On Page Optimization- A Complete Guide

In the modern world competition is very high and so getting a high rank is very difficult. Since search engines are becoming smarter every day and having a good content is not the only factor which affects ranking. One such technique which helps to improve the ranking of your website in comparison to your top competitor’s websites is on-page optimization.

What is on-page optimization? Why is it important?

On-page optimization is the technique which helps in improving the ranking of your website in the organic search result. Examples are html codes, keyword density.

On-page optimization should be known to the webmasters as they help in not only improving ranking but also the visibility of the website.

On-page optimization can be done on the head as well as the body section. The different types are as follows:

Head section

The head section of the webpage includes details which are not directly viewed on the webpage such as title tag.

The different types are:

a) Title Optimization

b)  Meta Tag Optimization

The URL will be checked first. Its character limit is 90. Urls should be written in a way as to convey some relevant meaning to the Google-bots.

a) Title optimization

A title is the most important optimization element because it marks the identity of that page or website. A title tag should be short but descriptive enough so that the users can identify the purpose. A title tag is the first thing the search engine shows and index. So it must be designed  to attract the user's interest which in turn improves ranking.

Important points to be noted are as follows:

• Create a meaningful descriptive title using the targeted keyword.
• If contrast headings are used Google bots will be confused so use relevant titles.
• The total character limit in the snippet is 55 -60. (Snippet: The URL, description, title of the page in the search console.)
• The limitation of the search box is 70 characters and its pixel width is less than 512.
• Titles cannot be given completely in caps lock as it may exceed the limit.
• They should not be completely in small letters as it reduces the impression which in turn reduces the CTR rate. CTR (Click through rate) rate can be defined as the percentage of clicks in the website based on impression.
•  If there is no title then Google checks for H1 tag and displays it as title. If there is no H1 tag it checks for H2 and so on. If no tags are found it   selects a title from the links in the webpages.
• No spelling or grammatical mistakes are allowed.
• The symbols must be written as html codes because sometimes the bots may become blocked after it encounters a symbol.
• The SEO title should be unique and must not be similar to other keywords in the webpages. If two pages have the same keyword then it becomes Title duplication.
• Keyword Cannibalization refers to the situation when different pages on the same website fight for the same keyword. This must be avoided. Title should have more than three words.
• Shorter title provides lower clarity. 

b) Meta Tag Optimization

Meta description is the part below the title and the URL shown in the search console. Meta tag should be written well as they are considered as a selling snippet because if a searcher finds it attractive the chances of clicks will be high.

 Some of the important to be noted are:

• Provide relevant Meta descriptions because Google may not print it as such if it is not relevant.
• If no Meta tag is provided Google selects the most relevant sentence from the description as the Meta content which is usually the first sentence.
• Open directory project contains lakhs of business directories which is maintained by a community of volunteer editors. Google considers this as a powerful website and uses it for its recommendation.
•  A worst case scenario is when Google finds no relevant information  and it takes some dumb information as its meta content known as  dumbing of irrelevant words by GOOGLE.
• By using rich snippets the Meta rate can be improved which in turn improve CTR rate. Rich snippet (bread crumbs) is used to increase the attractiveness of website.
• Event Data snippet: are used to show the date and events.
• Side links: When the brand name is searched in the search panel then its subpages will also be displayed.
• Character limitation of Meta description is 155-160 characters in a   page and 154-155 in a blog post because the date of the blog post will be displayed and hence those characters must be eliminated from it.
• The pixel width of Meta description is 1024 pixel width.
• Meta description has to be unique. No two websites or pages in a website can use same Meta tag.
• The Meta description cannot be too short i.e. greater than 140 words.
• No grammatical mistakes are allowed.

Body section:

An HTML body tag marks a portion of the body. The different types of optimization are:

a) Optimization for important HTML Tags

b)  Link Optimization

c) Keyword Optimization

d) Image Optimization

e) Authorship Optimization

a) Optimization for important HTML Tags

While writing a content it is very important to highlight different sections according to its importance. This helps in attracting viewers and catch their interest. The most commonly used HTML Tags are H1, H2 and H3.

Some of the important points are as follows:

• H1 is most important because it attracts the user, acts as an identification mark and must not be too lengthy.
• H1 can be used in a page with approximately three words. Usually given to title.
• Sandbox: It is a temporary saving database which is used to save confusing webpages and the ranking will occur in some rank and this rank cannot be changed, even after the website has been optimized.
• H2 should not be used more than once.
• Contrasting H2 may lead to confusion but this does not happen always.
• Secondary keywords can be highlighted with H2 and H3. The content should also be relevant and it may help ranking.

b) Link Optimization

Internal and external optimization must be done in the website to provide a better navigation to both search engines and users. Anchor text (Clickable Link) are codes with hyperlink which connects an image or text to another website.

Some important points are as follows:

•  By using anchor text visibility of the page will also increase.
• Act as a fuel to Google bots.
• Anchor text should be relevant. The more relevant the keyword more ranking. Anchor text should not be given to focus keywords as the other websites rank will improve as Google takes those links as a recommendation and lists the page in ranking.
•  Sometimes equity can also be passed in NO FOLLOW links.
• Penguin does not like misusing of internal links.

c) Keyword Optimization

   The content of the website must be arranged in a manner as to suit both the viewers as well as the search engine. There must be a balance of the focused keywords so that it does not become keyword stuffing. Keyword stuffing affects readability of the content.

Some points to be noted are:

• Percentage of no of target keywords in the blog is known as Keyword density. Keyword Density must be moderate.
• A lot of myths were found in old school SEO like keyword density affects ranking and bold letters increases ranking. These are all wrong. Keyword density and bold letters does not affect ranking. Bold letters provide easiness in reading and act as an interesting fuel.
• Long tail Keyword are longer and more specific keywords. 
• If the focused keyword comes first then the users can have more clarity of the content.
• Ranking can be increased if focused keyword are given in grey color is a myth.
• Ranking can be increased if the targeted keyword is before dot ( . ) or comma ( , ) because the Googlebots while scanning stops at keyword or comma and the keyword will have more importance.
• To prevent over use of the focused keyword use synonyms.

d) Image Optimization

Image optimization is one of the simplest optimization technique. A Googlebot cannot interpret images like they interpret text. They interpret images with the help of  the following elements:

• Alt name (Alt text): Alternate text (ALT text) is used to describe images when mouse is moved over an image. They must be meaningful and short. Focused Keyword can be used which in turn improves ranking.
• File name: File names should be meaningful and can be similar to alt text. The Googlebot checks the alt name and file name for identification. In the absence of an ALT name, filename has secondary identity and the content is said to be related to its filename.
• The keywords present in the area of the image is also considered..

Some important points to be noted are:

• If the focused keyword is given as alt and a hyperlink is added to the image then equity can be passed to the website and the ranking of our website decreases.
• The hyper link given in our image has more power than that given in the text as viewers are more attracted towards images.
• If the ALT text and the images are unrelated then Google will decrease the ranking based on user interaction as no user is likely to download that image.
• If the user changes their previous names then redirection should be provided. Images should not be saved with space because redirection will not be possible.
• Infographics : It is the virtual representation using images. They help in improving the understandability and attractiveness of the written content.

e) Authorship optimization

In today's world everything can be found on the internet, so it is necessary to establish the ownership of your content. Google authorship enables you to do just that. This authorship can be established by linking your Google+ account with the content. This two way connection helps you to establish authorship or verify ownership.

Benefits of authorship optimization is as follows:

• Establish authorship of our content. It protects content against content plagiarism.
• It helps in improving editorial power or authorship power. this will help in improving the CTR rate and hence ranking increases.
• The search result with authorship have more chance of a being clicked.

Steps to establish authorship

Step 1: Create a Google+ account.

Step 2: Link the post to the account and then use rel ="author" to establish authorship.

Search Console: It is a no charge website for webmasters created by Google. It shows the indexing  status and optimize visibility of their website.

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Sruthy A S