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SEO Glossary /

On-page SEO

What is On-Page SEO?

On-page SEO refers to the practice of optimizing pages on your website to improve their ranking in search engines.

In simple terms, on-page SEO is a set of actions you can take on the page of your website to “persuade” search engines that the page is the best match to a search query.

Note that on-page SEO refers to actions taken on the website, while off-page SEO refers to actions taken outside of the website.

Common on-page actions include optimization of the title tag, meta description, subheaders, and images. Off-page actions primarily include link building and brand marketing.

Why is on-page SEO important?

The importance of on-page SEO is difficult to overstate. When done properly, on-page SEO will help Google understand what your content is about and connect the relevance of your content to various search queries.

Best of all, on-page SEO work is much easier than off-page SEO efforts like link building, starting with the fact that on-page SEO is 100% in your control. 

Your on-page SEO must be perfect if you want to attract quality organic search traffic. Here are five best practices to follow for on-page SEO.

On-Page SEO best practices

1. Match the search intent

It’s crucial to create content that will be relevant to the search query you’re targeting and meets the searchers’ intent. At Ahrefs, we’ve broken down the search intent into three “C’s”:

  • Content type. The type of search result (blog posts, product pages, category pages, landing pages, or videos).
  • Content format. Specifically referring to blog posts, the format can be how-to guides, listicles, opinion pieces, product reviews, and news articles.
  • Content angle. The primary hook or selling point for a piece of content. For example, instead of just using a primary keyword like “how to tie a bow tie” as your title, your content angle could be “How to Tie a Bow Tie in 5 Easy Steps (With Pictures).”

To choose these three ”C’s” for a new piece of content, you should look at the top-ranking results for your target search term and see what’s currently ranking (meaning it satisfies both Google and users).

2. Optimize the title tag

The page title is the first thing people see on SERP. The title communicates what your page is all about more than any other individual element. 

This includes search engines looking to understand the content of your page, so it’s important to use the main keyword in the title or a close variant. Try to keep the title tag under approximately 55-65 characters because Google will truncate longer titles in the SERP.

Note that your title and H1 tags can be slightly different. For example, you may choose to have a shorter title so that the whole thing can appear in the search results while opting for a more descriptive H1 title.

Example tetle and H1 from ahrefs SEO Toolbar

With title tags, your main goal is to communicate the page’s topic, both to users and search engines.

2. Use a short descriptive URL

Always use a short, descriptive URL for your page – and include your target keyword in this URL whenever possible.

While it’s true that having the keyword text in your URL slug is only a minor signal for search engines, it’s still an opportunity. Aside from the direct SEO value, descriptive URLs also help people understand what the page is about when they see “naked” links to your content, which helps boost clicks.

3. Write exhaustive meta descriptions

Lately, you may have noticed that Google actually rewrites meta descriptions (63% of them, to be precise). So, if Google is just going to rewrite a high percentage of your meta descriptions, should you bother writing them at all?

Well, yes. Writing quality meta descriptions for SERP snippets is still incredibly important for a few key reasons:

  1. Meta descriptions are a key source for Google to learn what your page is about.
  2. Whenever your own hardcoded meta descriptions are displayed on the SERP (and not modified by Google), they can inform and interest users. Remember that quality snippets mean a higher CTR, which can boost your page ranking.

To write a compelling meta description, you should aim to hit roughly 120 characters, include your target keyword, and include some kind of USP to attract visitors.

4. Optimize images

Image optimization is one of the most overlooked aspects of on-page SEO. You’re needlessly missing out on potential image search traffic if you upload or drop images onto your website pages without ever considering their SEO value.

To fully optimize your images, here’s what you need to have:

  • A good image file name with your target keyword and dashes. (Example: best-true-crime-podcasts.jpg, not IMG_123456.jpg or Screenshot 2022-07-04.png.)
  • Descriptive alt text with relevant keywords. (This is easy to add with an SEO plugin like Yoast or Rank Math in WordPress.)
  • An optimal size.

With just a few optimized images per page, you can win a some additional organic traffic from image search alongside the main SERP.

5. Add internal and external links

Are you sometimes shy about linking out to other relevant, quality websites from your pages? While this is understandable, there’s absolutely no reason to worry. 

Google expects (and encourages) you to reference other sources in your content, so feel free to link out to other internal and external resources where it will provide value to your readers. 

Don’t overlook this step. With careful attention paid to outbound internal and external links, you can dramatically boost the SEO value of your target page and other pages on your website.