If you want to improve your website ranking, it’s essential to work on key on-site elements. An unnoticed website can’t attract people and generate revenue. You need to gain domain authority, attract organic traffic, and secure higher rankings on search engine result pages.
Marketers and business owners need to know the critical ranking factors that Google considers when assessing a site. Hence, we have prepared this on-page checklist for SEO to guide you during your on-page SEO journey.
Introduction to On-page SEO
On-page SEO, or on-site SEO, includes all the strategies and changes implemented on the website to boost its search engine ranking. You need to optimize on-page elements, such as meta tags, URLs, blogs, headers, images, and other forms of content, to make the site appealing and engaging for users and search engines.
On-site SEO increases the chances of your page ranking higher in search result pages, which brings more organic traffic and improving its online visibility. The more optimized your website and content are, the better user experience you can offer.
Here is your SEO on-page checklist to help you at every step and guide you in the right direction.
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Checklist for On-page SEO
Now that you have understood the meaning of on-page SEO, it’s time to go through the primary on-page SEO activities required to optimize each web page on a website.
Make sure you complete all the listed tasks in any order to make your website search engine-friendly and enhance user experience.
- Identify Target Keywords
- Create Optimized URL
- Write a Compelling Page Title
- Use Header Tags
- Craft SEO-rich Meta Description
- Include Relevant Keywords in Content
- Make Navigation Seamless with Internal Links
- Add Images, Videos, and other Visual Elements
- Optimize Alt Tags
- Add External Links
- Keyword Placement
- Content Quality
- Schema Markup
- Social Sharing
- User Experience
- Spelling And Grammar
- E.E.A.T Signals
1. Identify Target Keywords
Relevant and target keywords play a crucial role in on-page optimization. Hence, we have to include it in our on-page SEO full checklist. These keywords help websites gain better online visibility on search engines and boost search engine rankings.
Hence, you need to conduct in-depth keyword research to find search words and phrases that the target audience mentions in the search box to find products or services you offer. Use trusted and effective keyword research tools, like SEMrush, Ahrefs, or Google Keyword Planner, to identify target keywords and explore the best ranking opportunities. You can master these skills by joining an online SEO course.
Select keywords that maintain a balance between search volume and low competition to improve the chances of higher rankings and better results. Focus more on long-tail keywords as they are easier to rank for and have low competition. This is specifically useful for startups and small businesses that are trying to compete with big brands and companies. However, consider low-volume keywords when you want to target a specific market or niche. Despite having a lower volume, these keywords can bring valuable and highly-targeted traffic, helping you make your place in a specialized field.
Here are a few major points to remember during keyword research:
Volume- It refers to the average monthly searches.
Intent- It is the search intent or motivation behind every search.
Keyword Difficulty- It tells how hard it is to rank a web page in the top unpaid search engine results.
2. Create Optimized URL
As you generate a URL for your web page, make sure it includes a keyword so users and search engines know what to expect from the content. For example if your web page is about ‘DIgital marketing course’, then include the target keyword ‘online digital marketing course’ in the URL. Also, your URL must be clear, concise, and descriptive.
Here are a few tips to remember while creating a URL:
- Use primary keywords as the URL slug.
- Remove any unnecessary or extra words.
- Avoid using numbers in the URL.
- Use around one or two keywords.
- Use a hyphen to separate words.
- Use HTTPS as Google considers it as a ranking factor.
Also Read: What is Off-Page SEO Optimization? Benefits, Techniques, Strategy
3. Write a Compelling Page Title
A page title, or title tag, appears at the top in SERPs, telling Google and other search engines what your content is about. It is a crucial part of any basic on-page SEO checklist that entices users to click on the link and visit the page.
Make sure that you craft a compelling and descriptive title that includes a primary keyword and describes the page or its objective accurately. You can add secondary keywords, too, but avoid keyword stuffing as it can look spammy.
Follow these best practices to develop an ideal page title:
- Keep it under 60 characters so that it appears completely on the screen. Google doesn’t specifically mentions the exact character limit but its display title max out at 600 pixels. So, keeping 60 characters in the title would ensure that it doesn’t cut off in the search result.
- Avoid stuffing keywords in the title.
- Include the brand name if possible.
- Don’t use all caps.
Here’s what the title looks like in the SERP:
4. Use Header Tags
Quality and optimized content that answers users’ queries and concerns can get Google’s attention and attain higher ranks on search engine results. Hence, long-form content and articles are beneficial for SEO. However, it is challenging to organize long content logically and ensure readability.
Therefore, it is recommended to use header tags that make any content SEO-friendly and scannable. Use H1, H2, H3, and H4 tags for efficient on-page SEO, as it streamlines the content and users can easily skim it to find useful information.
Incorporate keywords naturally in headers but don’t repeat the keyword that you have already used in the page title. Your H1 tag must include the most important keyword.
According to a report, 29% of top-performing articles use H2, H3, and H4 tags. This is because subheadings divide articles into different and logical sections, making it convenient for users to scan the content in no time. Also, header tags enable Google to understand the structure of the content or web page. You can use H2 to H6 tags depending on the depth of your content.
5. Craft SEO-rich Meta Description
The meta description doesn’t directly influence your search engine ranking. However, it’s an important element to make a web page stand out on the SERP and attract more clicks. Whether it’s an on-page SEO checklist for e-commerce website or for any service provider company, you can’t ignore meta description. So, write an interesting and compelling meta description that explains the content of the page, tells what information will users get, encourages people to click through, and makes it worth visiting.
Google often bolds search queries in meta descriptions on SERPs so users can easily find useful content. Add the primary keyword in the description. Google also generates its own meta titles and descriptions for web pages. Before you use them, optimize them to make them search-engine friendly.
Here are a few characteristics of an optimized meta description:
- Include relevant keyword
- Keep it under 160 characters so that Google displays it fully on SERPs.
- Use engaging and complete sentences
- Avoid using alphanumeric characters
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6. Include Relevant Keywords in Content
Google looks for keywords in a content to determine if a particular page is relevant to the search query or not. Hence, your title, headers, URL, and content should include target keywords.
Distribute keywords throughout the content and make sure they fit naturally. In case keywords are absent from the content, Google may ignore your page and won’t consider it relevant to the search term.
Use the primary keyword in the title and the first paragraph, and scatter the secondary keywords throughout. However, don’t repeat keywords excessively because keyword stuffing hampers the readability and quality of the content.
When you stuff keywords, it looks as if you are trying to manipulate search engines, and it may look spammy. It also affects the reading experience. Also, search engines have become smarter and can easily track unnatural keyword stuffing.
So, be consistent and ensure the content is optimized with a decent number of keywords.
7. Make Navigation Seamless with Internal Links
Continuing our blog on what is on-page SEO checklist, next is internal linking. Internal links are used to link two web pages of the same website. They help users and Google navigate your site and find their way around. By adding internal links, you guide search engines to understand the relationship between different web pages.
You add links to anchor texts, which are clickable phrases or words with hyperlinks directing users to another web page on the site. A descriptive anchor text gives users a clear idea of what the linked content is about, conveying its relevance and enhancing the browsing experience.
It’s crucial to use relevant words as anchor text to boost your on-page SEO, telling the type of content you are linking to. Here are a few points to note for internal linking:
- Find the target page on the website to link to. Select the web page that is contextually relevant and provide additional information to users regarding the current content.
- Now, identify the anchor text that you can use to add internal links. Your anchor text must be descriptive and relevant to the content of the page you are linking to.
- Your links should be placed strategically throughout the page. Add a reasonable number of links on every page and each of them must add value to the overall user experience. Avoid adding excessive links; otherwise, it may seem spammy.
Also Read: Major Functions of Search Engine (How Search Engines Work)
8. Add Images, Videos, and other Visual Elements
Videos, images, charts, and other multimedia elements not only make your web pages engaging but also optimize them for higher rankings. However, similar to other on-page components, it’s essential to set them up according to SEO requirements. Evaluate your online presence with our SEO course and get monthly organic traffic from search.
Add relevant images and videos to your content to divide lengthy content and make it more sensible and appealing. Well-optimized and placed visuals can drive image and video search traffic. Also, compress image files for faster loading and use descriptive captions and file names
Place all images and videos strategically throughout the page to add value to your content and build the interest of the audience. This also enhances the user experience and online visibility of your pages. Make your images and videos accessible to decrease bounce rate.
9. Optimize Alt Tags
Our on-page SEO checklist 2024 is not complete without alt tags. While optimizing various on-page elements, marketers and website owners overlook images and visual content. However, image optimization is a necessary step to attract search engines and enable them to crawl your pages easily.
Add alt tags to optimize images and include keywords in the alt text. It will enhance your SEO efforts and even improve its rank in image search results.
The following will help you optimize alt tags:
- Make it relevant to the page content
- Use relevant keywords, but avoid stuffing
- Keep it specific and descriptive
- It should be within 125 characters
10. Add External Links
External links make your web pages credible and trustworthy, ensuring search engines that reputable websites consider your content valuable. When your website is well-referenced, Google and users trust it more, which boosts its ranking and visibility.
11. Keyword Placement
While writing content, it is obvious that the keyword and related LSI keywords will occur naturally in the text body.
However, there are a few places to place your target target keywords intentionally:
- Page Title: The title of the page appears on the page.
- Title Tag: This title of the page appears on the SERP.
- First 100 Words of the Page: Ensure that you incorporate this naturally.
- Headings: Ideally in at least two H2s on the page.
- Meta Description: Summary of the web page that appears on the SERP.
- Image Alt Text: It is an image’s text alternative.
- Image File Name: Don’t save an image as ‘Screenshot-1’ or ‘chart.’
12. Content Quality
Always keep your audience in mind while creating your on-page SEO. Keywords help you rank higher in the SERPs; however, focus on producing quality and relevant content that will be helpful to your readers. For instance, if the readers search for “What is on-page SEO?” create an informative guide on the topic.
Some of the tips for writing quality content:
- Use the appropriate heading tags
- Provide accurate information
- Provide links to external sources when citing statistics and studies.
13. Schema Markup
Schema markup is a set of data that allows search engines to learn about your content better using post tags. The more Google knows about the type of your website and every content on it, the more efficient your overall on-page SEO will be. Google pulls more data from the posts with schema markup and displays rich snippets in its SERPs.
14. Social Sharing
Social sharing of your content using social sharing buttons on your blogs/articles will boost your online presence, contributing to your SEO efforts.
15. User Experience (UX)
Google prioritizes the experience that users have with their products/services. So, ensure that your UX is user-friendly. A good user experience improves your website navigation, lessens bounce rate, and boosts time on the page and engagement.
Ways to achieve a positive user experience:
- Optimize the website’s design, layout, and readability
- Focus on mobile responsiveness, easy navigation, and clear CTAs
- Offer valuable, relevant content
16. Spelling And Grammar
Although spelling and grammar are not the ranking factors, the user experience is. Content with multiple spelling and grammatical errors offers the worst user experience. This further discredits your content’s authority and legitimacy. So, always focus on publishing error-free content.
17. E.E.A.T Signals
E-E-A-T, which stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, plays a crucial role in Google’s ranking system. It is not an algorithm or ranking factor. E-E-A-T is not directly measurable. The raters use E-E-A-T as a guide and the ratings they report back to Google inform any future algorithm changes. E-E-A-T is more essential than the current ranking factors and algorithms since it signals the future of those factors and algorithms. E-E-A-T is future-proofing your online presence.
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FAQs on On-page SEO Checklist
Key on-page SEO elements include optimizing title tags, meta descriptions, content (including keyword usage), internal links, URLs, and images and ensuring a positive user experience. These elements collectively contribute to improved search engine rankings and user engagement.
Off-page SEO optimizes signals outside your website, such as building backlinks and establishing a social media presence. On the other hand, on-page SEO involves optimizing elements directly on your web pages, like content, meta tags, and internal links.
On-page SEO is more than just a one-and-done task. Regular monitoring and updates are essential, with a suggested frequency of at least once a month for routine checks. Conduct more in-depth assessments quarterly to ensure your content stays relevant and aligned with evolving search engine algorithms.
On-page SEO is integral to overall website performance. It directly impacts search engine rankings, user experience, and content discoverability. Neglecting on-page SEO can hinder your site’s visibility and user engagement.
On-page SEO optimizes individual web pages to boost search engine rankings and user experience. Technical SEO is a portion of on-page SEO that optimizes the technical aspects of your entire website, ensuring it’s crawlable and indexable and performs well from a technical standpoint.
Several tools aid in on-page SEO efforts. Tools like Semrush, Moz, and Ahrefs offer features for keyword research, content optimization, and performance tracking. Utilizing these tools can streamline the on-page optimization process and provide valuable insights for improvement.
Conclusion
We hope that this on-page SEO checklist will be a helpful resource for you as you optimize your web pages. Every SEO step and effort listed in this on-page SEO work list is directed toward success. As you optimize on-page elements, work on technical aspects, too, to yield the best results.
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