you create should contain your keyword in the title. The reason for doing this is that when someone searches for the keyword in Google, it appears in search results, and the user understands directly what the page is about.
In short, the closer your keyword is at the beginning of the title, the more attention it gets from Google.
Example of title where your keyword is “SEO tips”:
- SEO Tips – How do I get my website to appear on Google?
- Tip: Try keeping your title between 55-65 characters.
Make your keyword in the headlines (H1, H2-H6)
Headlines are important on-page SEO elements. They help search engines to understand what a single page is about. The tag is your “title tag.”
Publishing tools such as WordPress automatically add an H1 tag to the title of your page or blog post. Example of how the code for a title tag looks:
Increase your visibility with Google Keep in mind that your page should not have more than one H1 tag per page. If you want multiple headings, use H2-H6 as subheadings.
Tips:
- Never forget to write an H1 tag
- Use your keyword in H1 tag
- Use at least 2-3 H2 tags
Boost your content with multimedia
Writing informative posts is good, but when pages or posts contain multimedia such as relevant images, videos and charts, it can lift the entire page. The reason is that humans are visual creatures, and thus multimedia helps improve the user experience. Google’s number one goal is to provide a great user experience to its users, and sites that can provide a good user experience are rewarded with higher rankings. Using multimedia in your content can reduce the bounce rate while increasing user engagement on your site, and lower bounce rates indicate that people found the information on your site valuable and helpful.
Multimedia also makes your content visually appealing and breaks up long and boring texts. This causes the reader to stay longer on the page and increase the user engagement, sending good signals to Google.
On-page SEO
- Include your keyword in the meta description
- Meta description should be between 150-155 characters and these are displayed on the search engine result page when the user has made a search.
- It describes your search engine page. In addition, it helps users to know what the page is about before clicking the link to the page, reducing the rejection rate.
Tips:
- The description should be between 150-155 characters
- Write prompt texts that make the user act
- Give the user the opportunity to click on your particular link by offering a solution or other relevant information
- Write relevant text based on your title or title
- Get your keyword in the first 100 words
- The keyword that you try to rank for with the search engines will appear at times the first 100 words.
By doing so, you indicate to search engines what this page is about and helps users understand the connection between your content and your title that also contains your keyword.
Tip:
For less valuable synonyms for the keyword, use the second paragraph and so on.
Focus on content quality and length
Google loves content-rich websites, at the same time, it also gives users a value.
Quality and length of content help you in two different ways:
First, it helps you to rank for your primary keyword, but also a series of other synonyms and so-called long-tail keywords.
Secondly, the more words you use, the better you can describe the topic of your readers and make them stay longer on your site as well as increase their commitment
Do not just write for Google
Google puts a greater importance to the quality of your text than if your site is updated regularly, but if updated, it is perceived to be more interesting to visitors. It is important to focus on the quality of the content and try to create interest for your visitors so that they return on a regular basis. Focus on quantity, but never let quantity compromise quality.
Create internal links
Place internal links to related services/products in your content when appropriate. Internal links improve the site’s SEO because Google believes you provide additional information to users.
Internal linking also allows users to spend longer time on your website and thus lower your bounce rate
Tip: When creating internal links, do not use generic words like: “click here” or “on this link.”. Instead, use a keyword as anchor text, but be careful to use the same keyword too often.
About the author
Jens is the editor-in-chief and co-founder of Veloce International marketing blog and the influencer marketing directory Veloce Network. He is a social media and marketing nut, sharing his passion for online marketing and business in his articles.