Hey everyone! Welcome back. If you’re here after part 1, you must be excited to learn more about digital marketing. In the previous blog, we explored what digital marketing is and the different channels it uses, like SEO, PPC, and social media marketing. Today, we’ll zoom in on SEO, specifically on-page SEO, which is like the foundation of your website’s search engine presence.

So, what exactly is On-page SEO?

We can describe On-page SEO as the page elements that give green light to search engines to crawl and index a page. Now you must be confused what is crawling and what is indexing, we will discuss thai but first understand on page SEO.

Imagine you’re building a house. On-page SEO is like all the work you do inside the house to make it attractive and functional. Basically it’s like the internal decor of your SEO home. You want search engines to easily understand what your website is about and why it’s valuable to visitors. Starting On page SEO is starting working on your website you want to rank in the first page of search engines. You have to start from the starting line; there are no shortcuts. There is always a map. 

Now to understand how we can do On Page SEO we must know how search engines work.

Search engines have employees assigned to themselves, they call them crawlers or spiders. Crawlers are special programmas, I write employees so you can understand. When you upload something on search engines, these crawlers come and check what it is. Like commandos they check each and everything specially content, that’s why everyone keeps saying content is King. After crawlers do their job and they find valuable content that can be useful for users within your site they give permission to your site to get space on search engines. This space they give is called indexing. They index you on search engines. 

Now you must be confused how you can submit a website to search engines. 

Submitting your website to search engines like Google isn’t usually necessary. Search engines find new websites automatically. Focus on creating great content and optimizing your site with on-page SEO for better ranking.

When we talk about indexing websites on search engines there comes a word sitemap. You generally don’t need to submit your website to search engines, but there are a few situations where submitting a sitemap can be beneficial:

Imagine your website is a house, and search engines are visitors trying to find specific rooms (pages) inside. A sitemap is like a blueprint of your house, listing all the rooms (pages) and how they connect. Basically sitemaps are files listing all the important pages on your website, kind of like a map for search engines. While you don’t need to submit your website, sitemaps can help search engines find all your content, especially for large websites.

When to Submit a Sitemap:

• Brand New Website: If your website is fresh on the web, submitting a sitemap can give search engines a heads-up and potentially expedite the process of discovering and indexing your content.
• Large and Complex Websites: Websites with a vast amount of content or intricate structures can benefit from submitting a sitemap. It ensures all the important pages get properly indexed, especially those that might be hidden deeper within the website.

Why Submit a Sitemap:

• Improved Indexing: A sitemap acts like a roadmap for search engines, guiding them to all the important pages on your website. This can help search engines discover and index your content more efficiently.
• Better Understanding of Your Website: Sitemaps not only show what pages exist but also how they connect to each other. This can give search engines a clearer picture of your website’s structure and organization.

Now I think we understand the basics of getting your website to search engines. But there are millions of users and businesses who are sharing the same idea as your business’s website, like if you are trying to optimize a clothing website, there are many old clothing website’s available and many new ones are coming. So how can you show your website is unique and premium and better? That’s the reason we do SEO. We want our website to be on top in our competition. 

Here’s how you can start with On Page SEO :

Content is Queen: 

Every website needs content, have you ever seen any website without content? No, right?  Your website’s content is what search engines and visitors see. Content is where we share each and every detail about our website. If you have a service based website then we will write everything about your services on that website. Or if you have an ecommerce store, meaning shopping platforms then you will need to write about products, their specialities, and every information you want to share with your users. Make sure it’s informative, well-written, and relevant to what people are searching for. Think of yourself as a helpful guide, providing valuable information on your topic. And nowadays many content generation tools are available. They can provide you with decent content but they don’t have emotions so these tools will never be good as human writers. So prefer writing your content without using ai, of course you can use ai for research but for writing whole content it is bad. 

Remember the analogy of your website as a house? Well, the content is like the furniture and decorations – it’s what makes your website inviting and informative for visitors. Search engines also crave valuable content! Here’s how to create content that shines:

• Focus on User Needs: Become a trusted advisor by addressing the questions and problems your target audience is searching for. Don’t just promote yourself; provide solutions and helpful information.
• Target the Right Keywords: Research relevant keywords and search terms that people use to find information like yours. These are like labels on your furniture, helping users discover what you offer.
• Write Engagingly: Keep your content informative, easy to read, and well-structured. Break down complex topics into clear sections with headings and subheadings.
• Optimize, but Naturally: Sprinkle relevant keywords throughout your content, including titles, headings, and naturally within the text itself. Avoid keyword stuffing; prioritize a smooth reading flow.

The Power of Keyword: 

Keywords are the words and phrases people type into search engines. By strategically including relevant keywords throughout your content (titles, headings, and naturally within the text), you’re helping search engines connect your website to the right searches. But remember, don’t stuff keywords unnaturally – it should always read smoothly for humans too! Do not need to get confused, there are online tools that can help you find keywords. Google Trends, ahrefs, and many more, there are free tools and paid ones also. You go with what is convenient to you. But in starting choose free tools, once you understand the concept of keywords then go ahead and buy paid tools if you need.

Next Steps: On-Page Optimization Techniques

Now that you have fantastic content, let’s optimize other on-page elements to make your website even more search engine friendly:

Craft Clear Titles & Headings: 

These are like headlines for each page, grabbing attention and accurately reflecting your content. Keep them concise and keyword-rich.

What are Title Tags and Headings: 

Think of title tags as your website’s headlines. They should be clear, concise, and accurately reflect the content of each page. Headings within your content act like subheadings, breaking down your information into easy-to-read sections. Both titles and headings should include relevant keywords.

Image Power: 

High-quality visuals like infographics and photos can significantly enhance user engagement. Optimize them with descriptive file names and alt text for search engines and accessibility.

Images Speak Volumes: People love visuals! Use high-quality images that are relevant to your content and optimize them with descriptive file names and alt text (text that appears when an image can’t load). Alt-text is really really important, Search engines can’t directly understand the meaning of images. Alt text helps them understand the content of the image and improves your website’s ranking for relevant searches.

Mobile-First Friendliness: 

Do you know anyone who doesn’t have a phone , except your grandparents maybe? Everyone has a phone nowadays and they use it for almost everything. Everyone browses on their phones whether it’s for shopping or to find some query online. So making your website looks fantastic and functions smoothly on all devices is a necessity. More and more people are searching the web from their phones. Make sure your website is mobile-friendly, meaning it displays well and functions smoothly on all devices. It comes under designing work, but as a digital marketer it’s your job to stay updated on trends.  

Internal Linking: 

These are the links we do inside our content. Imagine internal links as hallways connecting rooms in your house. You can link relevant pages together to Help visitors find more interesting stuff on your site (like hallways leading to different rooms). And Show search engines how your website is organized (like a map of your house). Link relevant pages on your website to keep visitors engaged and help search engines understand your website’s structure.

Example:

• You have a page about “Types of Cats” and another page about “Siamese Cats.”
• You can link the “Types of Cats” page to the “Siamese Cats” page to show visitors more details about a specific cat breed.
• This also tells search engines that these two pages are related.

If you are reading this paragraph then congratulations, you are on the right path. It’s not a one day thing, digital marketing is very vast. So you can not just remember it and think that you know it. It takes time, just stay motivated and also there are an ocean of information. Remember, on-page SEO is an ongoing process. As you create new content and update your website, keep these tips in mind to ensure your website is well-optimized for search engines. In the next blog, we’ll explore the other side of the SEO coin – off-page SEO!