Get Ahead: The Complete SEO Checklist 2023

As a business owner, you understand the importance of having an online presence to reach your target audience. But simply having a website isn’t enough in today’s digital age. Search engine optimization (SEO) can help your business stand out in the crowded online marketplace and attract more potential customers. In this article, we’ll discuss what SEO is, how it can benefit your business, and a useful SEO checklist to help you optimize your website.

Summary

1. What is SEO?
2. Benefits of SEO for Your Business
3. Basic Tools You Need to Have
4. Free SEO Tools You Can Use in 2023
5. Keyword Research
6. Technical SEO Checklist
7. Basic On-page SEO Checklist
8. Basic Off Page SEO Checklist
9. Rank Higher on Google in 2023
10. Top SEO Trends to Watch in 2023
11. Engage Smooth-Sailing SEO Practices with the #1 SEO Agency in Singapore

What is SEO?

Search engine optimization (SEO), is the process of enhancing a website’s visibility and ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs) by optimising its content, structure, and overall design. The primary goal of SEO is to increase organic, or non-paid, traffic to a website through higher search engine rankings.

It involves various techniques, including keyword research, on-page optimisation, off-page optimisation, and technical SEO. By implementing these strategies, businesses can improve their online presence, attract more relevant visitors, and ultimately, generate increased revenue. This is crucial in today’s digital landscape, as it allows websites to stay competitive and reach their target audience effectively.

When creating your website, it’s essential to keep the users in mind, as all optimisation efforts should be directed at improving the user experience. One of those users is a search engine, which helps distribute your content to other people. SEO aims to make information more accessible for search engines to understand and display. The optimisation topics covered in various SEO tutorials can apply to websites of all shapes and sizes, whether your site is much smaller or much larger than the average and contains vastly different content. By focusing on both user experience and search engine accessibility, your website can achieve better search engine rankings and reach a wider audience.

Benefits of SEO for Your Business

Organic Traffic

Organic search is the process of finding information on the internet through a search engine such as Google or Bing. It’s the most common way people find information online and is responsible for the majority of website traffic. By optimizing your website for search engines, you can improve your chances of appearing at the top of search results and drive more organic traffic to your site.

Trust and Credibility

When a potential customer finds your website through a search engine, they are more likely to trust your business. Search engines are designed to provide users with the most relevant and credible information, so appearing at the top of search results helps build trust and credibility with your target audience.

Cost-Savvy

SEO is a cost-effective marketing strategy compared to traditional advertising methods such as print, television, and radio. Once you have optimised your website, the benefits of SEO can continue for a long time, allowing you to reach more potential customers without having to constantly spend money on advertising.

It Helps You Rank Better in Local Searches

If your business has a physical location, local SEO can help you rank better in local searches. Local SEO involves optimizing your website for keywords related to your location, so when someone searches for businesses in your area, your business is more likely to appear at the top of search results.

Improves Website UI/UX

SEO not only benefits your business by improving search engine rankings, but it also improves the overall user experience of your website. By optimizing your website for search engines, you can make it easier for users to navigate, find information, and interact with your site, leading to a better user experience and a higher likelihood of them becoming a customer.

Visibility

By appearing at the top of search results, your business becomes more visible to potential customers. This increased visibility can help drive more traffic to your site, leading to more opportunities to convert visitors into customers.

Provides 24/7 Promotion

Once your website is optimized for search engines, it will continue to promote your business 24/7, even when you’re not working. This constant promotion can help increase brand awareness and drive more traffic to your site over time.

Targets the Entire Marketing Funnel

SEO isn’t just about driving traffic to your website, it’s also about targeting the entire marketing funnel. This means optimizing your website to reach potential customers at every stage of the buying process, from awareness to consideration and decision. By targeting the entire marketing funnel, SEO can help you reach more potential customers and increase the chances of converting them into paying customers.

Basic Tools You Need to Have

1. Google Search Console

Google Search Console is a crucial tool that offers vital information regarding your website’s performance. You can use the wealth of information it provides to increase your website’s traffic and visibility organically. With it, you can upload sitemaps, uncover crawl issues, check the phrases and keywords users utilize to find your website in search results, and much more.

2. Bing Webmaster Tools

Similar to Google Search Console, Bing Webmaster Tools provides insights into how your website is performing in Bing search results. By setting up Bing Webmaster Tools, you can monitor your website’s search traffic, identify any crawl errors, and submit your sitemap to ensure your pages are being indexed.

3. Google Analytics

Making informed decisions is impossible without the appropriate data. Google Analytics, a free analytics tool, enables you to visualize information and gain insights into who visits your website and how they interact with it. Developing an effective SEO strategy is impossible without this tool. Make sure to link Google Analytics and Google Search Console to import the data later.

4. Plugin for SEO (for WordPress users)

If you use WordPress as your content management system (which is likely, given that it powers 35% of the web), install and set up an SEO plugin. This will grant you access to the features needed for site optimisation. Your personal preferences will mostly determine which plugin you use, but these are three good choices. If you’re using a CMS other than WordPress, ask your developer about installing any particular SEO plugins or modules. For example, Plug-in SEO is a popular SEO program for Shopify.

Free SEO Tools You Can Use in 2023

Yoast SEO Plugin

Yoast SEO is a comprehensive SEO plugin for WordPress that helps you optimize your content, track your keyword rankings, and more. It is one of the most popular SEO plugins, and it’s free to use, making it a great tool for any business looking to improve their SEO.

Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a free tool that helps you track and analyze website traffic. With this, you can see how many people are visiting your site, where they’re coming from, and what pages they’re visiting. This information can help you understand your audience and make data-driven decisions to improve your website’s performance.

Google Keyword Planner

Google Keyword Planner is a free tool that helps you find keywords related to your business. With this, you can see how many people are searching for specific keywords, and you can use that information to optimize your website for those keywords.

Google Search Console

Google Search Console is a free tool that helps you monitor and maintain your website’s presence in Google search results. This can help you see how your website appears in search results, track the number of clicks and impressions, and identify any crawl errors that may be impacting your search rankings.

Screaming Frog

Screaming Frog is a website crawler that helps you identify technical SEO issues on your site. This can help you identify crawl errors, broken links, and more, making it a valuable tool for improving your website’s search engine rankings.

Answer The Public

Answer The Public is a free tool that helps you find questions related to your business. This can help you see what questions people are asking about your industry, and you can use that information to create content that answers those questions, improving your website’s search engine rankings.

Keyword Surfer Extension

Keyword Surfer is a free browser extension that helps you find keywords related to your business. This can help you see how many people are searching for specific keywords, and you can use that information to optimize your website for those keywords.

Google My Business

Google My Business is a free tool that helps you manage your business’s online presence across Google, including search and maps. This can help you update your business information, respond to reviews, and more, helping you improve your website’s search engine rankings and reach your target audience.

Google Pagespeed Insights

Google Pagespeed Insights is a free tool that helps you optimize your website’s speed. This can help you see how fast your website is loading, and you can get recommendations for improving your site speed, helping you improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Keyword Research

Keyword research is a crucial aspect of any search engine optimization (SEO) strategy. By finding the right keywords, you can improve your website’s search engine rankings and reach your target audience. Here are the essential steps for optimizing your website with keyword research.

Use SEO Tools to Find Relevant Keywords

There are many SEO tools available that can help you find relevant keywords for your business. Some popular tools include Google Keyword Planner, Google Trends, and Moz Keyword Explorer. By using these tools, you can find keywords that are related to your business and see how many people are searching for those keywords.

Brush Up on Intent and How Search Engines Work

It’s important to understand how search engines work and what people are searching for when they use those search engines. By understanding intent, you can find keywords that match the intent of your target audience, improving your website’s search engine rankings.

Identify Keywords that Match Your Main Business/Page Goals

Once you’ve found relevant keywords, it’s important to identify keywords that match your main business or page goals. For example, if you’re a real estate agent, you might want to target keywords related to buying or selling a home. By targeting keywords that match your main business or page goals, you can improve your website’s search engine rankings and reach your target audience.

Map Keywords to Your Site

Once you’ve identified keywords that match your main business or page goals, it’s important to map those keywords to your site. You can do this by creating content that includes those keywords, optimizing your page titles and meta descriptions, and more. By mapping keywords to your site, you can improve your website’s search engine rankings and reach your target audience.

Technical SEO Checklist

Get a Custom Domain Name

A custom domain name helps build trust and credibility with your target audience and makes it easier for people to find your website. It also simplifies search engine crawling and indexing of your site, improving your search engine rankings.

Ensure Your Site is Secure with HTTPS

Having a secure website is important for building trust and credibility with your target audience. Search engines also prioritize secure sites in their search results, so it’s essential to ensure your site is secure with HTTPS.

Submit a Sitemap

A sitemap is a file that lists all the pages on your website, making it easier for search engines to crawl and index your site. Submitting a sitemap to search engines is a simple process, and it can help improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Ensure “Mobile Friendliness”

More and more people are using their mobile devices to browse the web, so it’s essential to ensure your website is mobile-friendly. Search engines also prioritize mobile-friendly sites in their search results, so it’s important to make sure your site is optimized for mobile devices.

Create a Robots.txt File

A robots.txt file is a file that tells search engines which pages on your site they should and shouldn’t crawl. By creating a robots.txt file, you can control which pages on your site are indexed by search engines, improving your search engine rankings.

Identify Any Crawl Errors

Crawl errors can impact your search engine rankings, so it’s important to identify and fix any crawl errors on your site. Tools like Google Search Console can help you identify crawl errors, and fixing them can improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Optimize for Site Speed

Site speed is an important factor in search engine rankings, so it’s important to optimize your site for speed. You can improve your site speed by optimizing images, compressing files, and using a fast and reliable hosting service

Basic On-page SEO Checklist

On-page SEO, often known as “on-site SEO,” is the process of making web pages more user- and search engine-friendly. It comprises tactics like title tags, internal links, and URLs that help a page rank for a main goal keyword. Search engines understand what your website is about and how it should rank in search results. By optimizing your website’s pages, you can improve your website’s search engine rankings and reach your target audience. Here are the essential factors for optimizing your website with on-page SEO.

Page Relevancy

Page relevancy is important for improving your website’s search engine rankings. To ensure your pages are relevant, make sure your content is focused on a specific topic, and use keywords that are related to that topic.

Page Titles

Page titles are an important part of on-page SEO. It appear in search results and help search engines understand what your page is about. Make sure your page titles are descriptive, include relevant keywords, and are no longer than 60 characters.

Headers H1, H2, H3

Headers help structure your content and make it easier for search engines to understand what your page is about. Make sure you use headers (H1, H2, H3) to structure your content and include relevant keywords.

Meta Descriptions

Meta descriptions are short descriptions of your pages that appear in search results. Make sure your meta descriptions are descriptive, include relevant keywords, and are no longer than 155 characters.

Here are some guidelines to bear in mind while you draft a Meta description for your content:

• Make sure the Meta description includes your main website keywords.
• In the description, start with the main term.
• Make your writing readable and legible.
• Think of the Meta description as a website advertisement.
• There should be 155 to 164 characters in the meta description.
• You may incorporate a subdued call to action urging readers to click.

Image Alt Text

Image alt text is a description of an image that appears in search results. Make sure you use image alt text to describe your images and include relevant keywords.

Structured Schema Markup

Structured schema markup is code that helps search engines understand the content of your website. By using structured schema markup, you can improve your website’s search engine rankings and reach your target audience.

Page URLs

Page URLs are an important part of on-page SEO. Make sure your page URLs are descriptive, include relevant keywords, and are no longer than 60 characters.

Internal Linking

Internal linking is the process of linking to other pages on your website. It can help improve your website’s search engine rankings by making it easier for search engines to crawl and index your site.

Mobile Responsiveness

More and more people are using their mobile devices to browse the web, so it’s essential to ensure your website is mobile-responsive. Mobile-responsive websites provide a better user experience and are favored by search engines in search results.

Site Speed

Site speed is an important factor in search engine rankings, so it’s important to optimize your site for speed. You can improve your site speed by optimizing images, compressing files, and using a fast and reliable hosting service.

Basic Off Page SEO Checklist

Off-page SEO refers to the actions you take outside of your website to improve your website’s search engine rankings. It helps search engines understand the popularity and authority of your website. By building links to your website, creating valuable content, and engaging with your audience on social media, you can improve your website’s search engine rankings and reach your target audience.

Link Building

Link building is the process of acquiring links to your website from other websites. These links help search engines understand the popularity and authority of your website, improving your website’s search engine rankings.

Content Marketing

Content marketing is the process of creating valuable content that appeals to your target audience. By creating valuable content, you can attract visitors to your website and improve your website’s search engine rankings.

PR

Public relations (PR) is the process of promoting your brand and reaching your target audience through media outlets, such as newspapers, magazines, and websites. PR can help you build links to your website and improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Social Media

Social media is a great platform for engaging with your audience and promoting your brand. By using social media, you can build links to your website, share your content, and improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Guest Posting

Guest posting is the process of writing and publishing an article on someone else’s website. With this, you can build links to your website, reach a new audience, and improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Podcasts

Podcasts are a great way to reach your target audience and build links to your website. By creating a podcast, you can share your expertise, reach a new audience, and improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Content Syndication

Content syndication is the process of republishing your content on other websites. By syndicating your content, you can reach a new audience, build links to your website, and improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Forums

Forums are a great platform for engaging with your audience and building links to your website. By participating in forums, you can share your expertise, reach a new audience, and improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Rank Higher on Google in 2023

Improve On page Seo

• Do keyword research to determine the most crucial keywords

  The use of keywords is essential for on-page SEO. So, the first step in on-page SEO is determining the ideal keyword for a particular piece of content. You may increase organic traffic to your page by using the proper kinds of keywords. The keyword you include in your content needs to accurately describe it, be relevant to the core theme of the article, and be one that your target audience uses regularly.

• Choose the appropriate category of keyword for your content

  In SEO, there are numerous different kinds of keywords that are employed to make web pages more search engine friendly. You may direct the right traffic to your website by choosing the keyword that best fits the content of your page. For instance, it’s ideal to use commercial keywords if your content is wholly commercial. But you must include informative keywords in a blog article that is meant to be educational. The subject or concept of your article should be reflected in your keywords. So, in order to draw in the ideal audience, you must incorporate the appropriate keywords into your text.

• Select a primary keyword to use

  It’s time to choose a primary keyword for your content after deciding on a keyword type. Choosing a major keyword for your article is crucial. The major word you wish to rank for on a website is called a primary keyword. Each SEO content page needs to have a major keyword assigned to it. A page’s principal keyword informs viewers and search engines that the page is about that particular topic. You may improve search traffic and ranking for that content and keyword by strategically utilising primary keywords.

• Use Pertinent Relevant Keywords

  Once you’ve chosen a primary keyword for your content, it’s time to choose two to three associated keywords. Similar keywords are words or phrases that share the same intent as a primary keyword or are semantically linked to it. When a primary keyword appears in a piece of content, these keywords are used to set it in context. To rank higher in search engines, each web page should have one main keyword and three to five supplementary keywords. Make sure to undertake keyword research to find related keywords in addition to your major ones.

  The appropriate related keywords can improve on-page SEO and increase the impact of your content. Use these guidelines when including LSIs in your content: Choose two or three closely related keywords. You may select no more than 5 LSIs for your content at a time. Make sure to incorporate each relevant term into your piece of text at least once. Don’t force or stuff keywords into your content; instead, naturally use them for the best On-Page SEO.

• Create an engaging title

  Making a catchy title is crucial. Both visitors and search engines should like your title. However, only having a catchy title is insufficient. Put your main term as the heading. The title should contain a primary term that expresses the content’s purpose. Your content’s title should be succinct, descriptive, and appealing. You may increase the amount of organic traffic to your page by using a captivating title.

• Add a Meta description

  It’s time to add a Meta description after you’ve given your article a compelling title. The Meta description is a key component of on-page SEO. A web page’s description or summary is all that is contained in the meta description. In order to give the reader a quick overview of the website’s content and how it relates to their search query, the Meta description tag is displayed as part of the search snippet in a search engine results page (SERP).

• Organize your content

  Content organization is essential. Split your material intelligently; your information must be broken into sections for clarity and enhanced readability. Unorganized content is useless when it comes to On-Page SEO. Your information should be broken up into informative headings and subheadings. By doing this, the text is easier to read and more powerful. Use bullet points for information listings if they are part of your text. Use strong formatting or callouts to draw attention to crucial details. Your content title should be in an H1 tag, along with all other headings and further subheadings. Add the title to your page and an H1 heading tag around it.

  Websites utilize heading tags, commonly referred to as header tags, to distinguish between headings and subheadings. From H1 through H6, these tags are listed in descending order of importance, with the title appearing in most H1 tags. More than 300 words should be used for the content’s body. Your content’s word count will vary depending on the page’s goal and how in-depth the subject is. Therefore, it is advisable to publish pages with body material that is longer than 300 words. Given that it is a blog article, the ideal length is between 1000 and 1500 words. Keep in mind that posts with more details are more likely to rank.

• Prioritize readability

  Use short paragraphs and sentences in your material. The sentence should be 20 words or fewer in length. The readability of the content is negatively impacted by lengthy sentences. Moreover, no more than 2-3 lines should be used for each paragraph in the material.

• Don’t overuse the passive voice

  More than 10% of your material shouldn’t be passive voice. The avoidance of excessive passive voice usage is precisely defined by search engine algorithms, particularly those used by Google.

• Avoid repetition

  Sentence repetition is not a smart SEO strategy when it comes to on-page optimization. Avoiding phrase repetition is the best course of action. Never start a new paragraph with the same words as the one before it.

• Avoid using complex terminologies

  Creating material that is of a high caliber need not be difficult. Your writing should actually be easy to read and comprehend. Your content should be user-friendly just like your website is. It is recommended to employ common terms in your text rather than sophisticated jargon. Your material will become more fascinating and engaging in addition to being easier to read.

• Create appropriate tags and categories for your blog posts

  By organizing on-site information, blog post tags and categories aid search engines in comprehending themes. The inclusion of categories and tags that are pertinent to the theme of the content is therefore essential.

• Make your content shareable

  Create content that can be shared. Add share buttons on the page to allow readers to forward the article to friends and coworkers. Your traffic and visibility will progressively increase as a result. It is more likely to be found when you optimize your content for search and social media.

Optimize Technical SEO

• Website structure and architecture

  Provide descriptive and pertinent URLs for each page after making sure the website has a clear and ordered structure. Implement a sitemap after that, then submit it to search engines.

• Website structure and architecture

  Provide descriptive and pertinent URLs for each page after making sure the website has a clear and ordered structure. Implement a sitemap after that, then submit it to search engines.

• Mobile optimization

  Ensure that the website is accessible and simple to use on mobile devices. Test the website on many devices and use responsive design.

• Page speed

  Image compression, fewer HTTP requests, CDNs, and caching all help to increase page performance. Use resources like Google PageSpeed Insights, GTmetrix, and Pingdom to measure the speed of a website.

Match content to Search Intent

Search intent refers to the purpose behind a search query. To match your content to search intent, make sure your content is focused on a specific topic and provides value to your target audience.

• Decide a content strategy for your keyword

  Make a content strategy for how you’ll employ your main keyword once you’ve chosen it. Choose if you’ll utilize the keyword on a landing page, an infographic, a blog post, or evergreen content. In addition, you must decide how it will assist your marketing funnel.

  Here are some ideas to think about:

  • Establish your objectives and goals.
  • Aim to align the content with the purpose of the keyword search. Using a customer journey mapping template, create content that corresponds to a certain level of the buying funnel.
  • Provide material that answers a user’s search query by giving them what they are seeking for
  • Establish the location of the content in your sales funnel.
  • Produce articles that are better than those that are currently ranked. Analyze the material that is currently ranked for your term to see how it compares to other sources.
  • Provide informative and valuable material for your audience.

Reduce Bounce Rate

Bounce rate refers to the percentage of visitors who leave your website after only visiting one page. To reduce your website’s bounce rate, make sure your pages are optimized for user experience and provide value to your target audience.

Publish high quality content

High-quality content is content that is well-written, informative, and provides value to your target audience. By publishing high-quality content, you can attract visitors to your website and improve your website’s search engine rankings.

Build backlinks to site

• Create high-quality, relevant content that other websites will want to link back to.
• Identify authoritative and relevant websites in your niche or industry.
• Reach out to these websites with personalized pitches or guest post offers.
• Leverage social media platforms to share your content and garner backlinks.
• Employ broken link building strategies to discover broken links on other sites and suggest your content as an alternative.
• Monitor your backlink profile and disavow any low-quality or spammy links.
• Utilize tools like Ahrefs, Moz, or SEMrush to assess your backlink profile and pinpoint areas that need enhancement.
• Apply anchor text in a strategic manner by incorporating variations and a range of keywords.
• Be patient and consistent in your link-building efforts.
• Continually evaluate and adjust your link-building strategy based on what is working and what is not.

Internal link your website

Internal linking is the process of linking to other pages on your website. By internally linking your website, you can improve your website’s search engine rankings and make it easier for search engines to crawl and index your site. Look for and fix any broken links. To prevent problems with duplicate content, use canonical tags. Additionally, add structured data markup to your website for rich snippets and improved search results.

Top SEO Trends to Watch in 2023

The New E in E.E.A.T

E.E.A.T stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. In 2023, there will be a new emphasis on E.E.A.T, with search engines placing a greater importance on websites that demonstrate expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness in their respective fields.

Audience Targeting

Audience targeting involves creating content that is tailored to the interests and needs of your target audience. In 2023, there will be an increased focus on audience targeting, with search engines favoring websites that provide value to their users.

Increase Emphasis on Author Authority

There will be an increased emphasis on author authority, with search engines placing a greater importance on the reputation and credibility of the authors behind the content on a website.

Satisfy and Helpful Content

In 2023, there will be a greater emphasis on creating content that is both satisfying and helpful to users. Websites that provide valuable, informative, and well-written content will be favored by search engines in search results.

AI Content and Content Writing Software

The use of AI content and content writing software will become increasingly prevalent, allowing websites to create high-quality content at scale.

SEO Automation

SEO automation involves using tools and software to automate repetitive SEO tasks and streamline the optimization process. In 2023, there will be a greater emphasis on SEO automation, with businesses looking to increase efficiency and improve their search engine rankings.

Changes to CTR by SERP Positions

There will be changes to the way search engines determine the click-through rate (CTR) of websites based on their SERP positions. These changes will impact the way websites are ranked in search results and should be taken into consideration when optimizing your website for search engines.

Product Page SEO

Product page SEO involves optimizing the individual pages of your website that feature products for sale. In 2023, there will be a greater emphasis on product page SEO, with search engines favoring websites that provide a seamless and user-friendly experience for customers.

Image SEO Revitalized

In 2023, image SEO will be revitalized, with search engines placing a greater emphasis on the optimization of images and the use of descriptive alt text to improve the user experience.

Core Web Vitals

Core web vitals are a set of metrics used to measure the performance and user experience of a website. In 2023, core web vitals will become increasingly important, with search engines using these metrics to determine the ranking of websites in search results.

Engage Smooth-Sailing SEO Practices with the #1 SEO Agency in Singapore

An SEO checklist serves as an auditing tool for many parts of your website, as you may have noticed from our article. It provides guidance on how to improve SEO effectiveness while keeping everything current. It is also a step-by-step process that reminds you, depending on your circumstance, to prioritize some parts above others. It’s also a useful tool in that sense, even for beginners. Consider working with Verz Design for expert SEO consulting services if you believe you need help with your website. To schedule a free consultation, call 6841 1680 or email [email protected] today!