Top 11 do's and don'ts for on-page SEO

In a world of cut-throat competition, it is absolutely essential to create a high-quality performing strategy. SEO can be a good way to create business and revenue. 

For the unversed, SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. The term refers to the strategies used to help websites rank better on search engine results pages (SERPs), thus making them easier to find through online searches. While SEO is part of internet marketing, it is relevant to every aspect of a website and affects the user experience (aka UX).

Unfortunately, SEO is ever-evolving. But there are few guidelines that will help every marketer to reap the benefits of an on-page SEO strategy.  

Here are the top 11 do’s and don’ts for a perfect on-page SEO strategy:

• Don’t stuff your keywords on one page: Make sure every webpage has relevant keywords. This will help prevent your own pages from competing against each other for rankings, and it will make it clear to search engines and visitors what each page is about.
• Do write relevant meta tags for the web pages: Do make your Metadata Description representative of the page content. It is also important to include keywords because they will appear bolded in related searches and grab the attention of potential visitors.
• Do have high DA websites linking to your website: Try to have high Domain Authority websites linking to you. But don’t link them back in exchange. Google does not like link exchange. The higher ranking website links to you, the better your chance of ranking in Google’s search engine ranking pages.
• Do use long-tail keywords: Keywords are essential to good SEO. When you include specific keywords in your web content, you aim to get your content ranking for those keywords. Try to target long-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords contain more words, which gives them more specificity. 
• Do create the best user experience: To increase your rankings, try to optimize the user experience for each page. One of the best ways to accomplish this is to break up content. Use bulleted and numbered lists, as well as small paragraphs. Make use of plenty of headings and subheadings to divide things into sections. You can further improve the user experience by including images in between paragraphs and leaving plenty of white space around your text.
• Do track the website’s metrics: None of the other do’s and don’ts for SEO will be much use if you don’t verify that they’re working for you. Once you have everything else in place, keep up with site metrics that can help show you where to improve. The easiest way to monitor your website’s metrics is via Google Analytics.
• Do have a social media presence for your business: It’s important to keep profiles updated, have interactions with other users, and periodically post new content. Social media is a powerful business tool when used wisely.
• Don’t panic if your Google rankings drop suddenly: Google’s algorithm is dynamic and keeps on changing every few weeks. So your website’s rankings can go up or down in a matter of few weeks. But don’t panic. You just need to understand the new changes in the Google algorithm and change your strategy accordingly. 
• Don’t ignore negative reviews: Negative reviews give you a chance to improve. So never ignore negative reviews. Even if they seem old or untrue to you, it's important to respond to every comment, whether it's negative or positive. Searchers don’t know the context, but they will see how you handle both satisfied and unsatisfied customers.
• Don’t allow for slow page speed: Did you know that 83% of users expect website pages to load in three seconds or less? If any of your content pages take a long time to load, your visitors will quickly hit the back button. To rank higher, you need to make sure that none of your pages takes longer than three seconds to load — ideally, only one or two.
• Do optimise images for SEO with alt text: With all forms of media on your website, remember to add alt text to them, so they become visible to search engines. It doesn’t have to be a long description. The purpose of alt text is for easy accessibility so that visually impaired users can navigate within the website.

Take these pointers and ensure you fulfil them every time you do on-page SEO. We're confident that your SEO will begin to improve. But remember, SEO takes time, so be patient. With diligence and focus, your website will bring in high-quality traffic and potential leads.