You can have great content and still rank poorly. That sounds backwards, but it’s a common situation. On-page SEO is the layer of optimisation that makes sure Google actually understands what your content is about and can match it to the right searches.
This isn’t about stuffing keywords into paragraphs. Done right, on-page SEO is barely noticeable to the reader. It’s about structure, clarity, and giving search engines the signals they need to do their job.
If you’ve read our piece on what is SEO and why it matters for your business, this is where things get practical. These are the specific elements you can control directly on your website.
Title tags: the most important on-page SEO element
The title tag is the clickable headline that appears in search results. It’s one of the strongest signals you can send to both search engines and users. If someone searches “leaking shower repair Sydney” and your title tag reads “Sydney Shower Repair | Plumbers You Can Trust,” that alignment matters.
A few rules worth following:
- Keep it under 60 characters or it gets cut off in results.
- Put the primary keyword near the front.
- Make it readable and specific, not just a list of keywords.
- Every page should have a unique title tag.
Title tags live in the HTML of your page, not in the visible body content. Most website platforms — WordPress, Squarespace, Wix — let you edit them without touching code.
Meta descriptions: not a ranking factor, but still important
Meta descriptions are the short paragraph of text that appears under your title in search results. Google has confirmed they don’t directly affect rankings, but they absolutely affect click-through rates. A well-written meta description convinces people to click your result over the others.
Keep it between 150 and 160 characters. Make it specific. Tell the reader what they’ll get from the page. And include the keyword naturally — Google often bolds matching terms in the snippet, which draws the eye.
Heading structure and keyword optimization
Headings (H1 through H6) organise your content and help both readers and bots understand the hierarchy of information on a page. The H1 is the main title. There should only be one per page. H2s are major sections. H3s are sub-sections within those.
The primary keyword should appear in the H1. Secondary keywords or topic variations can sit naturally in H2s. Don’t force it. If a heading reads awkwardly because you’ve inserted a keyword, rewrite the heading.
Think of heading structure the way a carpenter thinks about framing. Everything else hangs off it. If the structure is sound, the rest of the build is easier.
URL structure: simple and clear wins
Your URL is another signal to search engines and users. A URL like yoursite.com/blog/post-1234 tells Google nothing. A URL like yoursite.com/blocked-drain-repair tells it exactly what’s on the page.
Short, descriptive URLs with the keyword included perform better in testing. Hyphens between words, not underscores. No unnecessary parameters or dates unless they’re meaningful for the content type.
Content quality and keyword optimization
This is where most guides talk about keyword density. That’s mostly an outdated concept. What actually matters is whether your content genuinely answers the question behind the search.
Google has become very good at understanding topics, not just exact phrases. That’s called semantic search. If someone searches “how to fix a dripping tap,” a page that covers water pressure issues, washer replacement, isolation valves, and when to call a plumber will likely outrank a page that just repeats “dripping tap” twenty times.
A few content-quality signals worth paying attention to:
- Does the page actually answer the question the searcher has?
- Is the content more complete and useful than what’s already ranking?
- Is it well-organised with clear headings and easy-to-scan structure?
- Does it include specific details, examples, or practical steps?
- Is it accurate and up to date?
Research from Semrush’s State of Content Marketing report found that longer, more in-depth content consistently earns more organic traffic and backlinks than thin pages. Depth of coverage matters more than hitting a word count target.
Internal links: connecting your content
Internal links are links from one page on your site to another. They matter for two reasons: they help bots discover and understand the relationship between your pages, and they keep users moving through your site.
Use descriptive anchor text — the clickable words — rather than “click here” or “read more.” If you’re linking to a page about blocked drain repair, the anchor text should say something like “how to diagnose a blocked drain,” not just “here.”
A good internal linking structure also distributes what’s called “link equity” — the value passed through links — from your stronger pages to newer or less-established ones.
Image optimisation: alt text and file size
Images affect on-page SEO in two ways. First, large uncompressed images slow your page down, which hurts user experience and rankings. Second, images need alt text, a short description of what the image shows, because bots can’t see images.
Alt text should describe the image accurately. If the image shows a plumber replacing a tap washer, the alt text should say something like “plumber replacing tap washer under bathroom sink.” Keep it natural. Don’t keyword-stuff it.
Mobile-friendliness and page experience
Google uses mobile-first indexing. That means it looks at the mobile version of your site to decide how to rank it, even for desktop searches. If your site is hard to use on a phone, you’ll feel that in your rankings.
Page experience signals, including Core Web Vitals, which measure load speed, visual stability, and interactivity, are now official ranking factors. These overlap with technical SEO, which is worth reading about separately. The technical SEO guide on Craft Tech Media covers those in more detail.
Frequently asked questions
One primary keyword per page, supported by several closely related secondary keywords. Trying to rank a single page for too many unrelated terms dilutes focus. If you have two distinct topics, create two pages.
No, not directly. But they affect how many people click your result. A well-written meta description improves click-through rate, which can indirectly signal to Google that your result is worth showing.
Regularly. Refreshing outdated content, adding new information, and improving structure can revive pages that have lost rankings. For some industries, annual updates are enough. For fast-moving topics, quarterly reviews make sense.
Not as a formula. Forcing a specific percentage of keyword repetition is outdated. Focus on covering the topic thoroughly and using natural variations of your target terms throughout the content.
