What is On-page SEO?

If you’re running a website, you’re probably aware of the importance of SEO. But the ‘how’ of implementing SEO practices into your website can feel confusing to many.

But SEO doesn’t have to be difficult. If you’re new to working on SEO, on-page optimization is a good place to start before moving on to advanced practices. Here’s a breakdown of what on-page SEO is, how it can help your website, and a step-by-step list of techniques to use.

Understanding on-page SEO

On-page search engine optimization (SEO) is a set of digital marketing techniques that help your site appear higher on search engine results pages (SERPs). It involves optimizing the content on your web pages to improve their visibility in search results. One of the main tactics is incorporating keywords and phrases your target audience is searching for into specific areas on your webpage.

On-page SEO is one of the three main SEO branches, which include technical and off-page SEO. The three practices work cohesively, so it’s ideal to cover each when possible. 

Why on-page SEO is important

On-page SEO is important because it helps improve your rankings in search engines. The higher your ranking, the more likely people can find your site when browsing. This helps people who are interested in what you’re offering find your products, content, or services, increasing organic traffic and helping you grow.

Think of it as another advertising tool. Many searchers don’t make it past page 1 of SERP and higher ranked sites are often seen as more trustworthy and prominent than lower ranking sites. On-page SEO can also connect you with customers in your area by surfacing your website in local search results, adding another visibility boost to your business.

Another reason why on-page SEO is important is that it ensures your site correctly communicates what you do. Refining your pages to better rank in search ensures the words, phrases, layout, and description of your webpages match the search intent and interest of your target customers, creating a better user experience (UX).

What are the different categories of on-page SEO?

On-page SEO is a broad term that covers different methods and parts of a website. Here’s a breakdown of website sections and tactics that fall into this category.

Title tags

Also known as a meta title, this is the headline of a page that appears on SERPs and one of the main things that audiences will see when browsing. Title tags briefly tell both visitors and search engines about the content of a page prior to visiting, and is a great tool to reel in audiences and help them choose to click on your website. It’s a good practice to include a relevant keyword here if it fits naturally.

Meta-Beschreibungen

This is a page summary that appears under the title tag in SERPs and expands on what the content of your page is. It’s typically limited to 160 characters to fit within the preview on search engines, but can sometimes be calculated in megapixels depending on your preferred search engine. Use this space to highlight the key points of your page and encourage searchers to click through to your page.

Learn more about writing meta titles and descriptions

Header tags

These are headlines and subsection titles that break up and label the text on your page. Though all are relevant for SEO, the most prominent title for SERP ranking is your H1 title, otherwise known as your headline. From there, titles are labelled as H2, H3 and so on.

For example, the H1 on this page is the article title, “Understanding On-page SEO” is an H2, and this section is an H3. The higher up the title is, the more relevant it is to impacting your search results. 

Internal linking

Internal linking is the practice of adding links to navigate from one page to another within your site. This is helpful from a UX perspective as it helps visitors to move from one relevant page to another and keeps them browsing your site for longer. For SEO, it shows search engines which pages are related.

Bildoptimierung

This is about ensuring the images on your webpage can be understood when someone can’t view an image and by search engines. Search engines can’t view the images on your pages like your visitors typically would, so they rely on alt text descriptions on your webpage to categorize imagery. 

It’s important to make your alt text as descriptive as you can without becoming too lengthy. Whilst it will not be visually present on your webpage, audiences will be able to read this via screen readers.

Also consider image size and type. If an image file size is too big, it may slow the load speed of your site. Consider compressing large image files where possible to aid load speed without losing out on quality and limiting large animated images. If you have the means to produce original imagery rather than stock photos, it’s worth exploring, as this can aid ranking in image searches.

Read our guide to optimizing images for your website

URL structure

URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator and is the address of your webpage. Visitors access your website via a page URL which is found through a search engine, internal link or backlink, or by typing the address into a browser directly.

Adding keywords to your URL helps explain your page content to search engines and users, as well as reflecting where the page sits in your website. For example, squarespace.com/pricing helps search engines categorize the page as a plan pricing page and makes the page content clear for browsers before they even click through.

Keyword optimization

Keyword optimization involves finding phrases, words and language relevant to what your target audience is searching for and including them on your web pages. This helps those searching for keywords used on your pages find your website easier in SERPs.

Keywords can be found using third-party keyword research tools or thinking around how your audience is typically browsing. On-page optimization involves using your target keywords in strategic places, such as your headers, main body text, and in your title tags, as well as including them in text across the page where possible.

While good to prioritize, it’s important to avoid keyword stuffing. This is the practice of overusing keywords to aid higher ranking in SERPs. Using specific keywords where possible as well as synonyms and phrasing alternatives that are semantically the same can optimize your pages while keeping text fluid and natural. That’ll keep pages readable for visitors and avoid search engine penalties from overusing keywords.

Learn how to find keywords for your website

Quality, well-structured content

This relates to the information and longer body text that sits on your page. It’s important to create content that’s designed to be compelling to your audience. This involves making sure your content is grammatically correct, relevant to the search intent of your viewers, and as advanced as is appropriate for your audience. It should be organized in a clear way that addresses their priorities.

This is useful to visitors as this will ensure they find engaging information that speaks to their interests or needs. That will aid in extending dwell time, the time spent by a user viewing a page. If your site information is found useful by audiences, it will also encourage visitors to return. Pages with increased visits helps SEO, as it signals to search engines that your site is an authority on your chosen topic.

Benutzererfahrung

User experience considers the ease, smoothness, and accessibility of use for visitors to your site. It includes many factors, but the following are some of the most important.

• Page speed: This measures how quickly a page and its respective elements load on all devices, the primary being mobile and web. If load speed is too slow, users may be more likely to exit your site and find it difficult to use. This affects dwell time, which can negatively impact your site’s ranking.

• Mobile friendliness: This is how well your site functions when visited on a mobile device. If you are building your web page in desktop format only, page elements may appear in the wrong dimensions when visited on a phone or alternative format. This could make text unclear or links inaccessible if only optimized for computer or tablet viewing.

• Navigation: Navigation covers your visitors’ ability to move from one part of your website to another. Your site or webpage’s internal navigation includes your primary site navigation bar as well as internal links to other pages on your site. If your page navigation is unclear or pages are incorrectly linked, it can cause user churn and negatively affect your rankings.

Optimize on-page SEO in 8 steps

If you’re ready to start implementing SEO strategies into your website, it’s best to implement step by step. Start with one page and work through each step below based on the content on the page.

1. Pick your page

It’s useful to start page by page when incorporating SEO into your site. Pick a webpage, then decide what you want to communicate, the target audience, and what you want someone to do after viewing the page. You may find it helpful to make a list of the pages on your website and rank them by priority, either based on traffic or importance to your website goals. 

For example, it’ll make sense for many people to start with their homepage. Your homepage is meant to offer an overview to your audience and likely direct them to browse your store, services, or content or learn more about you. This can help guide the rest of your optimizations.

2. Find your keywords

Decide the keywords that will be used on your page. These can be sourced using a keyword research tool. Here you can see competitive pages currently ranking in SERP, and get an idea as to whether the content of your page can outrank what is ranking currently. If not, look for alternative keywords that might be more achievable for your business.

If you don’t have access to a keyword research tool, try brainstorming phrases that someone would search to find what you’re offering and look at which terms competitors rank for. If major corporations are taking up most top spots in a SERP, it’s a good sign you might want to look for a less competitive keyword option.

3. Write or update your content

You may find it easier to start with the core content of the page and let that inform the rest of your on-page SEO strategy. When writing your content, ensure your target keyword is present in your H1 title to aid higher ranking. Incorporate your keywords naturally throughout the rest of your body text, making sure it is present in the first 100 words.

Add your relevant H2s, H3s, and further headings using both primary and secondary keywords where applicable. Make sure your content is both valuable and unique for readers, and that it matches their search intent—what they’re looking to get out of visiting the page.

It may also be useful to check your content against other pages ranking for your chosen keyword. For example, if competitor content has a compelling and friendly tone, you can mirror this to meet the expectations of your audience.

4. Add and optimize your images

Add any original or stock imagery to your site and review your alt descriptions. Make sure these are clear, descriptive, and incorporate your target keywords where relevant or applicable. Good alt text is brief and avoids details that are irrelevant to the context an image provides. 

Check that your images are sized appropriately for your website and the space you’ve allotted for it. Poor quality images can make your website look less professional, but large files can slow down page speeds. 

5. Write your URL slug

A URL slug is the text that comes after the main domain and slash in a web address, like squarespace.com/blog. Write a slug that incorporates your keyword and identifies your website structure when possible. For example if you’re writing a page that will appear on a blog internal to your website, you could use a URL slug that reflects your site hierarchy. On this page, squarespace.com/blog/on-page-seo indicates that this page lives on the website’s blog and is focused on on-page SEO as a topic.

Keep your URL slug short and simple. Avoid using overly long phrasing and special characters so that your URL looks neat and is easier to remember. If your URL is formatted correctly, search engines may automatically create breadcrumbs that will appear in SERP, which can point more traffic to your site.

6. Add internal links and manage navigation

Check any internal links to this page for bounce backs or other errors. Then, review any internal links present on the webpage. Are there links to pages you could add to help visitors find information they need? Could you replace any links or move a link to help guide someone to the next page? Make sure all pages are linked correctly in your header and footer navigation too.

7. Review your title tag and meta description

Make sure these are clear, keyword optimized, and click-worthy to entice visitors to your site. Depending on the amount of characters available, your title tag may also reflect your site structure and hierarchy separated by lines for clarity (e.g., Jane Writer I Blog I My Technology Writing). 

Make sure that your title tag and meta description doesn’t exceed the recommended maximum characters. To review this, many SEO applications allow you to preview how these elements will appear in search to prevent overrunning text. A good rule of thumb is to aim for 60 characters or less for titles and 160 or less for meta descriptions.

8. Perform final checks and publish your content

Review the final layout of your webpage and ensure your content is accessible across mobile and web browsers. We recommend creating a checklist of items to review on each web page before publishing for consistency. Where possible, your target keyword should be present across the following elements of your page.

• URL

• Title tag

• Meta description

• H1 header

• Image names and alt text

• Incorporated into body text

After implementing on-page SEO techniques it’s useful to review your strategy and monitor results over time to ensure your practices are working. Remember, SEO is a long game. Changes can take a few months to take effect and algorithms change regularly. It’s advisable to look at your SEO rankings routinely even if you rank highly in search.  If you’re still feeling stuck, consider bringing on an SEO specialist for further improvement.