Search engine optimisation (SEO) can be intimidating. 20 years ago it was enough just to pick your domain name, create your website, and get it online, but that is far from enough now.
You might have read significant numbers of articles online and scoured them for useful tips and tricks that you could implement into your own strategy but until you have actively taken steps to push your SEO efforts forwards, you aren’t going to find yourself in the position where you are actively benefiting from the time and effort you have invested.
We understand that there can be myriad barriers to taking steps to implement an effective SEO strategy. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed and, if you are already pushed for time, it can be tempting to forge ahead with other tasks that perhaps don’t feel quite as complex or daunting. Crucially, however, when approached correctly, effective on-page SEO, also referred to as ‘technical SEO‘, is commanding enough to attract significant numbers of new visitors directly to your website. At a time when ensuring as many pairs of eyes as possible are firmly on your business over your competitors, there are no compelling reasons as to why you should continue to put off addressing your on-page SEO.
There are a variety of guides to conversion rate optimisation available to peruse online, but here is a brief overview of the importance of on-page SEO and how to get started in 2019.
What is On-Page SEO?
Also sometimes referred to as on-site SEO, on-page SEO is a term used to describe the optimisation of pages on your website to ensure that they rank well in search engine results pages (SERPs) and successfully attract new traffic.
Why is On-Page SEO So Important?
In addition to telling Google about your most important digital asset, on-page SEO also communicates to the search giant precisely how your business provides visitors to your website with a meaningful experience and tangible value.
Key Elements of On-Page SEO
To give you an idea as to the key elements that on-page SEO covers, here are a few examples of the areas of your webpages that you should be paying close attention to:
- Page content
- Page titles
- Headers
- Image alt-text
- Meta Descriptions
- Page URLs
- Internal linking
- Site speed
- Mobile responsiveness
All elements of on-page SEO will fall into one of three primary categories:
Content
Your website should only contain content of the highest quality that provides the information your visitors are looking for. Short and long-tail keywords should be incorporated into your copy naturally and ideally, your primary points should be augmented with engaging visual content.
When it comes to delivering value, writing with your buyer personas in mind will help you to address the problems your audience are facing. Additionally, creating content that people actively want to share and link to will boost your brand image and help you to secure even more traffic to your site. Remember, content will always sit at the heart of every powerful website and every effective on-page SEO strategy. This is a prime opportunity to deliver genuine value, so investing time and resources into this area will pay dividends over both the short and long term.
HTML
Page titles are one of the most important aspects of effective on-page SEO because they tell visitors and search engines precisely what they can expect when they click through and start to engage with the content they find. Effective page titles should naturally incorporate a focus keyword, be ultra-relevant to the content on the page, and come in at under 70 characters to ensure that it won’t be cut off in SERPs.
Headers help you to organise your on-page content and assist search engines in the detection of the parts that will be most relevant to users depending on the intent behind their searches. Again, incorporating primary keywords naturally into your headers will enhance your on-page SEO and deliver a seamless experience to your audience.
Although meta descriptions are not an official search engine ranking factor, the short page descriptions that will be displayed beneath the page title in SERPs can effectively influence users to click through to your website. The ideal meta description should be under 160 characters, incorporate an important keyword or phrase, and be immediately compelling.
Site architecture
Site architecture is a term that covers each of the elements that come together to make your website. Structuring your site well is essential to allow search engines to crawl your pages and their content with ease.
Page URLs should be easy to comprehend and it is worth taking the time here to ensure that superfluous words are removed to aid memorability and communication. It is also worth noting that Google now regards HTTPS as a positive ranking factor so if you can use this, it will likely generate tangible benefits over both the short and long term.
Guides to conversion rate optimisation written for a 2019 audience will always emphasise the importance of optimising for mobile. Google now favours sites that deliver the best mobile experiences, even for searches conducted on desktop devices.
Although on-page SEO can initially appear to be decidedly overwhelming, it is important to remember that even small tweaks and alterations to your webpages can deliver significant results that will push you further towards reaching your core goals and objectives.