Did you know that around 91% of search engine users never move past the first page of Google? Well, it’s true.
For your business to get any traffic, you’ll need to invest in SEO services that help you rank on the first page of Google. A huge part of this is changing facets of your existing webpage to make it more appealing to SERPs.
Read on to learn how you can do this with a comprehensive on page SEO checklist!
What Is On-Page SEO?
Search engine optimization (SEO) is the process of manipulating aspects of your website to make it more appealing to search engine crawlers. This generally comes in two forms: off-page vs on-page SEO.
Off-page SEO refers to manipulations that you make on other areas of the web to get your site higher in SERPs. These manipulations include linking to other relevant and reputable sites, using social media appropriately, generating good reviews on third-party platforms, and being mentioned in high quality publications.
While off-site SEO is essential for a well-rounded marketing campaign, on-page SEO is arguably even more important.
On-page SEO refers to manipulations that you make on your webpage to make it more appealing to Google spiders. There are many strategies that you might implement, but all of them are characterized by putting something onto your website (or removing something from it).
On-page SEO makes crawlers recognize your site as reliable, high-quality, and relevant to specific search queries. They therefore will rank it higher in the results so that more people click on it. This boosts your visibility, traffic, and overall business success.
The Ultimate On Page SEO Checklist
High-Quality Content
Quality content is at the core of every on-page SEO strategy. You only have around 15 seconds to capture people’s interest on your site before they click away, so you need to make this short timeframe count. Make sure that you use short sentences, small paragraphs, and images and graphics on your landing page.
Once people are interested in your landing page, they can then move on to other areas of your website. This is where you can post keyword-rich articles that your prospects want to see. It’s also where you can talk about your products and services in a lengthier way.
If you fail to engage people with your landing page, they’re going to click away quickly. This doesn’t just mean that you lose business from a potential client. It also shows search engine crawlers that your site isn’t as high-quality as they thought it was and pushes it down in SERPs.
Beyond simply having engaging, quality content, there are a few other things to keep in mind when trying to generate organic SEO traffic.
Keyword Research and Use
One of the most important parts of on-page SEO is keyword research and use.
First, you need to find all the keyword phrases people will use as a Google query when finding your website. Think about the searches that are most relevant to your website.
Type up a list of potential keywords that people may look up. Generally, they should be around 3-5 words long. You want them to be short enough that people will actually use them while still long enough to be specific and relevant.
You can then enter these keywords into a tool like Google Keyword Planner or, better yet, a research tool like SEMrush. You should select a keyword that has a search volume of more than 100 and a keyword difficulty (KD) of under 80.
The higher the search volume, the better. Lower KDs also make it easier to rank, so go for those that are as low as possible.
You can then use these keywords in your blog posts for your website. If you want a higher-quality page, hire a professional content writer and have him or her to craft content for you with your keywords in mind. Keywords should also be used in titles, meta descriptions and header tags on your website.
Titles, Meta Descriptions and Header Tags
Speaking of titles, descriptions and header tags, you need to make use of these aspects for your most important pages of your website including your homepage, all service/product pages and your blog posts.
You also need to keep these aspects of your site short and sweet. Recommended meta descriptions should never be longer than 157 characters. Titles should always be under 70. For header tags, specifically H1 tag, we recommend character count to between 20 to 70 characters.
If you make your titles and meta descriptions too long, Google will truncate them and only show them partially. This may cause them not to make sense or be engaging. People are less likely to click on a URL with too long a title or one that doesn’t clearly convey what the website is about. The goal for every webpage is to have clear, concise meta tags that are engaging and include keywords you would like to rank for on Google.
Experiment with alliteration, puns, and interesting title formats. You’re sure to find something that looks awesome on your site.
Internal Linking
While external and inbound linking falls squarely into the off-page SEO category, internal linking is a huge part of your on-site SEO checklist. Internal links are those to other areas of your website. For example, they may redirect a visitor from a blog post that they’re enjoying to your contact page or product information.
Make sure that you use an internal link at the end of your blog post. This should be anchored to a strong call to action in which you nudge them towards contacting you or making a purchase. Assuming that your content was of a high caliber, you’re sure to get more traffic to these areas of your site.
Mobile Friendliness
As of 2021, around half of the global population accesses the web exclusively from smartphones By 2025. this figure will be at 72% and they’ll be exclusively using mobile devices.
Make sure that your website is mobile-friendly even if you need to do so at the expense of some desktop readability. Make it easy to navigate from a smartphone or tablet. Ensure that all media can run on these devices and the interfaces that they use.
You also should invest in local SEO services to target mobile users in your area. Many people in your demographic will make searches for ‘services near me,’ so make sure that you appear in these SERPs.
Technical SEO
It’s also critical that you create a technical SEO checklist and invest in these services. Some items include:
- HTML tagging
- SSL
- Indexation
- Site speed
- Overall website architecture
- Accessibility
- Structured markup
Make sure that you ask a professional about technical SEO as it may require some development knowledge.
Up Your Digital Marketing Game Today
Now that you have a comprehensive on page SEO checklist, it’s time to begin your next digital marketing campaign. Contact our SEO experts with any remaining questions that you have on generating organic traffic to your business website.
We’re happy to help you optimize your page with engaging, high-quality, and keyword-rich content. If you’re in the earlier stages of your online marketing campaign, we also will help you set realistic goals that will ensure you get more traffic than ever before. Since we’re committed to taking your organization’s success into our own hands, we look forward to hearing from you soon.
Call us today at 888.523.2926 or click here for a No-Obligation Consultation.
