Essential Components of on-page SEO

One of our newer optimizers recently asked me if there were certain steps that were critical to on-page optimization. I felt it was a good idea to have a checklist that lists the critical elements that we optimizers should keep in mind while working on a site.

Title — Each page on the site should have a unique Title containing the target keywords The keyword/s should figure prominently in the Title and should be under 60 characters.

Description  — Create a customized description to provide a a reason for people to click your listing when displayed in the search results. The description may or my not contain keywods but must have a call to action that is attractive to the viewer.

H1- Header — Each page should have an <h1> header that contains the targetted keywords , if possible use variation such as the singular or plural version of the keyword that has been used in the Title.

Keywords — Ensure your keyword/s occur at least 3-4 time within the content on teh page, highlight keywords by bolding of italicizing or underlining them.

Anchor text — Link to your other pages by placing your best keywords within your links. Limit the number of links on a page to less than 10. If you link to an extrenal site , make sure it opens ina  new window.

Page URLs – Format your URLs consistently to avoid confusing the search engine spiders and lowering  PageRank.