Website promotion is like a game of “King of the Hill.” The goal is to reach the top of SEO rankings and stay there as long as possible.
But competitors are not standing still, search engines regularly make adjustments, and new requirements for websites appear. Therefore, you constantly have to change and adapt. In this article, we will answer the most common questions related to SEO optimization.
Does website loading speed affect SEO?
Spoiler: yes, it does.
First, let’s figure out what website loading speed is. Previously, when talking about this parameter, we meant load event. It showed how long it took to fully load a page, including images and style sheets.
But this parameter did not show how the process actually took place. For example, two websites finished loading in 1.5 seconds. On the first one, text, images, etc. appeared gradually. The user of the second one saw only a white page, and then all the content at once.
Therefore, users of the first site will consider it to load faster. That is why Google decided to divide the loading process into several stages:
- TTFB (Time to First Byte). Shows how long it takes for the user’s browser to receive the first byte of page content. Hosting is responsible for this indicator.
- FCP (First Contentful Paint). How long it takes for the user to see the first elements and understand that the loading has started.
- LCP (Largest Contentful Paint). How long it takes for the user to see the main content of the page and start interacting with it.
- TTI (Time to Interactive). How long the user has to wait before they can interact with the site.
- Speed Index. How quickly the page content is visually displayed during loading.
An additional factor affecting loading speed is the distance from the server to the target user’s device. The shorter the distance, the faster the loading will be. Therefore, it is better to choose a data center location that coincides with the region where your target audience is located (at HostPro, this can be Ukraine , Europe, or the US.
Google takes all these points, along with load event, into account when ranking websites in search results. Therefore, we can safely say that the speed of a website’s loading directly affects its SEO promotion.
If a user is interested in a website, they want to familiarize themselves with its content as quickly as possible.
- Statistics show that every fourth user will leave a resource that takes longer than 4 seconds to load.
- More than half of mobile users will leave a site if they don’t see the content they want in less than 3 seconds.
This can lead to a loss of traffic and revenue if the site is commercial, or just traffic if it’s a personal blog, for example.
To measure the loading speed of a website, first try to visit it as a regular user. If you have no complaints, then everything is working fine. Otherwise, it is worth measuring the speed using various services. These can be Pingdom Tools or Google PageSpeed Insights (Core Web Vitals metrics).
So, even if your site’s other metrics are very good, it will be difficult for it to rise to the top if it loads slowly. All other SEO metrics being equal, Google will rank higher those sites whose pages load faster.
What is the minimum and maximum number of internal links on a page?
Google experts say that it doesn’t matter how many links within a single site are placed on a page; no one will penalize you for having too many. The main thing is that they correspond to the user’s intent and the topic of the content.
However, when you place links, you redistribute the weight of the pages. Each such link gives a part of the weight of the page on which it is placed to the page to which it leads.
Therefore, SEO specialists say that you should not place more than 50 internal links on a page. On the other hand, the minimum number of internal links is 10.
It is also generally not recommended to link to third-party resources, as this means that you will share your page’s weight with someone else’s site. If you cannot avoid redirecting to another resource, at least use the “nofollow” tag.
Are words in different case the same keyword or different ones?
Machines perceive words written in upper and lower case letters the same way, so different case does not change the keyword. It doesn’t matter if you want to “register a domain,” “Register a domain,” or “REGISTER A DOMAIN.” These will all be the same keywords.
Should you write a keyword with a mistake if that’s how people search for it?
Search engines used to simply take all the pages that contained a specific search phrase and rank them according to the number of times it appeared. This led to the emergence of SEO strategies that attempted to “break the system.”
That’s when the trend of deliberately adding words with mistakes to texts began, because that’s how people searched for them. And it was indeed possible to achieve some increase in traffic this way. Most likely, there are still those who consider this method effective.
In reality, search engine algorithms have long since learned to recognize errors and understand what a person meant. Therefore, deliberately making mistakes in keywords will give you nothing but illiterate content.
Can you change the URL of an already indexed page?
In general, you can, but it’s better not to. If there is no other option, you should at least notify Google.
If you change the URL, all backlinks will lead to a page that does not exist. This will negatively affect your ranking. So, you need to take care of this as well.
Therefore, if you decide to change the URL of pages after indexing:
- redirect old links to new ones using a 301 redirect,
- provide search engines with a sitemap with new URLs,
- correct all internal links so that they do not lead to a 404 page.
Detailed guide to setting up 301 redirects
Can I change the title of an already indexed article?
Changing the title can affect your ranking, both positively and negatively. The main thing here is how well the title matches the content of the article. If, after the change, the relevance decreases (for example, people click on the title but quickly leave the page), then the position may indeed drop.
But if you come up with a catchy title that brings more users to the page and they stay on it longer, then the ranking may even increase.
In any case, it is the quality of the content that has a greater impact on the position in SERP, not the title of the blog post.
Can you write alt tags in English if the page is in another language?
The alt attribute is used by search engine bots during indexing. It can be used to get additional traffic from Image Search. But there is another important nuance: what you write in alt will be heard by people (for example, those with visual impairments) who use special screen reading programs.
Alt allows them to understand what is depicted in the image. Therefore, it is better to write alt in the same language as the content itself.
Can Alt and Title be duplicated in images?
It is better to write different text in alt and title, because they have different purposes.
- ALT. The text you enter in alt will be displayed when the image has not loaded (if image display is disabled in the browser or the site is hosted on a server that cannot handle image loading). It will also be heard by people who use screen reading programs.
- TITLE. The text written in the title will be displayed when the mouse cursor is hovered over the image. Its purpose is to provide additional information about the image.
In the first case, provide general information about what is depicted (for example, a mountain landscape in Africa). In the second case, add specifics, considering that the person can already see the image (for example, Mount Kilimanjaro in May).
Can you use multiple H1 tags on a single page?
For many SEO specialists, using more than one h1 tag is taboo. But there’s nothing wrong with it when it’s really necessary. Google won’t consider it a critical error, especially if your content is truly useful.
In response to this question, Matt Cutts, who previously worked at Google, made it clear that there is no ban on using more than one H1. But you definitely don’t need to make your entire article consist solely of such headings. It is important to adhere to the hierarchy and logic of the page structure. Therefore, h1 is usually used once, as there is simply no need to do it more often.
How often should you update the content on a page to maintain SEO?
Google really likes regular updates to old pages. However, there is no universal answer as to how often this should be done. It all depends on the type of page, the subject matter of the site, and, quite simply, the availability of new information.
For example, blog posts and news should be updated weekly/monthly, if, of course, there is new information. Product pages are updated as needed when new models, promotions, discounts, or changes in specifications appear.
You should make it a rule to audit the materials on your website at least once every six months/year. Over time, they will become outdated and will no longer meet user demands. Therefore, they need to be updated, supplemented with new keywords, and optimized for new SEO trends.
In addition, regular updates to the content on the website are positively perceived by search bots. They will visit you more often because the information is constantly being updated. This means that the resource is not standing still and is developing. This will also be an additional advantage in ranking.
The main thing is not to forget to send the page for reindexing after making changes to it.
Is it necessary to use keywords in URLs?
The use of keywords in URLs has a minimal impact on ranking. Google Search representative John Mueller wrote on this subject that keywords in URLs are overrated, and in mobile versions they are usually not visible at all. Therefore, it is better to make URLs for people so that they can immediately see what the page is about. This will increase the likelihood of clicks and at the same time increase the CTR (Click-Through Rate).
Google recommends using simple words in URLs that describe the content on the page. If possible, use transliteration. When there are characters in the URL that are not in the ASCII range, use UTF-8 encoding.
It is also worth placing keywords in the title and meta description. The main thing is not to create artificial constructions that can be perceived as spam.
How many characters should a meta description contain?
A meta description is a fragment of a web page that describes its content. Google claims that this meta tag is not taken into account by the system when ranking. However, it still affects the user experience, which can indirectly affect search engine rankings. This is what the meta description code looks like.
<meta name="description" content="This page has detailed information">It is important to make the meta description short enough so that users can see it in its entirety in search results. It all depends on the size of the snippet. For PCs, it is 920 pixels and contains approximately 180-190 characters, for smartphones – 680 pixels, which is about 120 characters.
You don’t have to count every letter to fit the size. Just write two meaningful sentences that will give users a better understanding of what the page is about. Add keywords. If part of the meta description matches the search query, the system will highlight it in bold. This will help the user be sure that they will find what they are looking for on your page.
Is there a difference between do-follow and no-follow links for SEO?
Dofollow is essentially a regular link that leads to another page or website. At the same time, it is not hidden from search bots, and part of the page’s weight is transferred to where the link leads.
As for nofollow links, they signal to robots not to follow them. In other words, they serve for citation purposes. They have no other functions.
Previously, no-follow links were not taken into account by search engines when ranking. Now, according to reports published by Google, these links are taken into account selectively. Therefore, in the process of link building, specialists try to get more dofollow links.
But don’t forget about nofollow links.
- First, Google itself makes it clear that the presence of nofollow does not guarantee that bots will ignore it.
- Second, there are no sites that only have dofollow links. And if you create one, it will raise suspicion, which may result in sanctions.
- Third, many authoritative sites use nofollow links. If you avoid them, you may lose the opportunity to work with high-traffic and trusted sites and your target audience on them.
What is the optimal length of H1 headings for SEO?
SEO specialists’ opinions on this issue vary. Some say that h1 should not be longer than 8 words. Others mention 50 characters or 60 characters including spaces. It is important to use common sense here.
If the H1 heading is too long, visitors will simply get tired of reading it and may close the page. Also, robots don’t like such headings very much, and this can lead to a lower ranking.
On the other hand, if your title is too short (less than 30 characters including spaces), that’s not good either. You probably won’t be able to convey the essence of the article and spark interest. Plus, it might get lost if, for example, it’s next to a bright picture.
It is not necessary to count every character, but in general, the ideal length for H1 headings is 30–60 characters with spaces.
Does an SSL certificate affect SEO?
An SSL certificate is an internet security protocol that uses encryption to ensure secure data transmission between the user and the web server.
As the number of cyberattacks and data leaks increased, Google made changes to its algorithms to improve user security. One of these changes was that websites with SSL certificates have an advantage over those without them.
If a website does not have SSL, users will receive a notification that the connection is not secure. To proceed to such a website, you need to click the “Advanced” button. Therefore, having an SSL certificate is more of a necessity, which also has a positive effect on SEO.
In conclusion
We hope this material has helped you with the most common questions related to website promotion in search engines.
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