A primary keyword (or “target keyword”) is a keyword that best represents the topic of a page.
And every page on your site should target one primary keyword. (If you want it to rank on Google.)
Where you use your primary keyword also matters. It helps optimise the page.
So, if possible, add your target keyword to elements like:
- The title tag
- The main headers (especially the H1)
- The introduction
- The page’s URL
- Use short sentences
- Use easy to understand words
- Use approx. 600 words
- Mention the keyword in the H1 and in the first paragraph
- Highlight the important words in bold
- Use synonyms of the keyword
- Make sure the information has added value for the user
- Link to relevant pages or blogs on your website to create a 'content cluster'
For every page, you should fill in the meta title and description.
They signal to Google what your page is about. And they’re fundamental from an SEO perspective.
Title tags are critical to giving users a quick insight into the content of a result. And why it’s relevant to their query.
It’s often the primary piece of information searchers use to decide which result to click on. It is important to use compelling titles for your webpages.
Generally, it’s best to keep title tags between 50 to 60 characters. This way, words won’t get cut off on desktop or mobile SERPs.
Here are some other title tag best practices to keep in mind:
- Include your target keyword
- Match search intent
- Avoid duplicate title tags
- Keep them descriptive but concise
A meta description is a meta tag used to describe the content of a page. It is often displayed below the title and URL of your page in the SERP.
Meta descriptions should generally inform and interest users with a short, relevant summary of what the page is about.
They’re like a pitch that convinces a searcher that the page is exactly what they’re looking for. Google typically truncates meta descriptions on desktop at 155 to 160 characters.
Here are a few meta description best practices to follow:
- Write a unique meta description for every page
- Use action-oriented copy
- Include your primary keyword
- Match search intent
- Use CTA
Note: Meta descriptions are not a direct SEO ranking factor. But having well-written, optimised meta descriptions can benefit your SEO efforts in other ways.
• When saving the image file on your computer or in the drive, give it a name that contains the main keyword and brand name (rooftop-suite-hotel-de-blanke-top-cadzand.jpg for example). This tells Google more than for instance '58673.jpg'.
- Add suitable titles to your images, and use targeted keywords (this can be done via Media Library on your CMS - please see the image below)
• Use alt text to describe your images. Alt text (short for alternative text) is text included in HTML code to describe an image on a webpage. Keep it under 125 characters, include one main keyword for context, don’t include “image of” or “picture of”.
• Use high-resolution images, but be mindful of image size (Always make sure the images are min. 2000px on the longest side for the most optimal quality on your website, but max. 1mb size)