On-page SEO Factors 2018
The on-page SEO factors did not change a lot in the last few years. Perhaps, one of the fundamental changes was a further decrease in keyword density. This article covers what we believe are the most crucial on-page SEO factors for 2018 and beyond.
- Keyword Density.
It is best to start by including your chosen keywords in the website content. Try to aim for a keyword density of around 1%. In the past, the keyword density used to be up to 4%, but with recent changes, make sure you check your old content and reduce the keyword density. - Minimum word count.
The content needs to be substantial, with at least 300 words as a bare minimum. - Page title.
It is necessary to include your keyword in the page title, preferably at the start. It will help with click troughs as website visitors can quickly see the page they are looking for. - Keyword placement.
Add your keyword in the first sentence of the page. Besides the 1% keyword density, use synonyms and other words related to your main keyword. The content does not have to be of high quality, but we advise ensuring it is readable and shareable, as it will have a higher conversion. - URL Name.
Include your keyword or at least part of the keyword in the URL. Though, make sure you don’t overdo it, especially if your domain name already has the keyword in it, as this might get you close to over optimisation or become unreadable. - Meta Description.
Crease a custom meta description, ensuring a keyword is also included. A meta description is a great tool showing your visitors why they would want to click on your website. Adding your business unique selling point (USP) helps people see why your business might be better than others on page one. - Subheadings.
Making good use of h2 and h3 subheadings and adding the keyword and variations of it will make your content more readable. Use at least two h2 headings. - Image Alt Text.
Add the keyword in alt text to keep images readable. - One Keyword One Page.
Use one keyword per page. This will avoid merging the pages together and ensure that your website has unique content, and also, each page has a unique keyword. - Internal Links.
Add your keyword to internal links as part of the anchor text, like what Wikipedia does. - External Links.
Make sure your website has relevant outbound links to sites with authority on the subject.