See our guide on the things you should be doing every post you make. Our guide to SEO best practices will let you rest assured you are getting the best out of your work.
1. Title Tags Best Practices For SEO
The title tag is one of the most important aspects of SEO. It tells the search engine what the page is and what it is about. It has to be unique for every page. When someone searches, search engines highlight the words on the results that relate to them. The aim is to increase visibility and click through rate. This means your title tag should;
- Be written like “primary key word-secondary keyword | brand name.”
- Unique Headings
- Be less than 55 words including spaces.
2. Header Tags and Keywords
A header tag or H1 is the subject line of your page. It should only contain one keyword and be used once throughout the page. If you have multiple headings, use a H2 tag. This means your header tag should;
- Be used only once per page.
- Used on pages you want traffic to.
- Should be a H2 tag if you have a few headers.
3. Page Content Best Practices For SEO
This is the bones of your page, what makes it all up. It is important for your content to be unique to you and relevant to what you are targeting. You must avoid having duplicates of content. Multiple pages of the same content is a bad idea. If you fail to do this you could be penalised by Google. This means your content should be;
- Relevant to your chosen keyword.
- Keywords used naturally throughout the piece.
- Have internal links.
- Be unique not only to you, but to every other page on your website.
4. Internal Linking
Internal linking is key to let bots move through your website and strengthens the keywords on your pages. It is when you link to another page on your website from a page on your website. It lets bots know that another page is relevant to your chosen keyword. This means that your content should;
- Link to a relevant page using relevant anchor text. For example, “see what SEO services we offer” rather than “click here to see more.” “
- SEO services” should be the anchor text.
5. Meta Descriptions
Meta descriptions don’t really have an effect on SEO rankings, however they are instrumental in telling people what your page is about and thus part of SEO best practices. Imagine it as a pitch to someone telling them what your page is about. The excerpt will appear on SERP’s. They should make use of keywords but mostly should entice people to click through to your site. Your meta descriptions should;
- Be compelling to readers
- Around 160 characters
- Be unique
6. Image Alt Tags
An alt tag is pretty much the name of the image. They should be appropriate for what the image represents. Alt tags are good for search engines and accessibility. A screen reader will read out the alt tag for anyone with a visual impairment.
Alt tags should make use of your keyword but once again, only if it suits. Don’t overdo it or shoehorn it in as you will over do it. The actual image title itself should also be SEO friendly, image search can be an important factor. All of your images should;
- Named and described in a way that is actually relevant to the image
- Use dashes instead of underscores
- Only use numbers and letters, no symbols
7. Write For Humans
Not the most major of concerns, but SEO best practices all the same. Break up your text so it is easy to scan and grab bits you want. Use headings, bullet points, bold letters etc. Make it easy to read on a screen. Makes it easier for humans and bots. A never ending lump of text is no one’s pal. Your text should;
- Be divided up into paragraphs made up of sentences with sentences being about 20 words in length
- Bullet pointed to break up long bits of text
- Bolding and bullets point not overdone
Conclusion For SEO Best Practices
Reap the benefits for your small business with SEO. Following these simple points will become natural to how you write after a while. It will be second nature to break up text, use appropriate headings etc. Following these best practices will only make your job easier and faster but also help boost you to the top of the SERP’s. If you want to an agency offering SEO in Ireland, get in touch with us.