You might think that a proper title tag and HTML tags will get you the traffic you need, but you have to keep in mind that your URL is a critical piece of the SEO puzzle.
Among all the elements of your website, your URL has some of the most potentials for a strong signal to search engines. This is because it contains all of your most important optimization components without needing any additional text.
What is a URL and How Does it Work?
Think of a URL as an address. It’s the web address that’s used to find a web page and the combination of keywords plus relevant text that makes it possible for search engines to find your page.
Optimizing Your URL: Why Does it Matter for Your SEO?
URLs have been around as long as the World Wide Web itself. They’re the internet equivalent of a street address for a business. However, that’s not really where the significant importance of URLs lies.
Their true relevancy is that they’re often the deciding factor in whether a search engine will index a page. This is because they contain most of the information that the search engine needs to find and accurately index your page.
For example, take a look at the following URL:
http://www.somedomain.com/services/how-to-use-seo/
Notice how the URL contains text that’s mentioned in the content of the page. This is one of the key elements of SEO: content that’s relevant to your keyword and search terms. But the importance here is that it’s also included in the URL.
How to Create SEO-Friendly URLs
When it comes to SEO, the process of creating SEO-friendly URLs is a lot simpler than you might think. Here is a list of the basic steps you can take to improve your URLs for SEO:
Tip #1: Be Sure to Match your URLs to a Page Title
When the title of a page matches the URL, it’s a great indication that the site is taking SEO seriously. The title and URL are often the first and last thing that a user sees when they visit your page, so it’s very important to make sure that these two things match in order to provide a strong signal to search engines and to the user.
Tip #2: Keep it Short and Simple
If you have a lot of content on your website, you probably want to keep your URLs as short and simple as possible. This can be done by either using a shorter variant of the keyword or using a keyword in the directory, for example.
Tip #3: Ensure Your URLs are Descriptive
The most important aspect of your URL for SEO is that it’s descriptive. If your URL can say exactly what the page is about in a short and clear way, this is a huge advantage for your SEO.
Tip #4: Keep the URLs Lowercase
Again, the importance of this step is to ensure that your URL is as descriptive and simple as possible. When your URL is all in lowercase letters, it’s much easier to read and a better signal to search engines that it’s descriptive and easy to understand.
The Bottom Line: The Pivotal Role URLs Play in Your SEO Ranking
As you can see, a URL isn’t something that you can take lightly. The importance of the words in your URLs can make or break your SEO ranking, giving you the traffic you need and want. Make sure that you follow the tips provided above, and you’ll be well on your way to great SEO results.
How Can Local SEO Pro Help You?
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