Let me just make it clear: internal linking is a good practice for both search engine optimization and user experience.

When you add a link within a web page, you are redirecting the users to related articles. Not only they learn something new, but this strategy also helps search engines discover more pages from your website.

The 2 Types of Links

Before I discuss further, allow me to explain that a webpage can include 2 links. First, there’s what you call external links. I will discuss this on Best Practices for External Links. Anyway, these are the links that redirect a user outside your website. For instance, when you click this link, you will be redirected to the Steve Mapua YouTube Channel. This is outside the realm of the stevemapua.com!

Defining Internal Links

Now, since the topic is about internal link, I will elaborate on this further. Internal links come in 2 types of internal links:

• Within the same page – you can move within the same page. for example, clicking this link will jump to the importance of internal links section of this blog post.
• To another page within the same website – For instance, if you click this, you will redirect to Things to Do Before You Publish a Blog Post, which is a page within stevemapua.com.

The HTML code

If you want to know how to write internal links in HTML, here’s how you would do it:

<a href=”https://www.stevemapua.com/blog/”>Internal link to the blog section</a>

Internal links can help in:

• improving website navigation
• linking related pages together
• helps search engines in discovering pages within your website
• distributes the traffic you get to the other pages of your website

Why is internal linking important?

Good internal linking practices are needed for website to work efficiently. After all, it ain’t called a website for no reason. Each page when linked to other web pages creates a web.

For you to understand this process, you also need to understand how search engines work. Search engines deploy website crawlers to help in the crawling and indexing process. These crawlers will only be able to discover the pages within your website if you linked them together.

The more pages you connect, the more pages the website crawlers discover. Internal links serve as a guide for the website crawlers. It points them to the other undiscovered pages of the website.

If pages aren’t link, website crawlers will just scan the homepage, and then, leave! Such a tragedy, right? That is why you need to focus on SEO also, and not just website design. Create a helpful website structure that uses both internal and external links. Surely, when you do this, you are able to produce excellent content for the users and search engines too.

Another reason why internal linking is a crucial part of any website is because internal links distribute the link juice. For instance, if page C is popular, the clicks and views it receives have an influence to the related content. Perhaps, the users decided to check out page D because of the link you posted on Page C.

If you want to learn more about internal links, please refer to my post on How Are Internal links and SEO Connected?

Yes, I heard you 3 parts are not enough to discuss the different on-page SEO techniques. So, for this post, I will focus on the importance of headings, images, and other content formatting practices.

Headings and Content Formatting Tips

First, let me discuss the headings. Because your content needs to organized, you should use the different header tags. Would you like to read a huge chunk of texts? For sure, you would say NO! Upon seeing a long paragraph, you would immediately hesitate, right?

Use Header Tags

In order for your content to be properly formatted, you need to use headers.  In WordPress, you can choose from h1 to h6. Ideally, the h1 is used for the main heading,  h2 and h3 for subheadings, and so on.

A page or post only needs a h1 tag. Well, you have the option to have the same title and h1 tag or you can also give an alternative title on your heading. However, you have to take note that search engines will display the title tag. The h1 tag will not be displayed anywhere in the search results page.

For your other heading options, here are the things that you should keep in mind:

• Do NOT use a single word as a heading. Instead, add a phrase or a sentence. It should make the readers want to read the paragraph below it. So, avoid brief and short headings as this will not be effective in convincing people to read.
• Use it hierarchically; for instance, h1 should come first, then h2 should be under it, and h3, h4, and so on. Don’t start with h4 and then h2 next!
• The subheadings are ideal location for adding the related keywords of your written content.

Content Formatting

Do not write your article, but you also have to make your article readable for your audience.

• Use the formatting tools provided: bold, underline or italicize words if deemed necessary. This is to highlight important words or phrases.
• The size of your text should be at least 14px.
• Remember, you are not writing a book. You better divide your article into small paragraphs with 3 to 4 lines.
• Also, add appropriate spaces in between paragraphs. To learn more tips on how to make your blog easier to read, refer to my post on Important Tips to Make Your Blogs Easier to Read

Adding Images and Other Web Elements

Images make your web pages feel more alive. By adding images, you are adding color to your website in a literal and figurative sense. Images beautify your presentation, and it makes your page more enticing than merely using plain text.

However, you have to remember that search engines can’t see the images. You have to explain the images to search engines through alt texts. Having said that, here are the things to remember when adding images.

• It is advisable to use your own images. If you want to use another person’s photo, make sure you have the license to do so. If not, stick to royalty-free images. Read more on What Are Royalty-Free Images and Where to Get Them?
• Resize images – the smaller the image size, the faster your website loads. Know more about this topic on Image Resizing Tips for Your Website Photos
• Lastly, use an ALT text to help search engines understand what your image is all about.

Next? Boosting Rankings Using On-Page SEO Techniques (Part 5)

In Boosting Rankings Using On-Page SEO Techniques (Part 1), I started my in-depth discussion on the various on-page factors you can do to optimize your website. For this set, I will focus on how to optimize your page titles and meta descriptions.

Tips in Optimizing Page Titles and Meta Descriptions

When search engines scan the different websites available online, the first thing that gets noticed is the page title. Search engines, like Google, don’t have eyes that see, but they “read” websites through the page title and the meta description.

Search engines will rank your web pages according to how they understand it. Also, aside from on-page SEO factors, there are the off-page SEO factors, the website competitors, and others to consider. If you don’t know this, I will explain how search engines work on another post, but first, let me focus my attention on page titles and meta descriptions.

Page titles

Each page on your website should have its own title that both users and search engine should be able to grasp. The title should concise and descriptive at the same time. Moreover, it should give a clear overview on what a page is about. Remember, a page with “Important Web Pages When Making a Website” as its title is way better than having “Main Page” as the title.

Here are other page title optimization tips:

• Right from the start, help search engines analyze your website better. Help Google understand that these are the keywords you want to rank for. However, this should not be your excuse to stuff keywords on your title. Remember, it still has to make sense for your readers. Keep a balance between pleasing the audience and the search engine. If you are focusing merely on the target keywords, your readers won’t find your pieces interesting.
• Long titles aren’t always the best titles! If you can keep the titles below 60 characters, then you should be fine.
• Remember to include numbers on your title. Adding numbers like 8 Ways to Use Stock Photos on Your Website will make wandering eyes stop.
• Aside from numbers, try to add power words as well. Power words help not just in SEO, but other industries as well. When you add words like “ultimate“, “effortless“, “mind-blowing“, these motivates people to take action. Power words make your content interesting. Thus, people will click it more!
• Next, there’s no need to include your domain name in the title. Like in this post, I didn’t add Steve Mapua to the title. Instead, I utilized 58 characters (not including spaces) on the title. Do the same, and use around 60 characters to create an accurate page title. If you have a recognizable brand, then that’s when you can add it on your title. For more tips on how to create better page titles, please refer to Page Titles and Meta Descriptions Optimization Tips.

Meta Descriptions

On any search engine results page, the searchers will see 2 main things: your title and your meta description. So, don’t just focus on merely the title. Give some thought to your meta description too! This is your chance to inform and convince the searchers to click. Give them a reason to visit your website instead of the other websites found on the SERPs.

Here are ways to optimize your meta descriptions:

• Target keywords should also be added on your meta description. Google will highlight the search terms found on your meta description. So, add relevant keywords into the mix because it will make it more attractive to the search engine and the searchers.
• Say NO to auto-generated descriptions. It is best to formulate your own so that you can captivate and persuade people to click.

If you want to read more optimization tips, see you on Boosting Rankings Using On-Page SEO Techniques (Part 3).

In the recent weeks, I have been slowly introducing the basics of Search Engine Optimization. I have been emphasizing on the importance of adding keywords into your content. Ultimately, I also suggested the use of keyword research tools. For beginners, I gave a few Google tools to help you get started. However, if your website has been constantly growing, you also have to up your game. You may need to upgrade your keyword tools into the paid versions.

So, you might ask yourself, “What are the paid alternatives out there?” Well, this is exactly the purpose of this blog post. Below, I will enumerate to you the paid tools that can help you take your SEO rankings into the next level.

SERPstat

SERPstat is a Ukrainian website that provides an all-in-online solution, including SEO tools for keyword research and backlink analysis. Aside from that, it can also give you insights about website analytics, SERP analysis, website audit features, and more. You can choose where to rank whether it’s on Google or Yandex. By signing up for their trial membership, you can use Serpstat for free. However, their paid plans start at $69 with the lite option. Meanwhile, the standard plan starts at $149 a month.

Ahrefs

On its website, Ahrefs featured 6 distinct tools such as Site explorer, Keywords explorer, Site audit, Rank tracker, and Content explorer. Of course, for this post, I will just tackle about the keywords explorer. With it, you can know a myriad of keyword ideas, identify the difficulty, and analyze the anticipated website traffic. Just like the previous tool, Ahrefs supports other browsers aside from Google. If you are not from the U.S., don’t worry because there are 171 countries supported.

Ahrefs offers a 7-day trial for free. The lite version of Ahrefs is valued at $99 a month. This option allows you to track up to 500 keywords and crawl up to 10,000 web pages. Meanwhile, the standard version is at $179 a month, which allows you to monitor 1,500 keywords and 500,000 pages. How cool is that?

SEMrush

Perhaps, the most popular tool on this list would be SEMrush. Its main purpose is to provide solutions in terms of Market Analysis, Monetize Your Audience, Keyword Research Toolkit, Content Marketing, and Social Media Marketing. With its distinct keyword tool, SEMrush can help you with getting a quick keyword analysis, creating your list of keywords, tracking the performance, identifying possible competitors, and comparing their keywords with yours.

For the prices, SEMrush offers 3 price plans: the Pro at $99.95 a month, the Guru at $199.95 a month, and the Business at $399.95 a month. You can try the Pro and Guru version for a period of the 7 days free trial.

Moz PRO

You can try Moz Pro for free. With its 30-day free trial, you can access the entire array of SEO tools. Moz will provide thorough insights & reporting. Plus, other personalization tools. You can ask help from the online support team, and/or ask experts on the Q&A forum. If it is not something you prefer, you can cancel anytime. However, if you truly enjoy Moz’s extensive features, then you might want to avail of one its paid plans.

Here are other topics that may interest you:

• How to Conduct Your Keyword Research
• The Common Keyword Types in SEO
• Where to Put SEO Keywords

One of the things I mentioned on Important Web Pages When Making a Website is contact information. It is really important to include contact information on your website for customers to easily contact you. However, you can’t just randomly put it anywhere you like. There are prominent places on your site that will actually get you more inquiries from your visitors.

Whether you are simply a blogger, business owner, or an e-commerce store, your website needs something that will guide visitors through the process toward becoming satisfied customers. One of the best things you can do is to add a call to action on each page. By doing so, you are encouraging visitors to take action toward becoming a possible client.

But, how do you include a call to action on web pages? And how exactly will this help you get more leads? The answer is: creating a simple contact form. To gain more leads and sales, here are strategic places where you can insert contact forms:

1. In Your Sidebar

Having a contact form in the sidebar of your site makes it easily accessible for visitors. No matter where they are in your site or even if they’re reading through your blog posts, they will still be able to see your contact form. It’s completely up to you on which side you’re going to insert your contact form.

2. Above or Below the Fold

Whether you place your contact form above or below the fold on your website’s homepage, it will still be beneficial. Visitors who are scrolling down webpages are showing interest in what you have to offer. So, even if your contact form appears below the fold, they are more likely to fill out and submit a contact form.

3. About Page

The About Page is often an overlooked opportunity to interact with your customers. On your about page, you should explain what your business is exactly about, what people are saying about your products/services, who works with you, and a call-to-action at the end. By inserting a contact form at the end, you are encouraging visitors to interact with your website more.

4. Contact Page

One of the most important pages on a website is a Contact Page. Users who check out your contact page are most likely to do business with you. On this page, you should talk about why they should contact you and how you can help them. You should also insert information like phone number, physical address (if any), and social media links.

To avoid getting spammed, you should add a contact form that will tell you who’s exactly contacting you. When a visitor is done filling out the contact form, make sure that they will be redirected to a thank-you page.

5. After Blog Posts

Lastly, you can also consider adding a contact form below your content. Once a person reads through your entire post, there is a chance that they will continue to read more of your site’s content and possibly get in touch with you. To give them a chance to reach out to you, insert a contact form so that they can easily contact you.

Now that you know these strategic places to put contact forms, you will be able to apply this on your website. Hopefully, this will help you to get more leads and sales. Next, I will share with you FREE form builder plugins you can use on your website.