Discover the Best On-Page Search Engine Optimization Tips

Search engine marketing is a method of website promotion that uses both earned and paid strategies to increase visibility within search engine results. Unpaid or organic results rely on search engine optimization (SEO). However, the industry has come a long way from the days where keyword density, the percentage a keyword or phrase appears in text content, was enough. Today, one must also create content that is authoritative, and relevant.

The idea behind “on-page” search engine optimization is rearranging or rewriting content on each individual page for the most effective results. The most important page for optimizing is, of course, the homepage. This is followed by product or service pages, cornerstone content pages, and then other content like blog entries and company news.

Search engine optimization best practices demands each page must include unique content. However, beyond that, on-page search engine optimization focuses on the elements of that content such as images, internal links, URLs, and so on. Nonetheless, search engine optimization is a continuous process. If you do not find your pages within the top 20 results, within a reasonable amount of time, it is best to modify content to improve results.

Here is a list of the best on-page search engine optimization tips.

1. Keywords and Title Tags – Include the focus keyword in your title, and ensure it appears at the beginning.

2. Effective Titles – Include modifiers in your title or headline such as “best”, “amazing”, or “2017”. This will help grab long tail versions of your focus keyword.

3. Keywords and URLs – Ensure the focus keyword or phrase appears in the URL each page, and avoid using stop words.

4. Highlight Titles with an H1 Tag. – Headline tags are given greater weight by the search engine because they identify the subject.

5. First Paragraph – Ensure your focus keyword is included in the first paragraph and within the first 100 words of the copy.

6. Alt Text for Images – Make certain images have alt attributes containing the focus keyword.

7. Subheadings – Using subheadings that include the focus keyword breaks up longer posts, improves readability, and increases SEO.

8. Responsive Design – The search engines will rank websites lower if they cannot adapt their look and feel for smartphones, tablets, or other mobile devices.

9. Internal Links – This is an often overlooked but an important element of SEO. Include at least 2 internal links within the content on every page.

10. Outbound Links – It is not always appropriate to include outbound links. However, pages with outbound links tend to rank higher. Nonetheless, make sure they are links to authoritative content.

11. Word Count – The search engines are looking for content that is relevant and authoritative. Part of this equation is word count. Pages with less than 300 words will have trouble. Cornerstone pages should have more than 900 words for effectiveness.

12. Keyword Density – The answer to keyword density is the balance. The target range for a focus keyword is between 1 and 4 percent. However, placement needs to be contextually relevant.

If you would like more on-page search engine optimization tips, or need more information, please contact us.