On-page SEO, Is it really important?

Let’s find out!

To many people, on-page SEO is just about writing a few keywords and nothing else. Well, this is a false perception as on-page SEO goes beyond the keywords to the placement of keywords.

Well, this article will help you to discover what is on-page SEO, why it really matters as well as important things to consider and focus on on-page SEO. Onpage SEO is also known as on-site SEO which is the practice of optimizing your web pages to rank higher in search engines.

On-page SEO is the method of organizing the pages on your website to make your pages rank high on search engines, especially on google. It is the practice of optimizing your web pages to derive organic traffic and elevate your website’s ranks in the search engine results pages ( SERP).

on-page SEO involves the optimization of high quality contents, headlines, HTML tags such as title, meta, header and images on your website. It entails that the website has a high level of expertise which should be immediately after an SEO audit, keyword research, and competitor analysis to ensure trustworthiness.

Essential elements of on-page SEO

There are essential elements to be put in place to to ensure the success of a website. These elements which serve as maintaining the on-page strategies are done aside from the on-page SEO strategies. The three main ways include: content writing, meta data and internal linking.

Good contents to meet user’s intents

Creating good or high quality contents is an essential aspect of on-page SEO that cannot be underemphasized. Without great content, there will be a lack of high-quality headings, keywords and title tags that will not contribute a meaningful impact on ranking the site. The content should provide answers to the myriad questions of the users. This can facilitate high ranking and improve the conversion rate of the website. To ensure quality contents, the following must be put into consideration;

• Content Structure

To have an outstanding on-page SEO, the content structure should be optimized to enable the website to be user friendly. It can be done from the whole website perspective and the navigation properly set up. The important pages on your website must be accessible from the well structured menu that can be moved from a page to another easily.

• Headings

Heading tags is important for high ranking of your website and should be well taken care of. H1 tags were the most important sometime ago on google but has since changed as all headings are crucial.

The keywords can be added to the headings and ensure that it is meaningful. H1 tag stuffing isn’t necessary but the keywords can be spread to the different headings in a content. There is no need to have blocks of text in the content as it makes it difficult to read. All that is needed is a content structure that gives the user’s great experience.

• Using Keywords

Keyword usage is another important aspect of high quality content. The usage of keywords in the right way helps google to understand what your page is all about.

It is worthy of note that the main keyword shouldn’t be used repeatedly in a content. You can have multiple keywords or variations of words that can be used throughout the content structure. With this approach, your website will rank for multiple keywords instead of a single one. It helps to keep your content unique and improve your ranking.

Metadata and Meta descriptions

Meta data is always in the HTML code of each page in your website. It contains the page’s title-tag and meta description to be used in search engine results that will help to list your pages or your websites pages. The meta title and meta descriptions pop up in a search query when using a search engine which are located in the page’s link. Meta data that is optimized with good keywords and we’ll structured contents gives a detail of your page offering.

The meta description shows what your site is all about and should be made appealing and compelling to the users. The keywords are essential to get a good result here because user’s may love your site or take action based on your description.

Internal Linking

Internal linking and a good site structure is often underrated as an on-page optimization process. A website with high authority can be linked to other pages to give the chance of getting every page ranked high.

When your website structure is good, search engines will be able to crawl your site, have easy navigation bars, anchor links and footers. All the aforementioned elements help users to get to the page that meets their intent.

Search engines struggle to identify sites that are confusing and can’t easily be navigated. According to Google’s Webmaster Guidelines, a website should have a “clear conceptual page hierarchy”. Important links are made to be Crawlable for Googlebot indexing.

on-page SEO strategies to improve your rankings

Your website should be mobile friendly

Mobile friendliness is a broad topic and it is very important. Mobile SEO is particularly crucial because your designed website should be adaptable to platforms and devices such as smartphones, laptops and so on. This can rank your site higher than those that aren’t mobile friendly. You have to ensure your website is easy to use, navigate and user friendly, fast and have contents that cater to a large audience. Check out the most important elements that apply to mobile friendliness.

Cater to the user intent

Users have goals when they type a query into the search engines. Optimize your keywords to match the contents they seek for on your page. Let your metadata and meta descriptions be specific. It should think about the intent of the users before the implementation on the on-page SEO.

The golden rule is to focus on the users and cater to their specific needs. The user’s needs and intent is paramount to getting good ranks. Google now pushes user experience and SEO as parts of its ranking algorithm of websites.

Site security

Use site security such as HTTPs protocol for maximum security. Since 2014, Google’s ranking algorithm uses security as a factor to help the web become more secure.

UX/UI Improvement

This is also a good strategy as site structure, intuitive navigation, site-speed, and design are signals for SEO ranking. Adequate attention must be given to those elements to help users have the best experience.

Conclusion

In a nutshell, on-page SEO involves making sure that search engines and users are able to understand what makes up a website. Relevant keywords and variations should be properly worked on to make your page look good to the users. No keywords stuffing but keywords should be used the right way to rank the pages well. Know the essence of on-page SEO and make all the necessary adjustments to rank your page high on search engines.