15 Points On-Page SEO Checklist
Optimize Your Way to the Top: Master On-Page SEO with Our 15-Point Checklist!
This is a complete On-Page SEO Guide with actionable steps and advanced tips you must follow in 2023. It will help you in ranking your website on the 1st page of Google SERP.
In this guide you’ll learn;
15- Points that play an important role in the On-Page SEO of your website.
Importance of each point and Best Practices to get the most out of it.
And much more
Let’s get started.
On-Page SEO Checklist
What is On-Page SEO?
On-page SEO (also known as on-site SEO) refers to the practice of optimizing webpages to improve a website’s search engine rankings and get more organic traffic.
Common on-page SEO practices include optimizing title tags, content, images, internal links, and URLs. It enhances a webpage’s visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs).
Why is On-Page SEO important?
On-page SEO plays a pivotal role in the success of your website. It not only helps search engines understand your content but also enhances the user experience. Traditionally Onpage SEO is considered as simple as just putting keywords in the title or throughout the content. But in today’s world when everything is evolving, Google’s algorithms have been much more advanced, smart, and effective.
Now, Google with its plethora of complex algorithms, is much better at;
- Understanding what users are searching for when they type a query in the Google search bar.
- Then delivering the results that meet user intent and requirements is Google’s first priority.
That’s why traditional ways of doing on-page SEO don’t work anymore.
Here’s why it’s vital:
a. Improved Search Engine Rankings: Effective on-page SEO can boost your website’s visibility in search results, increasing the likelihood of attracting more organic traffic.
b. Enhanced User Experience: On-page optimization results in a better user experience, which can reduce bounce rates and improve dwell times.
c. Targeted Traffic: By optimizing for specific keywords and user intent, you can attract visitors genuinely interested in your content or products.
Now, let’s delve deeper into the key elements of on-page SEO:
1) Title Tag
Title tags are one of the most critical on-page SEO elements. They provide a concise and accurate description of a webpage’s content and appear as clickable headlines in search engine results. To optimize your title tags apply the best practices mentioned below:
Craft for Human Readers:
Make sure your title tag is written for humans according to their search intent, not for just manipulating the search engine algorithms. You should follow this practice not only for the title tag, it should be your primary focus throughout your webpage. It gives readers a better experience showing them that the content is written for them.
Target Searcher’s Intent:
When crafting titles for web pages, it’s essential to consider the search terms your audience has used to access your website. If the user’s intent is geared toward browsing or research, it is advisable to opt for a more descriptive title tag.
Conversely, if you have reasonable certainty that the user’s intent is to make a purchase, download, or perform some other action on your site, it’s crucial to convey this in your title.
For instance, the title tag “100 Inspirational Quotes To Keep You Motivated in 2023” effectively communicates the searcher’s intent for “Inspirational Quotes”
Add Your Main Keyword in the Title Tag:
Add your main keywords right at the start of the title tag. It’s a widely held belief that this placement offers the greatest benefits for search engine optimization, although it’s worth noting that Google employees have previously suggested otherwise.
If you wish to include your brand name in the title tag, it should be placed at the end. But, your primary objective should be to immediately convey the content’s nature that users can expect when they choose to click on your link in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
Title Tag Length:
The actual length supported by Google has some variability to it, but content in title tags beyond 65 characters may get cut off in the display in the SERPs. So, ideally, the length of your title tag should be between 50-60 characters.
Summarizing Title Tag Best Practices:
✅ Get your keywords towards the start of the title tag.
✅ Keep it under 60 characters in length. Ideally, between 50-60 characters.
✅ Write the title tag naturally to make it reader-friendly.
✅ Don’t repeat words. It may harm user experience as well as SEO.
✅ Try to include single words/variations too. E.g. Roofing Company in Orlando/Best Roofing Contractor in Orlando
✅ Include title tag modifiers like, The Ultimate Guide, All You Need To Know, etc.
2) Meta Description
The meta description is your chance to entice users to click on your link in search results. It should provide a concise summary of what users can expect when they visit your page.
Meta descriptions have primarily three uses:
- To describe the content of the page accurately with a focus on what unique benefits a user will get by clicking through to your page
- To display targeted keywords, not only for ranking purposes but to give the searcher an idea about the content of the page.
- To serve as a short “text advertisement” to prompt searchers to click on your pages in the search results. It will result in an increased click-through rate.
According to John Muller of Google;
Great meta descriptions, just like great ads, can be tough to write. However, they play a crucial role in driving traffic from search engines to your pages, especially for keyword-targeted content in competitive search results. Their importance becomes twofold for search terms where the intent of the searcher is unclear.
Here are five rules for writing good meta descriptions:
Keep Transparency:
Always prioritize transparency and authenticity in your content. If your topic isn’t inherently attention-grabbing, focus on enhancing its appeal without misleading your audience. Maintaining honesty is key to building a positive brand image and trust with your readers.
Keep it in recommended character limits:
Ensure your meta description is both informative and concise, striking a balance within character limits. On Google and Bing, meta descriptions are displayed in as few as 155 to 160 characters. While the precise length is determined by pixel width, maintaining a character count between 120 to 160 characters is advisable. Also, keep the descriptive clarity for an effective meta description in mind.
Write like a soft sell copy:
Focus on describing the benefits of clicking on your listing in the SERPs to the user. Make the text persuasive, natural, and informative. However, don’t do a hard sell; for most websites, a soft sell meta description is likely to entice the most clicks.
Understand the searcher’s intent:
The motivation for organic search clicks is frequently very different from that of users clicking on paid results. Users clicking on ads may have a strong buying intent, while people who click on an organic result may be more interested in getting information about the company or product. Understanding the searcher’s intent and then crafting a title or meta description accordingly, will result in a high click-through rate.
Include relevant keywords:
Including your primary keywords in the meta description tag holds immense significance. Moreover, it’s essential to note that if a user’s search query doesn’t match the keywords within your meta description, the likelihood of the search engine using your meta description as the snippet in the search engine results pages (SERPs) diminishes.
In essence, crafting a meta description that strategically incorporates your target keywords not only heightens your chances of capturing user attention but also increases the probability of your meta description being featured prominently in search results. This, in turn, can drive more traffic to your website and improve your overall search engine ranking.
Don’t leave the Meta Description Blank:
It’s not a strict rule to craft a meta description for every webpage. While it might seem like a smart move to compose a well-crafted meta description manually to increase the likelihood of its appearance in search engine result pages (SERPs). I have noticed many times that the website doesn’t have a meta description or sometimes they have duplicate meta descriptions for multiple pages, which is not a good practice at all.
Keep in mind that the meta description itself does not directly impact your website’s search engine ranking. Instead, it serves as a second-order activity that can enhance the user experience and CTR.
Summarizing Meta Description Best Practices:
✅ Add your primary keyword in the meta description.
✅ Keep it between 120 to 160 characters in length.
✅ Write a meta description that looks natural, persuasive, and informative for the searcher.
✅ Keep transparency, and do not mention any sort of misleading information.
✅ Avoid duplicate meta descriptions; make each one unique.
3) URLs
URLs (Uniform Resource Locators) play a crucial role in search engine optimization (SEO). They are one of the fundamental elements that search engines like Google use to understand the content and structure of a website. Therefore, it’s essential to be mindful of this when optimizing your URLs for search engines.
The following are some guidelines for making good URLs:
Describe your content:
A clear and sensible URL is a valuable asset. When a user first time looks at the web address (or encounters a shared/pasted link) and can immediately guess the content of the page before visiting it. Such user-friendly URLs have a higher likelihood of being shared, emailed, jotted down, and, interestingly, even recognized and appreciated by search engines. This not only enhances user experience but also contributes to better visibility and accessibility on the web.
Keep it short:
Conciseness holds great value in the realm of URLs. A compact URL is effortlessly shareable through copying, pasting, phone communication, and ultimately leading to improved user experience and strengthened brand recognition. It’s worth noting that for marketing purposes, you can generate a shortened URL that redirects users to your content’s destination URL. However, it’s essential to acknowledge that this abbreviated URL won’t contribute to your SEO efforts.
Static is the way:
Search engines treat static URLs differently than dynamic ones. Users also are not fond of URLs in which the big players are ?, &, and =, as they’re harder to read and understand. Most of the time such URLs are considered as spammy by the users.
Descriptive text is better than numbers:
If you’re considering utilizing the URL structure like “114/cat223,” I’d recommend going for more descriptive text in your URLs, such as “/brand/nike.” Even if the descriptive text doesn’t contain keywords or doesn’t seem highly informative to someone unfamiliar with your system, using words whenever feasible is a wise choice. By providing clear and meaningful URL paths, you can improve both user experience and the efficiency of your content management process.
Add Keywords Carefully:
If you know that you need to target a lot of competitive keyword phrases on your website to enhance your search traffic, it’s crucial to get yourself with every possible advantage. Keywords undoubtedly play a pivotal role in this strategy, so it’s essential to start by obtaining a comprehensive list of keywords from your marketing efforts. Once you have this list, the next step is to strategically align these keywords with the relevant pages on your website.
While developing web pages through any CMS, ensure the inclusion of keywords within the URL structure. This step ensures that your website’s URL not only accurately reflects the content but also incorporates the targeted keywords, enhancing your chances of ranking higher in search engine results.
By diligently following this practice and aligning your keyword strategy with your website structure, you’ll be in a better position to rank better in the competitive landscape of online search.
Use Fewer Folders:
A URL should not contain any unnecessary folders (or words or characters, for that matter). They do not add any value from an SEO perspective, in fact, they can confuse users.
Separate by Hyphens:
When creating URLs with multiple words in the format of a phrase, hyphens are best to separate the terms (e.g., /blog/seo-services-in-florida/). Other characters, like + or _, can also be used as separators, but these are not recommended.
Don’t Use Date or Year in the URL Structure:
Avoid using dates or years in your URL structure as it can potentially harm your website’s ranking. This practice could negatively impact your site’s search engine optimization (SEO) efforts and overall online visibility.
When dates are included in URLs, search engines may interpret the content as time-sensitive and prioritize more recent information. This can lead to a decrease in the visibility of your evergreen or timeless content. Moreover, constantly updating URLs with new dates can create unnecessary work for website administrators and potentially confuse visitors.
To ensure a more favorable SEO strategy, consider crafting URLs that focus on keywords and topics rather than time-specific references. This approach allows your content to remain relevant and discoverable over an extended period.
Summarizing URL Best Practices:
Note:
Don’t make any changes to the URL structure of a page that’s already ranking in the search engine results. It will significantly harm the ranking of that page.
4) Keywords in Heading Tags
HTML heading tags (<h1>, through, <h6>) play a crucial role in structuring page content. They establish a clear hierarchy of headlines within the content. Thus, an <h1> tag might be considered the headline of the page as a whole, whereas <h2> tags would serve as subheadings, <h3>s as tertiary-level subheadings, and so forth.
The search engines give preference to keywords appearing in heading tags. When multiple heading tags are present on a webpage, search engines assign varying degrees of importance to each. The higher-level heading tags, such as <h1>, carry greater weight in conveying the page’s primary topic. For instance, if a page includes <h1>, <h2>, and <h3> tags, the <h1> tag(s) will be given the highest priority by search engines.
It’s a good practice to add the proper heading tags throughout the article where suitable, but it should be relevant to the page content and must not be duplicated. It enhances user experience by helping them quickly find out the information they are looking for in that blog article.
Basic Guidelines:
Here are some basic guidelines for crafting user-friendly heading tags:
Use a Clear Hierarchy:
Utilize heading tags (<h1> through <h6>) in a hierarchical manner to structure your content logically. Reserve <h1> for the main page title and progressively use <h2>, <h3>, and so on for subheadings.
Relevance and Keywords:
Ensure that each heading tag accurately reflects the content of the page. Include relevant keywords in your headings, but avoid keyword stuffing. Make them read naturally.
Concise and Descriptive:
Keep your headings concise and to the point, summarizing the section’s content. Use headings to give readers a clear idea of what to expect in the following content.
Avoid Duplicate Headings:
Each heading on a page should be unique. Avoid using the same heading multiple times, it might lead to a poor user experience.
Balance and Consistency:
Maintain a balance between the use of different heading levels. Don’t skip levels (e.g., going from <h2> to <h4> directly). Be consistent in your heading structure throughout your website for a better user experience.
5) Keywords in Beginning
Keyword placement has become the focal point, replacing the old concept of keyword density. Google now places great emphasis on the precise location of your keywords within your webpage’s content. According to Google’s logic, the earlier a keyword appears in the general text of the article, the more significant it is deemed to be.
To illustrate this concept, let’s consider an example of an article about home appliances. Imagine if you only mentioned the term “home appliances” for the first time in the very last sentence of your article. Doesn’t it look weird?
This analogy highlights the importance of incorporating your primary keyword early on in your article. In doing so, you not only align with SEO best practices but also ensure a smoother and more logical flow for your readers.
Recommendation:
As a general rule of thumb, include your targeted keywords in the first 100 words of the article.
6) Internal Linking
Internal links are hyperlinks that point to pages on the same domain. These are different than external links, which link out to pages on other domains. They not only help users navigate your website, but also help Google find, index, establish topical relevance, and distribute link equity to your website.
Internal linking is extremely important for any site that wants higher rankings in Google.
Basic Guidelines:
Here are some basic guidelines for effective internal linking:
Use Keywords in Anchor Text:
Keyword-rich anchor text within your internal links can be a highly effective strategy. It helps users understand the context of the page, to which the current page is linking. Ultimately, it results in a better user experience.
Adding exact match keywords in anchor text for internal linking is also recommended by Google itself.
Link to Relevant Pages on Your Website:
To enhance the user experience and promote engagement, it’s crucial to incorporate links to relevant pages on your website. This practice not only guides visitors to valuable content but also improves navigation, making it easier for them to explore your site further.
By strategically embedding these links, you’re not only facilitating navigation throughout your website but also boosting your website’s overall visibility and SEO rankings. This, in turn, can lead to increased traffic and conversions, ultimately contributing to the success of your online presence.
7) Outbound or External Linking
External links, often referred to as hyperlinks, connect one website to another domain different from the source website. To put it simply, when another website directs its users to your site through a link, that’s an external link to your website. Likewise, when your website contains links leading to other websites, those are also classified as external links.
Including outbound links to authoritative sources adds credibility to your content. According to Google, linking is one of the most important factors for achieving high rankings;
Basic Guidelines:
Here are some basic guidelines for effective external linking:
External Links Should be Relevant:
Search engines like Google prioritize user experience and aim to deliver the most relevant results for each query. Therefore, when you include external links, make sure to link to websites within the same niche or field, it helps Google assess the relevance and popularity of your content. This, in turn, can positively impact your Search Engine Results Page (SERP) ranking, ultimately enhancing your online visibility.
Link to Authority Websites:
Connecting to reputable and authoritative websites should be your primary goal. Conversely, associating with sites that peddle clickbait or lack professionalism can erode your readers’ trust, potentially impacting how search engines evaluate and rank your content.
Use Descriptive Anchor Text:
To give the user an idea about the content of the external page, use descriptive text as anchor text for external linking. Descriptive anchor text serves as a guide for your readers, offering them a preview of what they can expect when they click the outbound link. This transparency contributes to a smoother and more user-friendly browsing experience.
8) Image Optimization
Including images on your website can significantly enhance the overall user experience. However, as search engines have limited capabilities to understand the content of images, it’s important to provide them with additional information. There are some basic elements that you can control to give search engines information about the content of images: These elements serve as essential tools in ensuring that your website’s visual content is effectively recognized and utilized by search engines to enhance its visibility in search results.
Basic Guidelines:
Here are some basic guidelines and tips for optimizing images:
Choose the Right Image Format:
Use WebP format for images because it is a modern image format that provides both good compression and quality. It’s supported by most modern browsers, making it an excellent choice for web optimization.
Image File Names:
Ensure your image file names are descriptive and relevant to the content they represent. Instead of “img001.jpg,” use something like “beach-sunset.jpg” if the image depicts a sunset on the beach.
Incorporate relevant keywords into the file name, but do so naturally. For example, if you have a picture of a hiking trail, name it “mountain-hike-trail.jpg” if those are the relevant keywords for your content.
Alt Text (Alternative Text):
Alt text is crucial for accessibility and SEO. It’s a concise description of the image that provides context for visually impaired users and search engines.
Write informative and accurate alt text that describes the image’s content and purpose. For example, if the image shows a red apple, the alt text could be “Red apple on a wooden table.” If keywords are relevant to the image, include them in the alt text naturally, but avoid keyword stuffing.
Image Size and Compression:
Resize images to fit the intended display size on your webpage. Large images that are resized via HTML or CSS can slow down page loading times. It’s best to serve appropriately sized images.
Compress images to reduce file size while maintaining acceptable quality. Tools like Photoshop’s “Save for Web,” TinyPNG or ImageOptim can help with this. Smaller image files lead to faster page loading, which is essential for SEO.
Responsive Design:
Ensure your website is designed responsively so that images adapt to different screen sizes and devices. This improves the user experience and can positively impact SEO rankings, especially for mobile users.
Use CSS to set maximum image dimensions if necessary, preventing oversized images from causing layout issues on smaller screens.
Schema Markup (Structured Data):
Schema markup is a way to provide structured data to search engines, giving them more information about your content, including images.
To enhance image SEO, consider using the “ImageObject” schema markup to provide details like image title, description, author, and license information. This can make your images more discoverable in image search results and rich snippets.
9) Readability
When it comes to user experience, the readability of your content plays a significant role, which in turn affects your website’s ranking in search engine results.
Basic Guidelines:
Here are some basic guidelines and tips for enhancing content readability:
Use Clear Headings and Subheadings:
Organize your content with clear headings and subheadings. This helps readers quickly grasp the structure of your content and find the information they are looking for.
Keep Paragraphs Short:
Long paragraphs can be daunting to readers. Aim for paragraphs of 2-3 sentences to make your content more digestible for readers.
Choose a Legible Font:
As mentioned in your initial request, opt for a web-friendly font like Arial, Helvetica, or Verdana. Ensure the font size is comfortable to read, typically around 18-21 pixels.
Include Visuals:
Add relevant images, diagrams, and infographics to make your content visually more appealing and reader-friendly. Visuals can help break up text and convey information more effectively.
Avoid Jargon:
Minimize technical jargon or industry-specific terms unless your audience is familiar with them. If you must have to use such terms, provide explanations so, that a normal user can understand what you want to convey.
10) Long Content
While longer content tends to perform well, prioritize quality over quantity. Long-form content should:
- Cover topics comprehensively.
- Maintain reader interest throughout.
- Incorporate visuals and multimedia elements to enhance understanding.
Content length is another critical piece of the optimization puzzle that’s often mistakenly placed in the “keyword density” or “unique content” bucket of SEO. In fact, content length can play a big role in terms of whether your material is easy to consume and easy to share.
People often ask about the ideal length for a piece of content. The reality is that this is heavily dependent on the nature of the topic being addressed. Many pieces of content do well because they are short and easy to consume. On the other hand, sometimes content that is lengthy and comprehensive in nature will fare best.
Deciding on the optimal length for your content can be a complicated process. For example, for a complex topic like diabetes, there might be an enormous amount of information that you want to communicate about the various aspects of the disease. You would never try to present all this information on one page (WebMD has hundreds of pages on diabetes!), but how do you get started on breaking it up and devising a content plan for the topic?
You can begin by developing a map of all the aspects of the disease that you want to cover. For your top-level page, you probably want to present a thorough overview and provide an easy path for users to find the rest of your content on the subject. You can then try to break out other aspects of the topic in logical ways until you have a complete plan for the content. The key is to map this out in advance, rather than working through it organically and seeing how it turns out
11) Bounce Rate
The “bounce rate” is a crucial metric in SEO that measures the percentage of visitors who land on a webpage and then leave without interacting further with the site. A high bounce rate can signal that visitors aren’t finding what they expect or are having a poor experience. Therefore, understanding the role of bounce rate and implementing best practices to improve it is essential for SEO success.
Best Practices to Improve Bounce Rate:
Here are some basic guidelines and tips for improving the bounce rate:
High-Quality Content:
Ensure that your content is well-written, informative, and relevant to the topics you are targeting. High-quality content encourages visitors to stay and engage with your site.
Optimize Page Layout:
Organize your content in a visually appealing and user-friendly manner. Use a clean design with adequate white space and readability.
Improve Page Load Speed:
Slow-loading pages frustrate users and increase bounce rates. Optimize your website’s performance to ensure fast loading times, which will enhance the user experience.
Mobile Optimization:
With the increasing use of mobile devices, it’s crucial to have a mobile-responsive design. Ensure that your website looks and functions well on various screen sizes.
12) Dwell Time
Dwell time refers to the amount of time a user spends on a webpage after clicking on a search result but before returning to the search engine results page (SERP). In essence, it measures the engagement and satisfaction of users with a particular web page.
Dwell time matters to search engines like Google because it serves as an indicator of content quality and relevance. A longer dwell time suggests that the content is valuable, relevant, and engaging to the user, while a short dwell time might indicate the opposite. Search engines aim to deliver the best possible results to their users, and they use dwell time, among other factors, to determine the quality of a webpage.
Engage Readers:
Encourage user engagement through comments, social sharing buttons, and interactive elements like quizzes or polls. Active user participation can prolong dwell time.
13) Click Through Rate
Your CTR significantly impacts your organic rankings. It measures the effectiveness of your web page or content in enticing users to click on it from the search engine results page (SERP). In essence, CTR reflects how well your page title and meta description align with the user’s search intent and expectations. Understanding the role of CTR in SEO is crucial because it directly impacts your website’s traffic, rankings, and overall online visibility.
Best Practices to Improve Click-Through Rate:
Here are some basic guidelines and tips for improving click-through rate:
Write Compelling Titles and Meta Descriptions:
Craft engaging, concise, and relevant titles and meta descriptions that clearly communicate the content’s value. Include keywords naturally to signal relevance to both search engines and users.
Leverage Numbers and Symbols:
Including numbers and symbols (e.g., percentages, brackets) can make your titles and descriptions more eye-catching.
User Intent:
Always consider the user’s search intent when crafting your titles and meta descriptions. Tailor your messaging to address their needs and queries.
14) Use LSI Keywords
LSI keywords (Latent Semantic Indexing) provide context to your content. They’re not just synonyms but words and phrases related to your primary keyword. LSI keywords are not just an SEO buzzword; they are a powerful tool that can significantly impact your website’s visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs).
Understanding LSI Keywords:
LSI keywords are not synonyms of your target keywords but rather words and phrases that are semantically related to your primary keyword. Search engines like Google use LSI keywords to understand the context and relevance of content on a web page. This helps search engines provide more accurate search results to users.
For instance, if your primary keyword is “apple,” LSI keywords might include “fruit,” “orchard,” “iPhone,” “Steve Jobs,” and “healthy eating.” These keywords help search engines understand whether you’re talking about the fruit or the technology company.
Best Practices to Use LSI Keywords:
Here are some basic guidelines and tips for using LSI keywords in your content:
Conduct Comprehensive Research:
Start by conducting thorough keyword research to identify your primary keyword. Once you have it, use keyword research tools to find related LSI keywords. Tools like Google’s Keyword Planner, LSIGraph, and SEMrush can help with this.
Use LSI Keywords Naturally:
Avoid forced or unnatural insertion of LSI keywords. Focus on creating high-quality content that naturally incorporates these keywords. Write for your audience, not just for search engines.
15) Social Sharing Buttons
Social sharing buttons play a significant role in SEO by facilitating the distribution of content across social media platforms. These buttons are typically integrated into websites and allow users to easily share web pages, articles, products, or other content with their social networks, such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and more. The impact of social sharing buttons on SEO is multifaceted and can positively influence various aspects of your website’s performance in search engines.
Best Practices to Encourage Sharing of Your Content:
Here are some tips for increasing the social share of your content;
Strategic Placement:
Position social sharing buttons prominently on your web pages, typically near the top of the content or along the side for easy access. Ensure they are visible without obstructing the reading experience.
Conclusion
By implementing these on-page SEO techniques and strategies, you’ll be better equipped to optimize your website for search engines, attract targeted traffic, and provide an exceptional user experience. Each of these elements plays a crucial role in enhancing your online presence and achieving your digital marketing goals.
Remember that on-page SEO is not a one-time endeavor but an ongoing commitment. As search engines evolve and user expectations shift, staying up-to-date and adapting your strategies accordingly is paramount. Be vigilant in monitoring your website’s performance, examining user behavior, and adjusting your content to align with emerging trends and technologies. Lastly, do not forget to download the free On-Page SEO checklist.
On-Page SEO Checklist