how to improve your on-page SEO

A guide for small business owners

Are you tired of your website ranking lower than your competitors?

the world of on-page SEO

While off-page SEO (like backlinks) is important, on-page optimisation is the foundation of your website's search engine ranking success.

Think of your website as a house. Off-page SEO is like your neighbours recommending your house, but on-page SEO is ensuring your house is clean, well-lit, and has a clear path to the front door.

Let's get started on improving your on-page SEO!

What is on-page seo

On-page SEO refers to the optimization techniques you apply directly to your website's content and HTML code. It's like sprucing up your storefront to attract more customers. By making your website more search engine-friendly, you increase its chances of appearing higher in search results.

Keyword Research

  • Understand Your Audience: Who are you trying to reach? What problems are they trying to solve? Sometimes it can help to produce

  • Decide on Your Keywords: You might like to look at how people are coming to your website and what they are searching for in your analytics. Once you have an idea of how people are coming to your website, you can use tools like Google Keyword Planner to find keywords that are popular and relevant to your business.

  • Target Long-Tail Keywords: Want to up your keyword game level? You can build keywords for more specific search terms that might have less competition. For example, instead of "shoes," target "women's running shoes size 8."

optimise your content

  • Create Quality Content: Your content should be informative, engaging, and valuable to your audience. Think about what they might be interested in check out. What is going to make them want to come to your website?

  • Weave your Keywords: Incorporate your target keywords naturally throughout your content. I mean even though we want the Google Gods to find your content we also want it to be beautifully written for human-type people too.

  • Meta Descriptions: Write meta descriptions that entice users to click on your search results.

  • Know How to Use Headings: Use H1, H2, and H3 tags to structure your content and make it easier to read. Keep your fonts consistent because it just looks better on the page.

Optimise Your URLs

  • Keep URLs Short and Descriptive: Use keywords in your URLs to help search engines understand your content.

  • Use Hyphens, Not Underscores: Search engines can interpret hyphens better than underscores.

Improve Your Website's Structure

  • Mobile-Friendliness: Ensure your website is optimised for mobile devices. Google prioritises mobile-friendly websites. If your website offers a responsive option for designing your mobile look make sure that links are easy to click, images are in the right place and the copy is easy to read and follow. A common problem here is your pop-up newsletter cannot be closed or your menu doesn’t work well on mobile.

  • Site Speed: A fast-loading website is crucial for user experience and SEO.

  • Internal Linking: Link to relevant pages within your website to improve navigation and help search engines understand your site's structure.

Local SEO for Small Businesses

If you're a local business, optimizing for local search is essential.

  • Google My Business: Claim and optimise your Google My Business listing.

  • Ask For Reviews: Encourage your customers to leave reviews for your products. Positive reviews can boost your search engine rankings and build trust with potential customers.

  • Local Deets: Ensure your business information (address, phone number, trading hours etc) is consistent across online directories.

Ecommerce-Specific On-Page SEO

For eCommerce businesses, product page optimization is crucial.

  • Product Titles: Include relevant keywords in your product titles. Include things like brand, product name and varients

  • Product Descriptions: Write detailed and informative product descriptions. Make the description your own by adding in your business twist.

  • Product Images: Use high-quality images and optimise them as described above. Reduce the DPI and ensure that they are sized to work across both desktop and mobile devices.

  • Product Categories and Tags: Use relevant categories and tags to help customers find your products. You’d be surprised how much this will bring in your website. Think about what people might be searching for and create categories on that basis.

Remember:

on-page SEO is an ongoing process

Continuously monitor your website's performance and make adjustments as needed. By following these tips, you can improve your website's visibility in search engine results and attract more organic traffic.

On-page SEO is just one piece of the puzzle. To achieve long-term success, you'll also need to focus on off-page SEO factors like link building and social media marketing. By implementing these on-page SEO best practices, you can improve your website's visibility and attract more organic traffic.

Do you need help improving your website about on-page SEO? Book a Strategy Consult to learn more.