Week 14: SEO On Page

I have been learning about how there are two halves to SEO, but what is SEO? SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. This means that when someone searches in a search engine, there are many factors the search engines use to decide which websites show up. Learning how to optimize these factors helps your website rank higher than others depending on the search. These factors are usually split into two groups: on-page and off-page SEO. In this post, I’m going to talk about on-page SEO.

There are a couple of important sections in on-page SEO. This is just Adam’s doctrine, but from what I have learned, there are two main parts to on-page SEO: user experience and keywords. Let’s start with the keyword section.

When optimizing a website, you create a list of keywords or phrases that are commonly searched. Once you have this list, you need to place these keywords strategically on your website so that when Google’s bots scan or index your site, they understand what your site is about and when to show it. The main areas for strategically placing keywords include:

  • Title Tags: This is the title Google sees for a page on your website. You want to include your main keyword here. It is often included in the URL of the website as well.
  • Meta Descriptions: This is a brief description of what your page is about. While meta descriptions might not directly affect rankings, they can encourage more people to click on your website. More clicks can lead to higher rankings.
  • Headers: Headers (H1, H2, H3, etc.) help organize your content for both readers and search engines. This is also a good place to include important keywords so search engines know when to show your website based on a search query.
  • Image Optimization: When you upload photos to your site, search engines look at the file names of the images. Including keywords in the file names helps with rankings. Additionally, relevant images help search engines better understand what your website is about.

Now for the user experience section. The more traffic your site gets and the longer people stay on it, the higher your rankings will be. That’s why it’s important to have a clean, neat, and engaging website with high-quality content to keep people interested. Your website should look professional to avoid appearing unsafe or untrustworthy. It’s also crucial for your site to load quickly. If it takes too long, search engines may not show it in the results because they prioritize delivering instant satisfaction to their users.

Works Cited