Build a Better Website: 10 SEO Optimization Tips and Techniques

@VPDMDigital | vpdm.ca
How To Optimize
Your Website
10 SEO Optimization Tips
Produced by:

Your website is the hub of
your digital marketing efforts.

If your website is:
• easy to navigate
• loads quickly on both desktop and mobile
• is full of useful and relevant content
• is mobile adaptive
You’ll outrank your competition in the SERPs,
for your targeted search queries.

We’ve got ANSWERS. Let’s Get Started!
What are some of the best SEO optimization strategies
your business can implement in its web design?

Before we get into it, here is a message to all
web designers and/or small business owners,
referenced in this article from Search Engine Guide:
The most effective way to achieve high ranking is to build a site from
scratch with SEO in mind. This enables the designer to incorporate a
variety of techniques that will maximize the site’s impact.
“
”

• Strategically determine what words and phrases your potential customers
are using in relation to your industry or niche.
• This keyword research will help you build your content strategy,
navigation, sitemap, and provide other optimization opportunities.
1.Keyword Research

Pro Tip:Many of the long-tail phrases you find,
can become awesome blog titles or content topics.
Because of your research, you already know that users are
searching for those particular long-tail phrases.

2. Responsive/Adaptive Design
• “Mobile friendly” design is now a Google ranking factor.
• Always build your website with a “mobile first” design approach
and obviously, with SEO in mind.

Starting April 21, we will be expanding our use of
mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal.
This change will affect mobile searches worldwide
and have a significant impact in your search results.
says:
“
”

3. Descriptive Navigation
When prospects land on your website,
they want a smooth user experience.
They are visiting your page because they
need a solution to a problem.
So, make it easy for them to find what
they’re looking for on your website.
This approach improves page rank
and overall search engine rankings.

Pro Tip:You must ensure navigating your
website is easy for users and search engines.
Why?
Keep navigation clean. Humans have trouble navigating
flyouts and drop down menu bars.
Even worse!
Google robots also have a difficult time navigating them.

@VPDMDigital | vpdm.ca@VPDMDigital | vpdm.ca

4. URL Structures
• Simple, clean and optimized URL structures are always best
• URLs should be descriptive and relate directly to the content of the page.
• Include your primary keyword in your URL.
-> preferably at the start of the URL (not near the end).

Pro Tip:Keep your URLs short and use hyphens (“-“)
not underscores (“_”), when separating words.

5. Image Optimization
All the images on your website
MUST be SEO friendly and optimized
appropriately.
Remember, page load time is a key
ranking factor. It can be negatively
affected when large images (file size)
are loading on your website.

You have 3 unique
SEO optimization opportunities!
• Image size (width x height in pixels)
• File size (maximum 200 kilobytes)
• Metadata (alt and title tags)
[take advantage and optimize both the alt and title tags]

Pro Tip: Always upload each image file
as per the required specifications.
Size the image to the exact dimensions (w x h)
required for the content area.
Never ever upload an image with larger dimensions than needed.
That’s a huge SEO no, no, and will have a significant negative
impact on your page load time.

Never overlook image metadata.
• Images offer up two metadata touch points that provide
two separate SEO optimization opportunities.
• The image ALT and TITLE tags should always be optimized
with related keywords – or your secondary keyword.
-> Google spiders are able to “read” the image through its
optimized ALT tag.
If you want Google to know what that image is,
you need to tell them. Optimize the ALT tag to
take advantage of this SEO opportunity.

We rarely use a primary keyword in images,
but that also depends.
If you want more insight on these SEO secrets,
please contact us,
it’s certainly a separate conversation.

6. Page Load Times
Loading...
Research shows that Mobile users will wait an average of 5 seconds
for your website to load. Desktop users will wait only 3 seconds.
To keep pace with busy consumers, websites must load efficiently
or risk losing business.
Google prefers website load time to be 1-3 seconds.

7. Sitemaps
Remember that there are actually
two types of sitemaps your website needs.
1) An XML sitemap for all search engines, not just for Google.
This will ensure Google’s spiders are able to find and index your website’s
pages. (this sitemap is an absolute requirement)
2) HTML sitemap for users.
SEO is not just for search engines. It is as equally important for users.
Business and ecommerce websites benefit from using this sitemap. It
helps users find exactly what they came to your website looking for.

Sitemap Issues Do Occur
Make sure your webmaster or SEO company, is using
Google Webmaster Tools at least few times a week, to
monitor any optimization issues that may come up.

@VPDMDigital | vpdm.ca@VPDMDigital | vpdm.ca
Download this Slideshare as a PDF

8. Page Title
Optimization
Your <title> tag is probably one of the most relevant and
important on page SEO ranking factors of your website.
You need to make sure your primary keyword or phrase
is at the beginning of the title – not the end.

Pro Tip: Keep your page titles to 55-60 characters max.
Page titles containing your primary keyword will help your
web page rank higher in the SERPs for that keyword,
and other related keywords and phrases.

Subheadings are an excellent on page SEO opportunity
that can seriously affect your page rankings.
9. Sub Headings Optimization

Subheadings are used to organize your page copy
so it’s easy to consume, easy to read, and easy to skim.
People do all three on webpages.
The subheadings also help Google spiders understand
what’s on your page & how relevant the
content is to a users search query.

The most important heading is your <h1> and it is usually your page title tag.
Every page must have an <h1> tag – and it should contain your primary keyword.
The “least important” header tag is your <h6>.
For maximum effectiveness, your webpage is introduced with an <h1> tag
and should be followed with content under subheadings in numerical order.
For example:
<h1>Main Heading (includes primary keyword)</h1>
<h2>Secondary Heading 1 (includes primary or secondary keyword)</h2>
<h3>Sub-section of the secondary heading 1 (includes secondary or related keyword)</h3>
<h2>Secondary Heading 2 (includes secondary or related keyword)</h2>
<h3>Sub-section of the secondary heading 2 (includes secondary or related keyword)</h3>

10. Link Optimization
Optimize your website’s internal and external links.
• Your internal and external links provide an SEO opportunity in the metadata.
• Links come with a title tag. It should include relevant and descriptive text, which tells the
user and search engine what the link is and/or where it leads.
• You have an opportunity to add a primary, secondary, or related keyword to this tag. Use it!

The Wrap
It’s vital to stay on top of all the changes in search algorithms
and ranking factors, a good SEO strategy needs the
fundamental basics of SEO as a foundation for the website’s design.
It’s absolutely necessary to build your website, content strategy, and
social media marketing strategy from an SEO optimization perspective.
By following these 10 SEO web design methods, or by hiring a
professional, experienced, and mildly OCD SEO Consultant,
you can set up the future of your website, and by default,
the future of your business, for nothing but success.

Contact Us Now!
If you’d like some help getting started with a new
SEO strategy or if your website is in need of an SEO refresh,
reach out to us today, we can help!
We’d be happy to take a look at your website marketing and
provide an SEO audit, in order to help you diagnose any
website optimization and SEO issues your site may have.
We’ll also include an action plan to solve any issues we find.

1 St. Paul Street, Unit A304
St. Catharines, ON, L2R 7L2
Canada
FOUNDER, CHIEF STRATEGIST
vee@vpdm.ca . 905 246 6700
vpdm.ca
VEE POPAT
DIGITAL STRATEGIST
jordy@vpdm.ca . 289 213 4535
vpdm.ca
JORDY YACK
DIGITAL STRATEGIST
erik@vpdm.ca . 289 407 2074
vpdm.ca
ERIK DICKSON
SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR
kaila@vpdm.ca . 905 931 3190
vpdm.ca
KAILA HENDERSON
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
jenn@vpdm.ca . vpdm.ca
JENN BLAIS
SEO & E-COMMERCE SPECIALIST
tom@vpdm.ca . 905 650 8507
vpdm.ca
TOM JAKOP

Sources:
http://startupstockphotos.com
https://www.flickr.com/photos/36183525@N05/5033583441/ - Photo Credit: ByronNewMedia via Compfight cc
http://johnpolacek.github.io/WhatTheHeckIsResponsiveWebDesign-impressjs/img/responsive_web_design.png
http://img2.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131223031443/dayz-standalone/images/9/92/Compass.png
http://rodrigoseo.com.br/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/urls-amigaveis-como-criar-uma-url.jpg
https://www.flickr.com/photos/33255628@N00/8071729256/ - Photo Credit: Cea. via Compfight cc
http://s678.photobucket.com/user/poeticallyapathetic/media/polaroid.png.html
http://www.searchengineguide.com/jayson-demers/the-top-7-seo-web-design-methods-to-incr.php
https://www.flickr.com/photos/49503002139@N01/4576691340/ - Photo Credit: arimoore via Compfight cc
http://www.wpthorp.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Pipes-in-Title-Tags-for-SEO.jpg
http://www.javamazon.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/subheadings.jpg
http://www.icone-png.com/png/2/1709.png
http://setuserv.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/google-logo.png

Build a Better Website: 10 SEO Optimization Tips and Techniques

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