Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Checklist
Over the past few months I have been asked more times then I can count for a basic, easy to understand and comprehensive SEO Checklist. Each time I usually listed the top SEO checklist items from memory or pointed them to a website that I felt covered it very well. Well, I thought it was about time I posted my own SEO Checklist so that I can just link to my own blog. About time right?
Below is a comprehensive SEO Checklist of core components any new or current website should take into consideration when thinking about organic search engine rankings. My SEO Checklist covers all the core elements and gives a few high-level guidelines / hints.
The SEO Checklist is meant as a starting point, a truly comprehensive SEO strategy involves a great deal more detail and involvement
SEO Checklist
- On-Page Content: More content on a page the better but use at least 300 words, content should contain relevant keywords, but do not overdue it.
- Search Friendly URL’s: Avoid dynamic URL’s, URL’s should contain keywords when relevant and have a consistent flow, use hyphens instead of underscores. For example: example.com/music/artist/artist-name.php
- Robots.txt: A robots.txt file should be used to tell search engine crawlers what content you do not want crawled.
- Title Tag Optimization: Avoid continuous repetition, limit yourself to no more than 120 characters, order keywords by importance.
- Meta Keywords: Don’t use more than a dozen keywords, keywords should revolve around page content, avoid continuous repetition.
- Header Tags: Use keywords in header tags (<h1>, <h2>) to show importance and theme of a page - <h1> is the most relevant keyword, <h2> is the next…etc.
- Meta Description: Don’t use more than 225 characters, avoid continuous repetition of keywords, describe content on page.
- HTML Sitemap: Link to from footer, add links for primary and secondary content pages.
- XML Sitemap: submit directly to search engines.
- Images: Image file name should describe what image is (e.g. cape-cod-beach.jpg), use image ALT tags for relevant keywords.
- Redirects: use 301 redirect on old / unused domains.
- Code: Avoid heavy use of JavaScript, I-Frames, AJAX and other non-SEO friendly code.
- Domain: When possible use a domain that has a search engine presence and contains relevant keywords.
- Linking: Linking, both internal and inbound, are core to SEO success. Develop a comprehensive linking strategy that focuses on cross-linking within a website, within a network of websites and from external relevant websites. Link using keywords related to the page within the anchor text. In regards to inbound links it is quality over quantity.
- Yahoo Launches Search BOSS Custom Search Engine
- Microsoft Releases Updated Live Search Engine
- Mobile SEO Best Practices
Comments
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Time: August 25, 2008, 8:23 pm
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Time: August 25, 2008, 8:42 pm
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Comment from renan
Time: August 25, 2008, 9:31 pm
nice and a very informative website…thanks for the tips.
Pingback from | Search Blog
Time: August 25, 2008, 11:11 pm
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Time: August 26, 2008, 12:48 am
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Time: August 26, 2008, 10:17 am
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Comment from cnpabi
Time: August 27, 2008, 5:07 am
that’s great!
Comment from Header Tags
Time: September 11, 2008, 7:40 am
Great SEO tips! I really like the part where you talk about proper use of header tags (h1, etc). I see too many web developers and webmasters not using them properly to enhance the SEO of their web pages.
Comment from Ken
Time: September 16, 2008, 3:28 pm
Great info! I have bought numerous books on SEO, and not one of them has a definite ‘checklist’.. They all seemed to just jumble up all of their content into 300 pages! Thank you!
Comment from bhu
Time: November 10, 2008, 12:16 am
SEO checklist is really a comprehensive strategy.Many search engines are available yet this is very ease to work with.
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Time: August 25, 2008, 8:16 pm
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