Your search engine strategy can be divided into two categories: on-page and off-page SEO. Both are very important to the success of your SEO efforts, but they’re two very different things. In this blog, we give you an overview of what on-page SEO is, along with best practices to help fine-tune your SEO strategy.
What is on-page SEO?
On-page SEO (also known as “on-site” SEO) is the act of optimizing different parts of your website that affect your search engine rankings. Put simply, on-page SEO is about building a website that appeals to users and, therefore, search engines. There are many different factors that you can control to increase your on-page SEO, including:
1) Title Tags:
One of the most important on-page SEO elements is the title tag. This is basically a keyword that you want to rank for in the search engine. Be strategic about what keyword you use, and try to keep it under 65 characters, as well as include it at the start of your title (if it makes sense!).
2) Meta Description
The meta description is used to describe a page in a way that helps search engines understand what the page is about. More importantly, meta descriptions should be used as a way to convince the reader to click-through to your website. You should include your keyword in your meta description, but also write in a way that convinces someone to go to your website.
3) Page Speed
The overall speed of your website is becoming an increasingly important factor in search engine rankings. The logic is that if your website loads extremely slow, users will not be as likely to use it. Search engines will prioritise websites that give their users fast information, and for that to happen, the loading speed needs to be fast.
4) Mobile-friendliness
The mobile-friendliness of your website is another key element to consider in on-page optimization. Most people now use their mobiles to browse the web, so you need to make sure that your website is optimised for this. Your website needs to prioritize the mobile user experience through responsive design, simple and easy navigation and fast page speeds.
5) Internal linking
Internal linking is exactly what it sounds like: linking the content of a webpage to another destination on your website. Internal links help Google find and index all of the pages on your site. Furthermore, it’s also a way to let users navigate through your website and let them find what they’re searching for.
6) URL structure
When you’re creating a URL, try and include your keywords in it. An organized URL structure is important because it allows search engines to crawl from page to page on your website easily and makes navigation more efficient for visitors. However, don’t go changing all your website’s URLs just to add relevant keywords unless you plan on redirecting them.
6) Content
And last but not least, content is king when it comes to on-page SEO. You can optimise all the above factors, but at the end of the day, if your page does not have good content, users will not want to stay.
On-page SEO has changed over the years, so it’s important to keep up with the latest practices. Remember that SEO works best if you’ve got good on-page SEO before you spend too much time and effort on building links or promoting your site on social media. If you need help with your SEO strategy, get in touch with our expert team today!
