Adapting your website to search engines and its optimization is essential for today’s online environment, as nearly 70% of online experiences begin with search engine queries. How to Create an SEO-Friendly Website: 14 Tips
As a result, having your web pages appear in the top search results gives you many benefits, from increasing organic traffic to increasing your website and its reputation.
In this article we covered the importance of implementing SEO on your website and strategy, we looked at ten ways to make your website perform well with Google search engines.
1. Use Keywords Throughout Your Content
Keywords are the words and phrases that search engines use to determine what your content is about and if it’s relevant to what someone is searching for. To optimize your website for search engines, use important keywords throughout your content. Focus on your target keywords, but don’t overdo it. Aim for a keyword density of around 3-5% of your total word count. So for every 100 words, include your target keyword 3 to 5 times. Spread them out – in your page titles, headers, page content, image alt text, and meta descriptions. Use related terms and synonyms as well. For example, if your keyword is “web design”, also include “website design”, “site design”, “web development”, etc. This helps search engines fully understand what your content is about.
2. Use Header Tags
To rank well in search engines, using header tags effectively is key. ### Header tag Header tags like an tell search engines the topic and subtopics of your content Use your main keyword in the tag, then use related terms and synonyms in
Header tags also make your content easy to navigate for users. Each header should have two blank lines before and one blank line after, so:
- How to Create an SEO-Friendly Website
- Use Header Tags
- Within sections, use
- tags for subheadings. Leave one blank line before and after these too.
- Main Keywords in H1
Your main keyword relates to the overall topic, so put it in the tag. Then, use related keywords, synonyms and phrases in and tags. This helps search engines determine what each section is about. Related Keywords in H2 and H3 Using header tags well is a simple step that can really boost your rankings. Take the time to craft thoughtful headers with optimized keywords, and your site will be on its way to the tap of the SERPs!
3. Have a Clean URL Structure
To optimize your website for search engines, pay close attention to your URL structure. Clean, organized URLs—the website addresses that contain your page names—help search engines understand your site content and rankings. Keep URLs short and simple Aim for URLs that are 3 to 5 words, around 3 to 30 characters long. Shorter is better, as long as it’s still understandable. For example, “example.com/blog/seo-tips” is better than “example.com/lengthy-blog-post-on-search-engine-optimization-advice”.
Use keywords
Include important keywords for each page in the URL. For an SEO tips page, including “seo-tips” in the URL helps. But don’t overstuff the URL with keywords, as this looks unnatural. One or two keywords per URL is good.
Use hypens instead of underscores
Hyphens (-) create cleaner looking URLs than underscores (_). For example, “example.com/seo-tips” looks better than “example.com/seo_tips”.
Avoid stops words
Remove small words like “a”, “the”, “is”, “are”. For example, use “example.com/seo- strategies” rather than “example.com/the-seo-strategies”.
Make URLs static
Avoid URL parameters that change, like “?id=1”. Only use these for pagination, filtering or sorting—not for page names. Static URLs without parameters are best for SEQ.
Update old URLs
If you change a page name or URL, set up a 301 redirect to funnel traffic and search rankings to the new URL. This helps search engines update their records and ensures no drop in rankings. Following these best practices for your website’s URLs will make it easy for searc engines to crawl and rank your pages. Clean URL structure, along with great content and page optimization, creates a winning combination for SEO success.
4. Include Keyword-Rich Anchor Text in Your Links
Anchor text refers to the clickable words in a link. For SEQ, it’s important to include keyword-rich anchor text in your links. This helps search engines understand what the page you’re linking to is about. For example, instead of linking to your “Services” page like this:
Click here to see our services.
Use anchor text like this:
Click our services to see the services we offer.
Include Keywords in Internal Links
Internal links connect pages within your own website. When linking internally, use
keywords relevant to the page you’re linking to. For example:
« On your “Pricing” page, link to your “Services” page using anchor text like “our
services.”
= On your “Contact” page, link to your location pages with city names, e.g. “San
Francisco,” “Los Angeles,” etc.
Vary Your Anchor Text
For the best SEQ, use a variety of keyword-rich anchor text in your internal links. Don’t just repeat the same anchor text or exact page title in every link. Sprinkle in related terms, synonyms, and longer keyword phrases. For example, on your “Services” page, you might link to subpages like:
» “Our Web Design Packages”
« “Custom Website Development”
« “SEO and Online Marketing Solutions”
Link Early and Ofte
Include internal links early and often in your content, not just at the end of sections. Linking regularly keeps people clicking through your site, and signals to search engine that these pages are connected and important. For users, frequent linking provides more opportunities to continue exploring your content. Following these tips will help search engines discover and rank the pages on your website, improving your traffic and rankings over time through quality internal linking. Keep your anchor text keyword-rich and varied for the best results.
6. Optimize Images
Optimizing your images is an important part of on-page SEO for your website. Images need alt text, filenames, and compression to rank well in Google image search and support your page’s overall SEO.
Alt Text
The alt text attribute gives a brief description of your image. Screen readers use alt text to describe images for visually impaired users. Google also considers alt text when determining image search rankings. Keep alt text short and sweet, around 5-15 words. Use your target keyword in the alt text if it’s relevant.
File Names
Image file names should also include your target keyword. For example, use “seo-tips.jpg” rather than “IMG123.jpg”. Descriptive file names help Google understand what your image
is about.
Compression
Compress your images to reduce their file size before uploading them to your site. Large image files negatively impact your page load speed which hurts your SEO and user experience. Use a tool like TinyPNG or Kraken.io to compress images.
Additional Tips
+ Use oriainal images whenever possible. Stock photos mav have duplicate content
penalties.
» Keep images high quality. Blurry or pixelated images reflect poorly on your site’s
professionalism.
+ Use image galleries or sliders sparingly. They can slow down your site if not properly
optimized.
+ Ensure a good balance of images and text on each page. Images support your content
but should not be the primary focus.
» Optimize one image per page for your target keyword to avoid keyword cannibalization. The alt text, file name, and any captions should include your target keyword.
Following these best practices for optimizing your images will improve your on-page SEQ and boost your rankings in Google image search. Well-optimized images also enhance your visitors’ user experience by balancing visual media with engaging content. Make your website search-focused · 1. Choose the right keyword · 2. Make your content interesting and useful ·