On Page Optimization Factors

If you want to win the SEO game then you need to optimize your content so that Google is in no doubt what it is about. The optimization of your website and the individual web pages is totally within your control and Google expects you to provide them with as much help as you can.

Optimize for Keywords

Content optimization start with keywords. You need to create your content around a main keyword that you want to rank on the first page of the Google search results for and some related or secondary keywords.

If you have not performed keyword research for your website or business then you need to do this right now. You can either do this yourself or pay a good freelancer to do it for you. Without this you are just guessing which may work but probably won’t.

The way that Google ranks webpages for keywords has changed over the years. Before you had to create a page for each keyword that you wanted to rank for. Now you can rank for keywords that are included in content related to the main keyword. This makes things a lot easier.

The Page Title

You must add your main keyword in your page title. Google will look for this specifically so be sure to add it. The page title is very important, as it appears in the Google search results in larger font and in the color blue.

Use your page title to entice Google users to click on it as well. Getting on to the first page of the Google search results is not an easy thing to do so choose your page titles wisely. Don’t just use the main keyword, add something to it that will interest the Google user.

The Meta Description

Every web page needs a description known as the meta description. This is what appears underneath the page title in the Google search results. You must include your main keyword in your description as well. Place it as close as you can to the beginning of the description.

Google users will read your description to see if it is worth visiting your webpage or not. They are looking for relevancy, and whether your page will provide them with the information that they are searching for. So make your descriptions as enticing as possible.

The Body Content

This is the text that you include on the webpage. Here you want to include your main keyword and all of your secondary keywords. Be careful not to add too many instances of your keywords or Google can penalize you for “keyword stuffing”.

Header Tags

All good content has sub headings to break it up. You need to do this as well and use the Header tags H2 and even H3. These are HTML tags that tell Google there is a sub heading. Add your keywords to these header tags.

If you are using a CMS platform like WordPress for your website it is very easy to add header tags. The title of your page will always be in the H1 tag so you don’t need to use that again. Use H2 for sub headings and H3 for sub-sub headings

Images and other Media

Always use relevant images in your content. Optimize these by using the “Alt Tag” and including your keywords. It is also good practice to save your image file using a keyword like dog-training.jpg for example.

You should use videos as much as you can as well. Be sure to optimize these with keywords too.

Page by page optimization

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