Sometimes a phrase “perfectly optimized” starts sounding like a myth. Google’s algorithms keep changing, never letting SEO specialist spend much time without work. So what strategy will help to set up pages effectively in the nearest future? The secret lies in consistency. There’s no magic secret to SEO optimization to help you rank pages higher in search results. It is a time-consuming and fundamental process. There are numerous factors you need to consider.
Target words
Include target words in headlines, meta titles, and meta descriptions on website pages. Unlike keywords, these don’t have to be direct matches. Strategic placement matters more than a number of unchanged Google queries found in a text. Show the searchers that your page is relevant to their requests. It’s important to make headlines attractive and encourage people for more clicks. The meta description should be unique and relevant, just like the rest of the content.
Modifiers in a title
Modifiers are the words used to adjust a title to a specific context, make it look more relevant for a user. The most common examples are “best,” “review,” “top-10,” “2019,” etc. These words signal that information inside is up-to-date and useful for them. It’s better to meet the expectations and provide good content (you’ll find more about this below).
Short descriptive URLs
Web addresses should be user-friendly, with readable words that are divided by dashes. If a person can decipher URLs displayed in an address row, they will understand that this page is relevant to their request. People are more likely to click on such links because they include target keywords and seem relevant. It’s better to keep URL short — because their length affects rankings. Also, avoid special characters or symbols in the link structure — here is the great example fo the right link.
Simple, readable, and engaging content
For blog articles, better use short sentences and simple words, to keep things informal. Optimal article length is 1,300 words and more. The content should be free of mistakes (grammar, spelling, lexical, and so on), not stuffed with keywords, and cover a subject mentioned in the headline. Users don’t waste time for poorly written materials. If you plan to get your article featured at the top, research the materials hold the first positions among search results currently, and write a better, longer post.
H2/H3 headings help to structure information by logically dividing an article into thematic parts. It becomes more visually appealing for readers, who can see immediately what aspects of the subject are covered. Crawlers appreciate well-structured materials, too. Headings and subheadings are also used to highlight the most important points.
Optimization for search intent
Google is smart enough to notice synonyms and stem words. It means you don’t need to insert keywords wherever possible and pay attention to lexical diversity and cohesion instead. The search system will guess what a page is about based on co-occurrence of words. The only thing to remember about keyword density is that there is no magic formula to calculate it. Insert keywords in the first 100 words and don’t turn the rest of the text into spam. Also, focus on a subject in general, not its specific attitude, to increased topical relevance.
Multimedia content
Images, galleries, videos, diagrams, infographics, and all the rest of types of multimedia content you can remember, make a page engaging. A person is more likely to read the information presented in the form of infographics than articles. Multimedia make your content more valuable and reduce bounce rate.
There is one nuance concerning media files you should remember. Search systems don’t distinguish the meaning of images or videos until you explain them with words. Both file name and alt tag should describe your image accurately. This is how media files later appear in search results among Google images.
Internal links
Interlinking optimizes website structure and improves navigation. It establishes logical connections between different materials increasing page rank index. Internal links also help to keep readers longer on your site as they turn a session into a journey through numerous pages. All these links should be relevant and necessary.
External links
Links that lead to other trustworthy websites increase the credibility of your resource. If you aren’t certain about the reputation of a website that contains relevant information and can be interesting for your readers, use “nofollow” links.
Schema markup
This feature, also known as “structured data,” helps both users and search engines to understand better what your page is about and to increase CTR. Pages with schema markup stand out on the list of search results: they are displayed with stars, images, and reviews. Website owners can mark up specific details that matter to their website type.
Fast page loading
Web users don’t like to wait a lot until page loads. The majority of them will probably leave if it takes more than 3 seconds. It means you need to aim for two seconds. For this, review page content: get rid of useless elements (for example, heavy flash animations), optimize HTML code, reduce the size of the images, etc. The mobile-first index has made high loading very significant, while slow loading leads to high bounce rates and overall negative user experience.
Responsive design
Speaking about the mobile-first approach, a share of mobile traffic keeps increasing globally. It means that pages should be optimized for different devices and screen sizes. If a person doesn’t like how your website looks on mobile, they aren’t going to check a desktop version and vice versa. Responsive design is key to creating materials that look good regardless of a device used for viewing.
According to a recent BrightEdge study, the presence of social media buttons can increase sharing by 700%. It helps to spread your content, reach wider audiences, and increases website ranking. It will be enough to add the most popular social networks – Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, and LinkedIn (or whatever is more popular in your region).
A perfectly optimized page: the bottom line
On the one hand, page optimization allows website owners to reach high ranking positions and increase the number of readers. On the other hand, it helps to give people what they Google. It means that SEO specialists need to keep up with Google’s innovations and implement new strategies, for they benefit both sides. And what about a perfectly optimized page in 2019? Create a checklist with all the points mentioned above and start website revision. Don’t expect impressing results immediately. If you do everything right, you will notice positive dynamics shortly.
Bio
My name is Alexia Walker, I am a blogger and work as an editor. I have a Master’s Degree in literature and love both reading and writing about books and literary topics. I also help students with their literary assignments – articles, essays and summaries of books.