SEO Consultants & Services – London, Brighton, UK

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Futureproof Digital Marketing exists to bring a fresh, agile approach to marketing. We’re a team of dedicated experts who combine industry-leading expertise with personalised attention to help brands thrive in a fast-changing digital world.

On-page SEO is usually the quickest ‘quick win’

On-page SEO is the process of optimising individual pages on your website to improve their rankings in search engine results. It involves tweaking both visible and hidden elements on each page to ensure search engines understand your content, while also enhancing the user experience for visitors.

Unlike off-page SEO, which focuses on external factors like backlinks, on-page SEO gives you full control. By improving your website’s content, structure, and technical elements, you can make your site more relevant, engaging, and easier for search engines to crawl and index. A well-optimised page can drive more organic traffic, reduce bounce rates, and increase conversions.

Why is on-page SEO important?

On-page SEO is essential because search engines like Google use the content and structure of individual pages to determine their relevance to search queries. If your pages aren’t properly optimised, even high-quality content can struggle to rank.

Effective on-page SEO ensures that your website delivers clear, relevant, and valuable information to both users and search engines. This not only helps improve rankings but also boosts engagement, leading to better traffic and conversions.

Without optimising key on-page elements, your website risks being overlooked by search engines, regardless of how authoritative or trustworthy your domain is.

Key elements of on-page SEO

Title tags

The title tag is probably the most important on-page SEO element and SEO element in general. It appears as the clickable headline in search results and tells search engines what the page is about. Without your keyword in your title tag, your page will struggle to be found.

Best Practices:

• Include your primary keyword at the beginning
• Make it compelling to increase click-through rates
• Include additional keywords

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Meta descriptions

Meta descriptions provide a brief summary of the page’s content. While not a direct ranking factor, they can increase relevance if they include your keywords, and they can impact click-through rates by encouraging users to click your link.

Best Practices:

• Keep it under 160 characters
• Include your primary keyword
• Write compelling, user-focused copy

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Header tags (H1, H2, H3, etc.)

Header tags structure your content, making it easier for both users and search engines to navigate. The H1 tag should include your main keyword, while H2s and H3s help organise supporting topics.

Best Practices:

• Use one H1 tag per page
• Break content into logical sections with H2s and H3s
• Naturally incorporate keywords in headers

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URL structure

A clean, concise URL structure makes it easier for search engines to understand the page’s topic. Avoid long, complex URLs with unnecessary parameters.

Best Practices:

• Keep URLs short and descriptive
• Include your primary keyword
• Use hyphens to separate words

Example: www.example.com/seo/on-page-seo-guide

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Content optimisation

High-quality, relevant content is at the heart of on-page SEO. Your content should address user intent, provide value, and naturally incorporate keywords.

Best Practices:

• Use primary and related keywords naturally
• Write for users first, then optimise for search engines
• Include multimedia like images, videos, and infographics to boost engagement

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Internal linking

Internal links connect pages within your website, helping search engines crawl your site more efficiently and distributing link equity.

Best Practices:

• Link to relevant pages within your site
• Use descriptive anchor text
• Ensure links improve the user journey

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Image optimisation

Images enhance your content, but they also need to be optimised to avoid slowing down your site and to help search engines understand them.

Best Practices:

• Use descriptive file names (e.g., on-page-seo-guide.jpg)
• Include alt text with keywords
• Compress images to reduce load times

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Mobile-friendliness

With Google’s mobile-first indexing, having a mobile-friendly site is essential for on-page SEO. Your site must be responsive and provide a great user experience across all devices.

Best Practices:

• Use a responsive design
• Ensure text is readable without zooming
• Optimise buttons and menus for touchscreens

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Page speed

Page speed has been a ranking factor since 2010, because it impacts both user experience and search rankings. Slow-loading pages can lead to higher bounce rates and lower engagement and prevent your pages from ranking.

Best Practices:

• Minimise JavaScript and CSS files
• Use a Content Delivery Network (CDN)
• Compress images and enable browser caching

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Schema Markup

Schema markup (structured data) helps search engines better understand your content and can enhance your search result appearance with rich snippets.

Best Practices:

• Implement relevant schema types (e.g., product, FAQ, review)
• Use Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool to verify your markup
• Keep your markup updated

Common On-Page SEO Mistakes

Even experienced marketers can make mistakes when it comes to on-page SEO. Here are some common errors to watch out for:

Not including keywords

The biggest issue that may be preventing your page from ranking, is if it is missing your target keyword within key elements such as title tags and headings. These elements tell Google what the page is about, so if your keyword is missing, then it will not be relevant to those search terms.

Over optimisation and keyword stuffing:

At the other end of the scale, we have over optimisation. When you realise these elements can improve Google ranking positions, it’s tempting to over do it. However, doing this risks being flagged for over optimisation and your page can actually lose ranking positions, or be demoted completely. verusing keywords can harm your rankings and user experience.

Duplicate or thin content

When managing a large website it’s easy for content to get out of control. If your website has duplicate content issues, or has too many low quality or ‘thin’ pages, then Google may consider the website as a whole to be low quality. This can lead to your pages being held back in the rankings for your target keywords.

If you want your web page to rank, then check your on-page SEO

On-page SEO is the foundation of any effective SEO strategy. Without optimising your website’s core elements, even the best link-building campaigns won’t deliver sustainable results. On-page SEO ensures your website provides both search engines and users with a seamless, relevant experience, which improves rankings, engagement, and conversions.

On-page SEO is not a one-off task but an ongoing process that adapts to changes in search algorithms and user behaviour. By staying proactive, you can ensure your site remains competitive and continues to attract valuable organic traffic.

Speak to Futureproof today

Get in touch with Futureproof Digital Marketing to see how our expert team can help improve your on-page SEO, ensuring your website is fully optimised to achieve long-term success in search results.

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