What is on-page Optimization?
On-page optimization is the process of optimizing the most important content elements on a webpage with the right keywords to better align content with search intent and SEO best practices in order to improves the rank of the webpage in search engines. This includes optimizing title, meta, images, links, URL, keywords, LSI topics and other important on-page SEO elements.
What is SEO scoring?
SEO scoring refers to the scoring of important on-page elements of a web page against competing web pages. Each on-page SEO element is given a weight according to Outranking’s scoring algorithm. The SEO score helps you understand the gaps in content and provides suggestions to address them. Optimizing and increasing the SEO score for a web page helps improve the probability of the page ranking higher in search engines.
Ways to import your content and start working with optimization
To score your content for SEO in Outranking, you need to put content in the editor. Let’s look at the two ways to import your content into the editor and start with the scoring and optimization process:
1. Use the SEO Optimization workflow
From the New Document dropdown menu, select SEO Optimization.
Add the URL of the web page you want to optimize. If you don’t have the URL and instead have a Word or Google Docs file, leave the box empty and paste the content in the editor once it loads.
Add the keyword you want to optimize the content for:
You can also import the content by using the utility:
2. Use the SEO Blog workflow
You can also use the SEO Blog workflow and paste the content or import the content into the editor once the editor loads.
If you are using this workflow, you need to exit the AI Wizard before importing or pasting your content into the editor.
How is Outranking’s SEO scoring different from others?
Most content writing tools score the content for topics only. Creating and optimizing content for higher rank and traffic requires a lot more than just topics. Outranking analyzes 13 elements, with the core emphasis on related keyword usage and placement.
Optimization of top on-page SEO elements and SEO scoring
1. Meta title optimization and scoring
The title is the most important on-page SEO element and holds the most weight. Google and the browser tab see this. Therefore, the most important keywords should be in the first 50 characters of your title, although your title can be longer and target more related keywords.
Exact focus keyword in the title
Using the exact focus keyword in the title increases the chance of ranking for that keyword. Use the keyword in a natural way.
Length of the title at least 50 characters
Highest frequency keyword in the title
After accessing the top-ranking pages, we found that these keywords appear most frequently. While these keywords may be already present in your title tag, make sure that you check this box to align with the search intent that Google has already established.
Target the related keywords listed below. The more the better.
Adding related keywords to the title can increase your ranking more than just one keyword can. These keywords don’t need to be included exactly as-is. Add as many as you can in a natural way. Make sure not to do any keyword stuffing, which can make the title unreadable.
To find the full list of related keywords or more long-tailed ideas, click More Ideas.
2. Meta description optimization and scoring
Exact focus keyword in the description
Length of the meta description at least 150 characters
Highest frequency keyword in the description
Target the related keywords listed below. The more the better.
3. H1 heading optimization and scoring
Most often, people use the same headline in the title and H1 heading. Although this is not a bad practice, there are only so many keywords you can target in either one to make sure they are readable and not stuffed with keywords. You can additionally use the H1 as a second place to add related keywords and attract additional traffic.
Exact focus keyword in the H1 tag
Using the exact focus keyword in the H1 tag increases the chance of ranking for that keyword. Use the keyword in a natural way.
A little different than the title, ideally target different keywords
Your H1 tag is the first thing someone sees when they land on your page. The H1 tag should target other variations of the focus keyword with semantic similarity or other related keywords. This can improve your chances of ranking for other keywords with the same content.
Highest frequency keyword in the H1 tag
After accessing the top-ranking pages, we found these keywords to appear most frequently. While these keywords may already be present in your H1 tag, it is important to make sure that you check this box to align with the search intent that Google has already established.
Target the related keywords listed below. The more the better.
The H1 tag should target other variations of the focus keyword with semantic similarity or other related keywords. This can improve your chances of ranking for other keywords with the same content.
4. H2–H3 subheadings and outline optimization and scoring
Number of sections at least __
After analyzing the top-ranking pages, we found the maximum and minimum number of H3 and H4 tags. For you to cover an equal amount of content depth, you need to target the range between the average and maximum. You may very well exceed the maximum to cover everything about your topic.
At least 4 questions from People Also Ask or related keywords
Including answers to questions that appear in People Also Ask and related keywords can increase your chances of ranking in the PAA box and featured snippets. While there is no golden rule about how many questions to include, 4 is the minimum you should target.
Include NLP terms from SERP Data
NLP terms are keywords extracted from ranking web pages using Google’s natural language processing AI.
These terms are important to include in your H2 and H3 tags to serve content close to the user intent.
Using these terms increases your chance of ranking for the focus keyword.
Include related keywords from SERP data
Related keywords from SERP data are keywords that your competition is ranking for using the same content and focus keyword.
Using them in H2 or H3 tags increases the chances of your content ranking for additional search terms.
This multiplies the amount of traffic you can bring to the same web page.
Using them exactly isn’t necessary, but it is recommended.
5. Content depth optimization and scoring: Words, sentences, and readability
In content depth, Outranking analyzes the number of words and sentences on the ranking pages along with the minimum readability score required.
You should target between the average and the maximum number of words for your content. If the topic entails more details, such as a pillar page, you can go beyond the maximum suggested. The same goes for the suggested number of sentences.
The readability score suggested is based on the analysis of the top 5 ranking pages. Outranking suggests keeping the readability close to the suggested grade level.
6. Related keywords and topic optimization
Related keywords and topic optimization are two of the most important elements in optimizing content for better rankings.
To navigate to the full list of related keywords, click the More Ideas button or SEO in the left menu > Related Keywords.
For a detailed explanation of how to use this feature, refer to the Related keywords optimization and scoring documentation section.
To navigate to the full list of Google NLP topics, click the More Ideas button or SEO in the left menu > Topics.
For a detailed explanation of how to use this feature, refer to the Topics and Google NLP optimization and scoring documentation section.
7. Featured snippet optimization and scoring
The first section for many search terms is a featured snippet and questions that users search for in Google. A featured snippet can contain the search query’s precise answer or requested definition.
There is another box a few positions down on Google that contains a list of questions. This box is known as People Also Ask.
Answering a question or explaining the meaning of the primary search term in around 300 characters right under an H2 or H3 tag that contains the question can significantly improve your chances of ranking for the featured snippet or People Also Ask.
8. Internal and external link optimization and scoring
To configure the internal and external links correctly, add your domain name to the Profile tab of the Settings or manually add the domain name to the URL input in the header. Links within that domain are considered internal links.
9. URL optimization and scoring
URLs are not heavily scored, but it is important to make your URLs readable and concise. A longer over-optimized URL stuffed with keywords does not rank better or faster.
It is also important to include the highest frequency words and the focus keyword in your content. Chances are that these keywords will be the same in many cases, but pay attention when they are not.
10. images and alt tags optimization
Having images or examples of the things you are explaining greatly improves the on-page time. This is proven to reduce bounce rates and increase engagement on your website. Google is increasingly leaning toward content that provides more value.
Having images optimized with proper alt tags can greatly improve your chances of ranking for both image and text searches.
Target at least the average number of images with the most frequent words and the focus keyword.
You can select the image and add the alt tag in the small pop-up.
11. Optimization and scoring of related keywords
Using related keywords in the most emphasized tags of your content, such as H2, H3, H4, and bold tags, can greatly improve your chances of ranking for search terms.
The search terms Outranking suggests are based on an analysis of top pages and the keywords they rank for. Outranking also provides all terms that are closely related to the focus keyword that you should be including in your content.
Vol: This shows the average monthly search volume for the given keyword for the location you select when you create the document.
Diff: This shows the difficulty in ranking for this keyword. This score is out of 100, with 50 being medium.
SERP: This shows the number of times this keyword has been mentioned in the search engine ranking pages, conveying the importance of that related keyword.
AI icon: This small icon at the very end allows you to find out where this keyword is mentioned in the SERP and get ideas for how to include this keyword in the content.
To find the keyword gaps in your content vs. competitors’ content, you can click the Heat Map button at the bottom of the Related Keywords side panel.
We will cover the Heat Map in a separate section.
12. Topics and Google NLP optimization and scoring
One of the major aspects of SERP analysis is collecting important terms that make up the true intent behind the search.
For example, if your users search for “Ford Bronco 2021,” you would want to write about pricing, features, mileage, and so on. You need to create information around these terms to serve the intent.
This screen shows the minimum and a maximum number of times a keyword has been mentioned in the ranking pages.
The option next to that shows the number of times the keyword or phrase was found in your content. While there is no golden rule on how many times you should use a keyword in the content, some tests have suggested that Google might look at how dense a topic is (density) as one of the many ranking factors. You should ideally target somewhere between the minimum and maximum.
Although the number of topics used in your content is scored, your score is not negatively impacted if you don’t exactly meet the density conditions.
To see NLP keyword content gaps, click Heat Map. We will cover the NLP keyword Heat Map in a separate section.