Content creation is an art form. However, this art form can be the difference between your booming or running out of business. That is why individuals worldwide are looking for ways to create original, fun, and attention-grabbing content. But unfortunately, even the most creatively whipped-up piece of work can fall short if it isn’t ranked well on search engines, which is where On-Page Optimization comes in.
Today, through this guide, we will be tackling some major essential questions:
- We will be discussing what on-page optimization is.
- Listing down reasons why it is not only recommended but vital.
- Finally, the ways you can optimize your great content and the tools you can use.
What is On-Page SEO?
On-Page SEO is a type of SEO that optimizes the content on a web page for all the people searching for something by editing a few things here and there. It is one of the significant types of Search Engine Optimization. It is distinguished from off-page, which is optimizing your content off-site or simply any process that takes place on anything other than your website directly. However, today, we will mainly focus on On-Page search engine optimization and what you can do to improve it.
Why is it crucial to have On-Page SEO?
As mentioned earlier, search engine optimization can be the difference between your business doing well or not. How do you think Google or any search engine works? Once a user types in a specific keyword or a list of them, it scans through millions of sites and finds the most relevant ones by where and how much that keyword appeared.
- Ranking: SEO is utterly important because it gets your ranking higher. Without search engine optimized content, you would probably be lost among the thousands and thousands of new content created every day.
- More clicks: if you have search engine optimized content, it will rank you higher and thus guarantee more clicks to your site.
- Increased Revenue: with more clicks and impressions on-site, no matter the product or services, you will surely get more potential customers, potentially leading to more sales and higher capital.
What can you do to get started?
So, now that we are clear about On-Page search engine optimization, it is time to learn how to employ it in your content and see the difference. These tips are a great way to start; some advanced tricks are mentioned here that can be super useful too. So, if you were looking for the perfect guide to optimize your content, you are at the right place.
Employing the right primary keyword in your titles
One of the most important things to optimize your content is adding the keywords in your tags. People search through keywords, and search engines look for those keywords in the titles of your content. This can be seen in the top 10 results of any keyword you search on google. All of them will indeed have the primary keyword in them.
Always have your first line in Heading 1 format
Your first line is your title, and to rank higher, your first line should be in Heading 1. You can format it to H1 or add it in your website codes before your title. This will help Google catch on to it more quickly as, without it, Google or any search engine may miss it.
Having the right Link
Your URL or Link is super essential to rank your page too. Your URL should also contain your primary keywords; this will help search engines identify them easily. Thus ranking your site higher than the rest in the specific niche.
How long is your Link?
This question is an important one. Although not something definitive for ranking, the length of your Link does matter. Longer links tend to get lost, whereas shorter ones are easier to find and can be remembered by people.
How to write compelling descriptions?
A practical description is also necessary for rankings. Try to incorporate neat and well-crafted summaries of the articles on the top in the form of meta descriptions. Always add your primary keywords in the meta description too.
Is your page easy to navigate?
One of the biggest reasons people don’t find your site applicable is that it is hard to navigate. You have to break things down, have a lot of clear white space, gaps, and the right amount of paragraphs.
- Breakdown longer passages into small ones
- Add headings and subheadings
- Use bullets and numberings
- Use images and flow charts to explain content better.
Originality and Keyword Cannibalism
You have to ensure that your content is original. Did you know that if many sites contain the same information, it can be flagged for copy content? And there is no way to guess which content will be taken down if they have similar information. That’s why it is necessary to always come up with original content. Your keywords could eat your ranking and thus commit keyword cannibalism.
Reading Scores
Reading scores also play a role in ranking your website. Try to come with content with high reading scores so that it is easily readable for all. Search engines will rank easier to digest content higher as more people can understand it.
All about subheadings
Subheadings are an essential part of your content too, try to format your headings in the heading two formats and add words or synonyms of the primary keywords there.
Using synonyms
People from all around the world use search engines to find stuff. However, not everyone searches the same way. Some things are pronounced differently in one part of the world, and some are spelled differently, too. That is why it is necessary to incorporate synonyms of the same keyword. Furthermore, Google sometimes groups synonyms of primary keywords too.
Playing with the order of the keywords
Order of the keywords is necessary too. As mentioned earlier, people search for things differently. A recipe for something can be searched as “how to cook fried rice?” or as a “fry rice recipe.” Either way, the user wants the same thing. That is why it is essential to play with the order of the keyword you are using.
Placing anchors
Anchors are words that are used to link sites to your articles. This can be a great way to link authoritative sites to your articles. That Way, Google will consider your writing more accurate because it has strong sites to back it up.
Adding internal links
Another great thing to optimize your content is to add your links to it. For example, you can select words linked to other content on your site and link them to the URL of that page. These internal links can be excellent for increasing views.
Using pictures for optimization
You can always employ images to your content to rank it higher. It’s better to use your photos instead of stock images because they do considerably better. You can take further action and change the name of your pictures to what they are about. Add your primary keywords in there, too, if you can.
Speed
The speed of your site also matters. Be sure to opt for servers that can perform efficiently and not let users move to another area because of your site’s time to load up.
Dwelling time
Dwelling time is the time a user spends on your site. It can be shallow if the users leave quickly from your site. Or it can be an average of a couple of minutes, or it can be pretty huge. These timings help google assess how helpful your content is, especially in those keywords. If it notices that your content doesn’t have anything special to offer, it won’t rank well.
Longer and deeper posts
A great way to increase your dwelling time is to make your content lengthier but easy to navigate too. Of course, the same content can be available on more than one site, but if your site can keep the user on it for longer to give them a more in-depth explanation of what they need to know, it will undoubtedly be ranked higher.
Updated content
Another great way to have better content is to have an updated piece. For example, up-to-date and current trend content will have more views and be ranked higher in the search engine results.
Analyzing your work
A key to knowing if you are doing the right things is to keep viewing how your piece is doing. Is it being ranked well? or has the ranking go up or down? You can do so by frequently revisiting and checking the page stats.
Tools you can use
Now that you have the basic strategies in mind let’s discuss tools. The most important thing in search engine optimization is to find the right keywords. For that, you need to take help from sites like SEMRush or opt for other sites. Most of the sites are paid but will undoubtedly be great for long-term usage.
Final words
Optimizing your content is one of the most important things you can do to get ranked higher. A higher ranking will ensure that your content is viewed by more users and is easy to find. This can also increase your revenue if you have advertisements on your site or have a service or product on sale. So, summing it up, employ this guide to optimize your content and have great results. Good luck!
