SEO Checklist: 8 Best Practices to Follow When Optimizing Content

SEO, or search engine optimization, is one of the most important aspects of online marketing. By following some simple best practices, you can optimize your content for top visibility on search engine results pages.

In this article, I'll go over eight of the best SEO practices to follow when optimizing your blog content. Whether you're just starting with SEO or are looking to fine-tune your efforts, these tips will help you get the most out of your blog's visibility and reach. 

If you're a part of Mastering P.o.P's 'Inner Circle' member, you should know all of the following.

1. Keywords 

• Include your target keyword (exact match) 3-5 times in your text but be aware not to overuse it and always be relevant and natural, as keyword stuffing is penalized.

2. Take a Look at the SERP (Search Engine Results Pages)

• It's important to understand the search results that are on the first page. This is a clear picture of the searchers’ intent and also the context of the articles search engines choose to rank high.

3. Make Sure Your Text Has a Nice and Clear Structure

• Avoid too long sentences and paragraphs. A paragraph of ~46 words / ~270 characters is great.
• Use headings for a better structure. Each blog should have only one main title (H1) but it is suggested to use subheadings (H2, H3).
• When you can, create numbered lists (see what I am doing now? ?). 

4. Article Length

• Generally, a longer article is better for SEO and ranks better, but only if you have relevant information to write about. Anything more than 1000 words is good for SEO, and find a balance based on the topic. If you can keep the article valuable and interesting, aim for >1000 words. If you feel it would be a stretch, stick to 700-800 words.

5. Include Images/Videos/Infographics 

• All of the images that are in your text should have an alt (alternative) text that describes the image. This is how Google recognizes your images (which come up in Google Images search results). 
• Every image should also have a caption (description, which is visible in the article).
• Do not use generic image file names. Use a proper name that describes the image.
• Compress the images using sites like tinypng.com or compressor.io to reduce the image size and make the article load faster when it is published. 

6. User Internal Links

• You need to include internal links pointing to older and relevant articles on the blog. Make sure to use as anchor text the word or words which describe best the article you are linking to.

7. Use Outbound Links

• If you are using stats or the summary of research, or in general something from another site, you should link to that site. If you are using information from other sites, do not be afraid of linking to them.
• The bigger (popular, with high domain authority) the website the best (i.e., pointing to a website like hubspot.com, which has enormous authority, is adding authority and trust to your article). Just make sure that you are pointing to a URL that is relevant to the topic you are writing about.

8. Add SEO Meta-data

• SEO meta-data consists of the title tag (SEO title), meta description, and the slug (URL). What you will write there, will impact the appearance of your post on the SERPs (search snippet).

**SEO title tag (60 characters max)

**Meta description (160 characters max)

**Slug (URL):

Although following these best practices will not guarantee higher search engine rankings, they are a good starting point and can help you fine-tune your website content. Are there any other SEO tips you follow when optimizing your content?

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