Conquering WordPress On-Page SEO in 10 Simple Steps

Nowadays, it’s becoming easier than ever to create and manage websites online. With many new no-code, drag-and-drop website builders, such as Wix and Squarespace, the entire building process takes minimal time, and the results are impressive. Although WordPress doesn’t inherently offer such features, it leads the scene, powering more than 43% of websites worldwide. This dominance highlights the significant role on-page search engine optimization (SEO) plays in enhancing the online visibility of WordPress-powered websites.

But why is WordPress so popular? And why is on-page SEO so crucial for WordPress users? That’s what we’ll explore in this blog, which covers the basics and provides a thorough guide on how to carry out optimization effectively.

What Is WordPress?

Released in 2003, WordPress is a web content management system (CMS) that was originally designed to help publish blogs online. Since its release, continuous updates have expanded its features and functionality, leading it to become the world’s leading CMS since 2011.

WordPress dominates website development due to its simple interface, flexibility, and extensive plugin architecture, which allows users to extend its functionality.

According to Meetanshi, the number of non-CMS websites (websites built solely with coding languages) is declining. This suggests that more businesses are recognizing the benefits of using a CMS like WordPress to power their websites.

What Is On-Page SEO (Search Engine Optimization)?

On-page SEO is a refinement process that aims to maximize the performance of your published content, such as the one on your WordPress site. When a user enters a search term into a search engine like Google, the engine’s algorithm matches the query with already-crawled webpages and presents the user with the most relevant results, based on its interpretation of their search intent.

On-page SEO for WordPress focuses on tweaking the site’s content and structure to make the site among the best possible results to show for a certain query. This includes several steps that we’ll be covering within this inclusive guide.

Why Do People Use WordPress To Run Their Websites?

When one single CMS is able to gather so many users, this surely means it’s offering something unique, which WordPress actually does! Its most prominent features include:

1- Free and Open Source

The two most prominent features of WordPress are that it is totally free and open source. With WordPress, you would only have to pay for your hosting plan, domain, and any extra additions or premium plugins that you would like to use.

Additionally, being an open-source project brings many additional benefits to the end user. For you, this means that WordPress will constantly keep improving with the support of a large community of developers.

2- Flexible and Scalable

WordPress is so flexible that it can be used to build websites of all sizes. Whether we’re speaking of a small business website with only a few pages, a simple blog, or even an ecommerce website with thousands of products, it can do all.

With the proper layout, theme, and plugins, you can adjust your WordPress website for your specific needs. In addition, it’s also scalable, meaning that if your business is going to expand at some point, your WordPress website can grow accordingly.

3- SEO Friendly

WordPress is designed with SEO in mind, making it easy for you to on-page optimize your website for search engines. In addition, the vast library, which contains tens of thousands of plugins, indeed has many options that make it even easier to dominate search results.

Plugins That Support Your WordPress On-Page SEO Efforts

The “Add Plugins” page within the WordPress administration dashboard.

When looking into SEO tools for WordPress, you’ll see there are plenty of plugins available to choose from. Almost all leading plugins offer the same features, with some differences in the user interface and extra features provided by the pro subscriptions.

First, we need to ensure you’re using a good SEO plugin that helps you achieve your on-page SEO goals quickly and easily on WordPress. We personally recommend plugins like Yoast SEO or RankMath, as they’re beginner-friendly tools and provide many top-tier features, even in their free versions. After installing and activating the plugin, you can start following these ten easy steps.

Step #1: Create an SEO-Friendly URL

What we mean here isn’t optimizing the domain name since it’s already set, but optimizing the slug. A slug is the part of the URL that defines a specific individual post or page on the website. For example, in our case, the URL to this page is “https://digitalorks.com/wordpress-on-page-seo”, where “https://digitalorks.com” is the root domain and “wordpress on-page seo” is the slug.

It’s considered a great SEO practice to optimize your page’s slug in order to help the page achieve a better ranking in search engine results pages (SERP). Ideally, you want to keep the slug short and descriptive while also including your focus keyword, preferably at the beginning.

Example of setting the slug using Yoast SEO plugin.

If you’re just starting a new page, you should definitely go by this rule. On the other hand, if you have an old one that you’re not very happy with its performance, you should look more into the issue and figure out why it isn’t performing. It’s very likely to be a different reason, and changing the slug, in this case, could even worsen the performance.

If you decide to change an old slug, make sure to redirect traffic from the old URL to the new one. This ensures that whenever the old page’s link is clicked, the user will be redirected to the new one, making use of any backlinks or shares you had for the old page link.

Step #2: Write Optimized Meta Title & Meta Description

Now it’s time to write your meta descriptions and titles. A meta title is the page’s main title that search engines see and show as the main blue link that appears in SERPs. The meta description, on the other hand, is the small gray text that appears beneath the title, which allows for showing a concise summary of the page’s content.

As for the best on-page SEO practices for writing meta titles and descriptions for your WordPress site, they include:

1- Making them unique, concise, and compelling.

2- Keeping an eye on the character limit to avoid truncation.

3- Including focus keywords near the beginning to improve relevance.

4- Accurately reflecting the page’s content and avoiding misleading or clickbait information.

Another tip for the meta description is to include a call to action (CTA) at the end to encourage searchers to click and continue reading. For example, you can use phrases like (Learn More) or (Find Out How) to help drive engagement.

Step #3: Use Proper Headings (H1-H6)

In general, search engines rely on the page’s headings, especially the H1 and H2s, to better understand its content. Therefore, consider spending extra time to craft optimized headings that deliver results.

A good WordPress on-page SEO practice is to make sure your headings are concise and straight to the point, avoiding any unnecessary fluff. Use the focus keyword naturally in the H1 and at least once in your H2s and other headings where relevant.

Step #4: Optimize Content With Focus Keywords While Maintaining Quality

With keyword usage being one of the main ranking factors, it’s crucial to be meticulous when working on this step. When it comes to on-page SEO for your WordPress site, the golden rule regarding keyword usage is preserving the natural flow of the content.

Modern engines, especially Google, have become very smart at recognizing content quality, and they sure can tell when target keywords are stuffed. Such a practice, when detected, may reflect harm to your website instead of providing any value to your search ranking.

You should just focus on naturally integrating your relevant keywords within the copy, concentrating on the delivery of valuable, quality content. A general guideline suggests using one primary keyword with a density of around 1-2% (according to content length), supported by a few mentions of 2 – 3 secondary keywords. Do not obsess over these numbers and only focus on the relevance of the content you are providing.

As for the research part, many keyword research tools are available, such as Semrush and Ahrefs. These top-of-the-line SEO tools allow you to dig deep and find many low-competition keywords with high search volume to use. For an ideal WordPress on-page SEO strategy, you should keep your audience in mind while you:

1- Search for long-tail, low-competition keywords

2- Prioritize keywords with higher search volume

3- Focus on user intent, not just search volume

4- Align keywords with your content

Step #5: Integrate Optimized Visuals

Photos and videos are another WordPress on-page SEO factor that provides much value both to the reader and your WordPress website. There are two main reasons why you should include visuals on your pages. First, they’re a great way to break up large chunks of text, giving the reader a short break before continuing.

A visual for one of our previous blogs.

Secondly, visuals can rank separately in image search or video search, providing an opportunity to achieve high search engine ranking. Additionally, file names and alt text can be used to include your focus keywords, signaling greater relevance and potentially boosting your site’s ranking in SERPs.

Step #6: Add Internal Links

Almost any WordPress SEO plugin you install will suggest adding a few internal and external links to every page or post you make as an optimal on-page SEO practice. Internal links refer to links that you use on your website to connect it with other parts of the same website, and are considered a major ranking factor.

As for how to perform internal linking, there are a few simple rules that you must pay attention to. First, make sure the link is placed naturally within the page’s content. Also, you mustn’t settle for generic anchor text, such as (Click Here). Your ideal option is to make the anchor text as keyword-rich and relevant to the target page as possible.

Last but not least, don’t overlink! If you include too many links within one section, search engines might treat it as spam, and your website will be harmed rather than benefit from the links. Going by these simple rules helps the algorithm understand your pages better, allowing them to rank higher in SERPs for relevant search queries.

Example of naturally integrating internal & external links within one of our previous blogs.

Step #7: Add External Links

External links, also known as outbound links, are links that direct users to other websites on the internet. Since search engines use links in order to understand websites better, it’s a good practice to link related pages or ones that are in the same niche with each other.

Additionally, when linking to external pages, the ideal practice is to link to pages that have high authority. When performing on-page SEO for your WordPress site, only link to relevant content and beware of broken links, as they could severely harm the website.

You can use different attributes with your links to better let search engines understand the nature of your links. For example, if you are linking to promotional or unverified content, webmasters suggest adding a “rel=nofollow” attribute. This results in engines not passing link equity and preventing potential penalties.

Step #8: Maintain Readability

On-page SEO for a WordPress website does rely on keywords and links, but they’re not everything. Modern search engines are way smarter than before, and they can figure out when the content is actually of good quality.

Readability analysis provided by the Yoast SEO plugin.

Always stay focused on delivering the greatest user experience you could ever give with your content. Ensure your website content is easy to read, grammatically correct, and engaging. If visitors perceive a lack of effort in content optimization, they’ll likely leave. The more users that leave your site, the higher its bounce rate will be, impacting its overall performance.

As for ideal readability on-page SEO practices for WordPress sites, they include:

1- Using simple language

2- Relying on short sentences and paragraphs

3- Breaking up content with bullet points and subheadings

4- Adding visuals to enhance understanding and improve readability

Step #9: Start Your Blog

If you haven’t already, start a blog for your website! It is one of the best and easiest methods to support your WordPress website’s on-page SEO and attract organic traffic. Blog posts allow you to consistently publish fresh, keyword-rich content that can rank high in search engines. This gives your website further opportunities to gain organic visitors.

To achieve the best results, you should focus on topics your target audience is interested in and searching for. This could include answering common questions, clearing misconceptions about certain subjects, or providing helpful guides. Don’t forget to optimize each post with an engaging meta title and description, proper headings, internal & external links, and keywords. You can also look into some guest posting options to support your WordPress on-page optimization efforts.

Keep in mind that consistency is key—whether weekly or monthly, adhering to a fixed schedule helps maintain momentum. Target long-tail keywords to attract relevant traffic. A well-maintained blog builds online authority, keeps your site active, and strengthens your overall WordPress on-page SEO strategy.

To support your on-page SEO efforts, you should also implement the best technical optimization practices in your WordPress website. Technical optimization includes performing tweaks and improvements regarding the technical side (back-end) of your website.

Step#10: Implementing Technical Optimization

In this final step, you’ll have three main aspects to focus on, which are:

1- Security

To complement your WordPress on-page SEO, the most crucial step is preserving your site’s security. This is especially true when your site deals with sensitive user information, such as payment details. First, make sure your website has an active SSL certificate, which encrypts the connection between the website and the user’s browser.

These certificates help protect user data, which is essential for building trust and credibility with your target audience. Additionally, most modern browsers may show users warnings about websites that have no certificates, suggesting that they should not be visited.

Example of how web browsers show users that their connection to the site is secure.

On the other hand, make sure you only install themes and plugins from trusted sources. Plugins from untrusted websites might include harmful code that can harm the site.

Additionally, adding a security plugin to your WordPress is considered a smart move. Enabling two-factor authentication helps you revoke any unwanted access to the control panel.

2- Page Speed and Mobile-Friendliness

Search engines favor websites that load quickly. This means a well-optimized website can outrank others with slower loading times. Furthermore, Google, the leading search engine, adopted mobile-first indexing for new websites in 2019. This means that search engine crawlers use the mobile version of a website to understand its content and structure.

This highlights the importance of optimizing websites for both fast loading speeds and mobile devices. This can be achieved by:

• Minimizing file sizes (e.g., compressing images and using next-generation formats like .webp)

• Enabling caching and a content delivery network (CDN)

• Investing in high-performance web hosting.

• Removing unnecessary code and deactivating unused plugins

Google PageSpeed Insights offers a detailed analysis of your website’s performance, along with actionable recommendations for improvement. If it feels a bit much for you can always rely on a web development agency like ours to get everything right for you.

Example of test results of our agency’s website.

3- Site Structure

The structure of your WordPress website should be simple to navigate, allowing for a better user experience. Some webmasters suggest that a user should be able to reach any part of your website in only three clicks. But don’t get too excited and start changing your entire site’s structure right away! This can harm rather than benefit your WordPress on-page SEO efforts.

If you are just getting started with a new website from scratch, you can try applying this rule. At this stage, it’s much easier to lay everything out and add pages accordingly. To help with this, make good use of hyperlinks within your page’s content. In addition, make sure you set up menus correctly in both the header and footer of your site.