Search Engine Optimisation Checklist for when you edit or create a Web Page or Post

This checklist was put together by Find Net Solutions Gold Coast Website Design team, for people like you to have a simple guide to follow for better SEO, Search Engine Optimisation when editing a web page or creating a Post.

This simple SEO Checklist covers the essential elements for optimising a web page for better
Google Search results including Google AI Overviews.

By following these best practices, you can improve your website’s Google Ranking, Visibility, UX, User Experience and overall SEO, Search Engine Optination performance.

1. Title Tag

   ● Best Practice: Create a unique, descriptive title for each page, including your primary keyword.
   ● Explanation: The title tag is one of the most important on-page SEO factors. It should accurately describe the content of the page and entice users to click.

2.  Meta Description

   ● Best Practice: Write a compelling meta description that includes your primary keyword and a call to action.
   ● Explanation: The meta description doesn’t directly affect rankings but can influence click-through rates from search results.

3. H1 Heading Tag

   ● Best Practice: Use a single H1 tag on each page that includes the main keyword.
   ● Explanation: The H1 tag represents the main heading of the page and should clearly convey the topic.

4. H2 and Subheading Tags (H3, H4, etc.)

   ● Best Practice: Use H2 tags for main sections and H3, H4 tags for subsections. Include relevant keywords naturally.
   ● Explanation: Subheadings help organize content, making it easier for users and search engines to understand the structure and relevance.

5. Focus Keywords

   ● Best Practice: Identify and use a primary keyword and related keywords naturally throughout the content.
   ● Explanation: Keywords signal to search engines what your content is about and help match your page with relevant search queries.

6. URL Structure

   ● Best Practice: Create short, descriptive URLs that include the primary keyword.
   ● Explanation: Clean URLs are easier to read and remember, both for users and search engines.

7. Content Quality

   ● Best Practice: Write high-quality, original content that provides value to readers.
   ● Explanation: Engaging, informative content is more likely to be shared and linked to, improving your site’s authority and ranking.

8. Content Readability

   ● Best Practice: Ensure your content is easy to read, with short paragraphs, bullet points, and clear language as if you are writing it for an 11 to 14 year old kid.
   ● Explanation: Readable content improves user experience, reduces bounce rates, and increases the likelihood of engagement and sharing, all of which can positively impact SEO.

9. Optimise for Google’s AI Overviews (formerly Search Generative Experience (SGE).

   ● Best Practice: Websites should provide clear, concise summaries of the page content at the top of the page.
   ● Explanation: AI-generated text snippets at the top of the results page. These snippets include links to websites that corroborate the information provided.

   AI Overviews are primarily shown for informational queries, especially those starting with “what,” “how,” “when,” and “why.” Examples include health-related queries and product information.

10. Internal Linking

    ● Best Practice: Link to other relevant pages on your site using descriptive anchor text.
    ● Explanation: Internal links help search engines understand the structure of your site and can boost the ranking of linked pages.

11. External Links

    ● Best Practice: Link to reputable external sources where appropriate.
    ● Explanation: Citing credible sources can enhance the trustworthiness of your content and provide additional value to readers.

12. Image Optimisation

    ● Best Practice: Use descriptive File Names, Title and ‘Alt Text’ for images, and Compress image sizes to reduce page load time.
    ● Explanation: Optimised images improve page load speed and accessibility, both of which are important for SEO.

13. Mobile Friendliness

    ● Best Practice: Ensure your site is responsive and provides a good user experience on all devices.
    ● Explanation: Mobile-friendliness is a significant ranking factor, as more users access the web from mobile devices.

14. Page Load Speed

    ● Best Practice: Optimise your site’s performance by minimising code, leveraging browser caching, and using a LiteSpeed Server or a Content Delivery Network (CDN), as Find Net Solution Hosted Websites do.
    ● Explanation: Faster load times improve user experience and can positively impact your search engine rankings.

15. Schema Markup

    ● Best Practice: Implement Schema Markup to help search engines understand your content and enhance your listings with rich snippets.
    ● Explanation: Structured data can improve visibility and click-through rates by providing additional information in search results.

    NOTE: Schema Markup will automatically be taken care of, if you have a Smart SEO Website by Find Net Solutions and you use SEO Focus Keyword and Meta Description in the SEO Fields when editing the Page or Post.

16. Tags in Posts (Blog Articles)

    ● Best Practice: Use a maximum of 10 Tags, these are Keywords or Key Phrases that are in the Post. Refrain from using the Business Name unless it is the Keyword.
    ● Explanation: Using relevant tags can improve your blog’s SEO by making it easier for search engines to understand the topics of your posts.

If you have any questions or need a hand please reach out to the team at Find Net Solutions, Gold Coast Website Design – effective website solutions since 2000.