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On-Page SEO: Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is inextricably linked with digital marketing. So if you are interested in this field. So it pays to understand the basics of SEO. SEO experts broadly classify it into On-page SEO, Off-page SEO and Technical SEO.
This article What is On-Page SEO. Why it matters, and how to use SEO tools to optimize your pages. Will discuss this. If you are new to SEO. Or want to understand on-page SEO better. Then this guide is for you.
What is On-Page SEO?
On-page SEO is the process of optimizing a webpage for search engine ranking. Which, in turn, enables the page to receive more website traffic. As the name implies. This includes changes to the page’s content and HTML to increase search engine result ranking potential.
Because it is page-based only. On-page SEO does not include off-page technology. Like getting backlinks to your website or creating domain authority.
Why is on-page SEO important?
On-page SEO tells search engines a lot about the structure of your site and the content of the pages on your site.
For example, one aspect of on-page SEO is using titles and subtitles. Including your main keyword. The title refers to the search engines. That your post is likely to match certain search phrases, while subtitles indicate this. How many topics have you covered in the post?
Having good on-page SEO gives this assurance to the search engines. That your website has high quality content. Which deserves a higher ranking. On the other hand, poor on-page SEO can negatively affect your site’s ranking.
That said, it is important to create content with SEO in mind.
How do you create SEO content?
If the concept is new to you. So creating SEO content can be intimidating. But once you understand the basics. So it can easily become second nature. If you want to create such content. To attract search engines, do these three things:
Conduct keyword research
The first, non-negotiable step towards creating SEO content is finding it. What words are your audience searching for using search engines. That is the essence of keyword research.
Keyword research involves using SEO tools to find out. What words and phrases your target audience is searching for. How many users search for these keywords each month, and what your competitors have written on the matter.
You can use several keyword research tools like Ahrefs Keyword Explorer (my favorite), Semrush, Uber Suggest, Moz Keyword Explorer, and Keyword Surfer. Keyword tools can help you find relevant keywords to target in your industry. You can also use them to research keywords you already have on your radar.
For example, let’s say you want to write about “how to become a freelance writer.” Searching this keyword on Ahrefs Keyword Explorer will show you that. That’s how easy (or difficult) it would be to rank for it. You’ll also see an estimate of how many people search for the keyword each month, along with specific questions people are asking about the topic.
The information from keyword research can help you decide which keywords are worth pursuing and what you’ll need to include to cover them thoroughly.
Match search intent
Despite the knowledge of relevant keywords, writers can fall into the trap of writing solely for search engines. without considering your audience. Creating useful content begins with matching intent to the search. Matching search intent means. that you answer readers’ questions (preferably, at the beginning of the article).
For example, this article is about on-page SEO. Therefore, the first subtitle immediately addresses this. The article does not begin with a long thesis about the history of SEO. Then finally back to on-page SEO. We’re also answering and showing you the answers to additional adjacent questions. That’s how to optimize your pages for search engines. This is how the search intent is matched.
When you match search intent and optimize for search engines. (more on that soon), then you’ll get posts that rank higher and that will be useful to readers as well. When readers stay longer on your web pages and share your content on social media or with peers. So it prompts the search engines. That your content is of high quality. This, in turn, leads to higher rankings.
Site Structure and Post Structure
Subtitles aren’t just for aesthetics. They tell search engines about the scope of your article and can improve your ranking if done properly. The same applies to your website structure. Categories and the way posts and pages are organized on your site.
For example, if your article is about “How to become a freelance writer”. But you never use subtitles with your keywords. So your post is not likely to rank. So even if you have written an informative post. But you may not have used your subtitles properly. Some people will find your article on search engine result pages.
You should also use the correct title hierarchy. Experts agree that H1s should be reserved for the title of the post. Subsequent header tags can be used after H2, H3, etc. Although it does not provide direct SEO benefits. This makes your content easy to read and crawl. Which makes it more likely to rank on search engines. That’s assuming you wrote valuable content in the first place.
How to Optimize Your SEO Content?
Once you have written SEO content. (or plan to write), it’s time to start optimizing it. Here are three things you should do to optimize your content for search engines:
Include your keyword
However how many times your keyword should appear in your article. There is no specific formula for this. Experts agree on one thing: Your article should have your keyword. Naturally, when you write about a topic. So you’ll probably mention the topic or related words several times throughout the piece—without even trying.
However, something you should avoid. That is a practice known as “keyword stuffing”. This is when keywords are squeezed into an article. Even in unnatural-sounding ways—only to satisfy some mental quota of mentions. Search engines like Google can penalize your website for keyword stuffing.
Add internal link
Another under-appreciated on-page SEO best practice is internal linking. It refers to linking other pieces of content to your site. For example, you’ll notice that many of our blog posts display related articles in the “Further reading” section. This is an example of internal linking.
Internal links help your website:
Moving from one piece of content to another is how your site is organized, keeping readers on your site. Helping Search Engines Understand This
Creation authorization for new pages and articles on your site
The most effective internal link is links to related content. With descriptive anchor text. Readers are more likely to click on them, and search engines will be able to understand them more easily as well.
Use images and alt-text
Images can be a powerful on-page SEO element. They can rank on search engine visual searches and are more easily discovered than the articles themselves. Additionally, images break up text-heavy pieces and can make articles more enjoyable. Some types of images (such as infographics) are also easier to share and can make your content more popular.
You should add descriptive alt-text to create the best images as an on-page SEO component. Preferably containing your post keywords. Alt-text helps improve the reach of your website and can help visually impaired people get the most out of reading your content.
There are other things to do for Image SEO Optimization:
- Selecting an image that complements your text
- Using a relevant image name (preferably with your keyword)
- Resizing and optimizing images so that they load faster (which improves on-page SEO)
- Adding images to your site’s XML sitemap
- including captions, if applicable, to help readers benefit from your image
- We have considered many things if you want to create SEO content, but as you may have noticed, many of these things require tools to execute.
If you want to create SEO content. So we have considered many things, but as you may have seen. The execution of many of these things requires tools.
Useful on-page SEO tools
If you want to do a solid job. So in general some essential tools are required for SEO. On-page SEO is no different.
Google Search Console
This Google tool to drive your site to Google search engine result pages, monitor traffic. Helps to identify and spot serious site issues. Which keywords drive the most traffic. You can submit a URL and submit a sitemap for crawling. In order to help your site rank faster.
Ahrefs Keyword Explorer
Ahrefs, which we mentioned earlier. An all-in-one SEO tool for keyword research, competitor gap analysis, website SEO audit and more. You can also monitor your website for internal linking issues or page errors. See what content ranks highest in your industry, and analyze your competitors’ content.
Some SEO experts prefer Semrush (another all-inclusive SEO tool) instead of Ahrefs.
Google Keyword Planner
Google Keyword Planner: Keyword Tool is a free SaaS product. Which uses Google Autocomplete and other search engines to generate relevant long-tail keywords and related keywords for any given topic.
KeywordTool helps the user to locate long-tail and related keywords. It relies on Google’s autocomplete feature to provide quick access to popular search terms. It scrapes keyword suggestion ideas from Google, YouTube, Bing, Amazon, eBay, Play Store, Instagram and Twitter.
Clearscope
Clearscope is an artificial intelligence SEO tool. Which helps you to create content that matches the search intent. It evaluates the highest ranking content for your keywords and provides a set of relevant key phrases to guide you as you create the content. It then scores your piece relative to competing content.
Frase.io is a cheaper Clearscope alternative.
Google Developers PageSpeed Insight
One important on-page SEO factor that we haven’t mentioned yet. That is site speed. Slow websites can frustrate users. Can increase bounce rates and signal to search engines that your site is not a high quality resource. This Google tool evaluates your site’s page speed and provides suggestions on how to improve it.
On-page SEO: FAQs
What is the Most Important On-Page SEO Factor?
There is no single most important factor. Most elements will not work without the others. You can write great content. But if your keyword is not in title or meta description. So it probably won’t rank. The basic things to learn for on-page SEO are:
- Writing to match search intent
- Customization of titles, meta descriptions and titles
- Adding contextual images with alt-text
Start here and you can add other things later.
How can I learn on-page SEO?
By reading articles like this one! If you want something more in-depth. So I recommend Ahrefs SEO Course. Ahrefs is one of the best in the game; There is no better company to learn from.
What is an example of on-page SEO?
Examples of on-page SEO include headings and subheadings, internal linking and images and alt-text. These are all elements on the page. Which, when optimized, can help your website’s content rank higher on search engines—and drive more traffic.
Wrap-up and Further Reading
On-page SEO is vital to a successful website with high search engine rankings. Although it may seem awkward in the beginning. With a little research, SEO is easy to implement. The key to great SEO content is serving your readers.
Use headings and subheadings that provide content structure. Add images to make the content more engaging, and include your keywords naturally throughout the text to indicate relevance to search engines.
Read Also: How to become a Web Developer in 2022?
