Use my local SEO checklist below to give your website the best opportunity at appearing in searches when potential local customers search for services in your area.
For personalized walkthroughs or 1 on 1 SEO audits, please reach out to Hawkins Web Agency.
For a more detailed walkthrough, read on below:
Table of Contents
Basic Web Page (HTML) Elements
Title Tags
Title tags are used once per page at the top of the page.
- Should always use your target keyword at minimum.
Headings
Headings summarize each piece of text and content.
- Search engines rely on headings to understand structure and context.
- Readers use headings to help skim content.
- Headings go from H1 to H6.
- H1 should only be used once per page.
- Do not skip heading levels!
- Example: Do not jump from H2 immediately to H4.
Paragraphs
- Search engines will pull keywords and info from paragraphs to figure out the purpose and location of your website or business.
Unordered Lists and Ordered Lists
- Unordered lists use bullets (•) to start each line.
- Ordered lists use numbers (1., 2., 3., etc.) to start each line.
- List items are also used by search engines to give context, location, and meaning to websites.
- I (Hawkins Web Agency) try to use lists as much as possible to present information in an organized manner.
Buttons
- Users should be able to click a contact button without scrolling.
- Make sure buttons are consistent across your website!
Detailed On-Page SEO Checklist
Title and Headings Drive More Traffic and Local Search Results
Here is a good explanation of Title Tags and Headings. Headings are extremely important to both on-site SEO and the actual humans reading your website! Therefore, it pays (in both organic traffic and dollars) to intentially use your target long-tail keywords in headings. Local keywords can be used as well to give you an upperhand in specific geographic areas.
- Does your title tag use your primary keyword?
- Do your headings give a clean description of your services/product?
- Did you use your geographic location in at least one heading per page?
- Does each new section have a target keyword relevant heading?
- Are your headings concise and easy to read?
Proper Heading Use Examples:
This is an example of properly formatted heading (H1 and H2) using business name, the service, and geo targeting keywords. H1 is yellow, H2 is in blue, H3 is in green, and a paragraph element is underlined in red.
Here is another example of proper use of headings and paragraphs. The red underline shows the H2, the blue underline shows the H3 which is a sub-heading of the H2. The green lines show paragraph elements.
Keywords that Match Search Intent for Your Target Audience
Search engines will use the keywords on your website to establish the purpose, context, and location of your business. These keywords should match the search intent of your target audience as closely as possible. You can go crazy doing keyword research, but the easiest way is to use your intution and free tools, like this Free Keyword Generator from ahrefs.com.
Examples for a photo booth website: “photo booth rental company in Dallas”, “wedding photo booth rental in New Jersey”, “photo booth packages for rent”, etc.
- Do you have a list of target keywords you want your website to show up for?
- Did you use your geographic location/geo targeting keywords on your website?
- Are you using your geo keywords with your service/product target keywords?
The keywords underlined in yellow are an example of using geo targeting keywords with your service/product target keywords. “Northwest Arkansas photo booth rental company”.
Best Basic Structure of a Web Page
First Fold of Website and Easy Navigation
It is important for visitors to be able to complete the intended action within the first fold of your website. The first fold is what is immedliately visible prior to scrolling. Call-to-Actions (CTA’s) are how visitors complete the action, whether it is to do a contact form or book an appointment.
- Is there a contact button or Call-to-Action visible on the first fold?
- Does the button/CTA make sense and is easy to read?
- Can potential customers easily find the information they need or contact you?
- Is your contact form easy to fill out?
This is an example of a Call-to-Action being in the first fold, clients can immediately go to packages without needing to scroll.
Above is an example of a page that is easy to navigate – there are multiple buttons to lead to the contact form without having to scroll or search.
Web Design Paragraph and Text Best Practice
If someone only reads one paragraph on your website, can they understand what your website is about and where it’s located? This is a good test of your target keyword usage and a good SEO strategy.
Additionally:
- Is the text on your website easy to read on both desktop and mobile?
- Is your font easy to read and not distracting?
- Does the text color stand out from the background?
- Is the text large enough?
- Are you paragraphs three to four sentences max?
Image Optimization for Search Engines
Images are important for readers, but often underutilized for excelling in local SEO search results. This can be done simply with image alt text. Even worse, if images are not optimized, you may be penalized by search engines!
- Are your images clear and grain free?
- Are your images uploaded in an appropriate web format?
- Do you have image alt text using relevant keywords on each image
- Have your images been compressed? I like plugins like Smush.
Conclusion: Basic Website Design and On-Page SEO for Local Businesses
Having a properly designed homepage and using relevant keywords, will help ensure that your business listing is understood and ranked by search engines. Having your website ranked by search engine then makes you visible to potential customers. By following my on-page SEO checklist, you can be sure you are giving your web page and/or local business adequate attention in terms of search engine optimization.
This list is a great start to a well rounded website and local SEO strategy., and if you would like more help, please reach out to me at Hawkins Web Agency.