How to Optimize WordPress for SEO

WordPress websites need to be optimized for SEO purposes, just like every other site. In order to properly optimized them, you need to be aware of the three types of SEO – on-page, off-page, and technical – and how they can be utilized on a WordPress site. Both on-page and technical SEO are crucial, and we’ll discuss some aspects of them here.

Site Security

One of the largest changes in search engine algorithms as of late has been the emphasis on site security. In the past, only online shops and other sites with similar missions were secure. Now, site security is so important in the “eyes” of the algorithm that every site should be properly secured. If you go to your website and don’t see the “HTTPS” at the beginning of the URL, then your site isn’t secure. The good thing is that many web hosts offer this additional security for free, although some don’t, and you’ll have to purchase it. The only way to find out is by checking with your host or contacting an expert web company.

On-Page SEO

On-page SEO is something that almost everyone has heard of. This involves the use of keywords in the text, in the H1 headings, in the alt tags, and in many other places on the site. Although you don’t want to overuse your keywords, or even use ones that don’t apply to your content, as you’ll end up getting punished by the search engines, you do need to find the ones that best apply and include them. This is crucial since the keywords are what people will search in order to find your website.

WordPress for SEO With Yoast

Yoast is a useful tool for WordPress websites that helps you set up your on-page SEO correctly. It gives you plenty of suggestions, including the use of links, and it notes how often (and where on the page) you use your keywords. Even better, the tool turns green, like a stoplight, when you have your on-page SEO configured correctly. However, there’s one additional useful thing that Yoast does -it helps you submit your sitemap to the search engines. In order to utilize this feature, you’ll have to go out of your page content or blog post and into the general SEO settings on your site. Once you’re in there, you can go into the features and create that XML sitemap and then submit it in Google’s Search Console.

404 Redirects

A 404 redirect is a page that pops up when something goes wrong with the search results. Either someone tried to go to a page on your site that no longer exists, or they typed in the entire URL wrong. If you have too many people who are directed to these 404 pages, then Google and the other search engines might punish your site in the rankings. Thankfully, there’s a solution in the form of a redirect. You can go into your site and redirect certain URLs to their updated counterparts. This prevents the search engine from sending someone to the wrong page because the new one will appear. On top of this, you can set the 404 page on your site so that it redirects users to your homepage. Utilizing both of these options is best because you won’t turn away any potential customers by sending them to a page that doesn’t exist anymore, and the search engines won’t punish you.

Technical Aspects

Speed is one of the most crucial technical aspects of SEO. Not only does this affect your search engine results, since faster sites are rewarded with higher rankings, but it also impacts the user experience. To put it simply, no one wants to wait more than 30 seconds these days for a website to load. There are tools that you can use in order to see how fast your site loads, many of which provide you with a list of the technical things that need to be done in order to improve that load speed. However, in many cases, these items are too technical for anyone but an expert to pull off. You’ll need to seek the help of an expert, such as Medium Interactive.