11 Ways to Improve Your Website’s On-Page SEO

These days, having a business website is as important as having an office. That’s because when most people want to buy something, they look online first…

So, does that mean all you need is a beautiful website?

Absolutely not!

There are millions of websites on the Internet and new ones are going live every day…

You need to do more to ensure that your potential customers can find your website.

This is basically what Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is — making it easier for customers to find you or your business on Google.

Here are some easy, actionable tips that you can do today to improve your website’s on-page SEO — which will in turn help improve your rankings on Google.

1. Conduct a Website Audit

If you are looking for the best way to increase your website’s ranking on Google, then it is imperative for you to remember that there is no silver bullet when it comes to SEO. This is because each website is unique, and there would be so many issues that could be hindering your website from going up the Google ranking. Therefore, your SEO strategy needs to be customized. As such, you need to start with performing an SEO website audit for you to identify the strengths and the weaknesses of your website so that you can start working on the weaknesses, and consequently avoid wasting time on non-issues.

2. Produce High-Quality Content

While the importance of publishing content on a regular basis cannot be downplayed, quality is more important than quantity. In this regard, you should remember that although you are counting on Google algorithms to push your ranking higher, your content is primarily for human consumption and not for machines. In other words, you need to ensure that your content is easy-to-read and relevant to the people that will be landing on your website. You also must ensure that it is informative. In other words, your website’s content should give your reader a reason to believe that you are good at what you do and that you have what it takes to solve the problem that they may be trying to fix.

3. Update Your Blog with Fresh Content

There are so many factors that influence your site’s ranking on the major search engines. However, the fact that search engines love fresh content is not a question. So many new bloggers create their first blog and neglect it. It’s kind of sad. 😦

By regularly updating your blog’s content, you’re showing Google that your website is a place that stays up to date with the topics discussed. So, after you produce high-quality content, continually refine your posts by adding new information or additional photos, etc.

4. Optimize for Mobile Devices

Did you know most websites receive more traffic from mobile devices than desktop computers? Yeah, it’s a fact. Unfortunately, most websites are designed and maintained using desktop computers which means a lot of people forget to optimize their websites for mobile phones and tablets.

Mobile usability is a ranking factor which means it’s not only important for user experience, but important for SEO, too. If you’re not using a responsive theme for your website, consider working with a web designer to modify your website’s CSS or switch to a different theme altogether. Your business can’t afford to miss out on mobile traffic.

5. Fix Duplicate Content Issues

Although adding fresh content to your website is important, you also need to ensure that the content is unique. This is because Google is known to prefer sites with unique content and may penalize websites with duplicate content (this is sometimes debated).

Having multiple versions of the same page is one of the most common causes of duplicate content. For instance, if you have both the non-SSL version of your site and SSL version that can be reached (ex. http://website.com and http://www.website.com), search engines might misinterpret this issue as two different web pages with identical content. If you don’t know how to fix it, you can ask your web developer to assist you.

6. Optimize for Speed

Anyone who has used the internet understands how frustrating it can be when pages take longer than usual to load. If your web pages are taking more than a few seconds to load, you can be sure that this is an issue that is going to ruin the credibility of your website, and it might have a negative impact on the website’s ranking on major search engines. For you to optimize your website for speed, you need to compress or optimize the image files. You also need to focus on caching and script handling. If this is too complicated for you, you may have to work with your web developer who can make optimizations or move your website to better web hosting.

7. Improve your Metadata

Metadata and meta tags make it easier for search engines to understand what your pages are about. Using plugins like YoastSEO or Rankmath can automatically add descriptions and enhanced tags to your website’s content.

8. Use Hyperlinks Wisely

Links are important when it comes to search engine optimization. They make it easier for crawlers to find your new web pages and index them. Outbound links to reputable websites can give your site credibility.

On the other hand, inbound links can drive people from other websites to your site. However, for you to get other websites linking back to your site, you need to create content that is worth linking to. You can also link your content to other pages within your website. In addition to improving your website’s SEO, internal linking within your website will make it easier for readers to navigate your website.

9. Make Use of Videos

These days, YouTube videos are a common feature of search engine results pages. This is because YouTube is the most popular video site with over 2 billion active visitors per month. Unfortunately, a lot of people overlook the importance of YouTube videos when it comes to search engine optimization. While this is understandable given that video marketing is not for every industry, creating videos is quite easy, and there is no reason why you shouldn’t try it.

Videos can be optimized for SEO, too, which means they can make an impact on your website’s ranking on Google.

For instance, using clear titles and descriptions will help Google decipher what they are about. You should also create a unique thumbnail to make it easier for people to determine if your video can provide answers to their questions before opening it, too.

10. Don’t Ignore Local Search

Over 40% of all Google searches are from users looking for local information. For instance, people look for local businesses, their addresses, their phone numbers, and their opening or closing hours. If your business is not entirely online, you cannot afford to ignore local searchers.

For you to improve your local SEO, you need to ensure that your local directory listings are accurate and updated. It is also important for you to create and optimize local landing pages. Local SEO will drive more relevant traffic to your business, and consequently, bring you more business.

11. Be Keen on Technical SEO

For all the above-discussed SEO tips to make sense, your website must be technically sound. For instance, for your website to rank favorably, it has to be loading on HTTPS. If your website is not properly secured, your ranking on Google might suffer. Another technical issue that you should be concerned about has to do with semantic mark-ups. Semantic markups are basically HTML tags, and they can help with making it easier for crawlers and even people to quickly decipher what a web page is all about. Last but not least, consider investing in crawling software like SEMRush so you can easily know when there is a technical problem.

The Bottom Line

Overall, it is apparent that once you’ve created a website for your business, you need to start working on ensuring that your website can easily be found through organic search. In other words, you have to ensure that your website is search engine optimized.

It is important for you to remember that there is no one particular way of taking your website to the top of the search engine result page. However, by understating how search engines work and working with a reliable professional web designer and SEO expert, it is possible for your website to stand out in the crowd and gradually improve Google ranking.