A Few Tips for Improving Your SEO

Over the years, the author has extensively explored the realm of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). This experience, combined with practical knowledge from projects and freelance work, has led to the identification of key factors that contribute to a site's success in Google's search rankings. The primary focus is on providing valuable content that directly answers users' queries.

Content should be structured with appropriate headings, including a single H1 tag followed by H2 and H3 subheadings. Keywords should be incorporated naturally into the title, introduction, and throughout the content, avoiding repetition that was common a few years ago. Internal linking to other relevant articles and external linking to reputable sources also play a crucial role.

Before delving into specific metrics, it's essential to measure website performance. PageSpeed Insights provides a straightforward way to assess performance by entering a URL, which returns Largest Contentful Paint (LCP), Interaction to Next Paint (INP), and Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS) values, along with a detailed audit. For local troubleshooting, developers can access PageSpeed Insights directly through the browser's developer tools (Chrome, Edge, Brave, etc.).

Since 2021, Google has utilized three Core Web Vitals as ranking signals. The "good" thresholds for these metrics remain consistent: LCP should be 2.5 seconds or less, INP should be 200 milliseconds or less, and CLS should be 0.1 or less. These figures are derived from the Chrome UX Report, which tracks real-world data collected over a 28-day rolling period.

To improve LCP, preload critical images or fonts, avoid CSS that blocks rendering, and consider server-side rendering or static site generation (Astro). For INP, minimize unnecessary JavaScript execution and defer non-critical elements until after the initial page load. To achieve a CLS of 0.1 or less, specify width and height attributes for images and videos, and reserve space for responsive content.

Meta tags and Open Graph tags are crucial for providing context to search engines and social media platforms. Each page should have a unique title tag containing the primary keyword, a meta description tag that encourages clicks, a canonical link tag to avoid duplicate content issues, and Open Graph tags for consistent previews across various platforms. Twitter Card tags are also essential for optimizing display on Twitter.

Accessibility is another essential aspect of modern SEO. Websites should follow guidelines from resources like design-accessible.fr, focusing on proper alt text for images, keyboard navigation, semantic HTML, descriptive links, well-structured headings, labeled form fields, and sufficient touch targets for mobile devices. The WCAG 2.1 (Level AA) standard provides specific contrast ratio requirements for text and background colors, with a minimum of 4.5:1 for normal text and 3:1 for large text.

Tools like WebAIM's Contrast Checker can quickly verify color contrast compliance. Finally, adopting a mobile-first approach ensures that Google indexes the mobile version of the site, which is crucial for improved search rankings.