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seo-on-page-optimization

Expert guide for on-page SEO optimization. Use when analyzing meta tags, title tags, headings (H1-H6), content optimization, image alt text, internal linking, URL structure, or improving on-page SEO signals for any web page.

personAuthor: jakexiaohubgithub
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On-Page SEO Optimization

Title Tag

The title tag is the single most important on-page ranking factor.

Rules

| Rule | Value | |------|-------| | Length | 50-60 characters (Google truncates at ~580px) | | Primary keyword | Place within first 60 chars, ideally near the start | | Brand | Append at end with separator: Primary Keyword - Brand | | Uniqueness | Every page must have a unique title | | Format | Primary Keyword - Secondary Keyword | Brand |

Common patterns

Blog post:    "How to [Action] [Topic] in [Year] | Brand"
Product:      "[Product Name] - [Key Feature] | Brand"
Category:     "[Category] - Shop [Subcategory] Online | Brand"
Homepage:     "Brand - [Primary Value Proposition]"
Service:      "[Service] in [Location] | Brand"

MCP Tool: Use analyze_page to extract and evaluate the current title tag, or generate_meta_suggestions to get AI-powered title recommendations.

Meta Description

Not a direct ranking factor, but directly impacts CTR (click-through rate) from search results.

Rules

| Rule | Value | |------|-------| | Length | 150-160 characters (Google truncates at ~920px) | | Primary keyword | Include naturally — Google bolds matching query terms | | CTA | Include a call-to-action (Learn, Discover, Shop, Get) | | Uniqueness | Every page must have a unique description | | No quotes | Avoid double quotes — Google truncates at " |

Pattern

[Value proposition with keyword]. [Supporting detail]. [CTA].

MCP Tool: Use analyze_page or generate_meta_suggestions for current analysis + suggestions.

Heading Structure (H1-H6)

Headings define content hierarchy and help search engines understand page structure.

Rules

  • One H1 per page — must contain primary keyword, should match search intent
  • H2s for major sections — include secondary keywords naturally
  • H3-H6 for subsections — maintain strict hierarchy (no skipping levels)
  • Never use headings for styling — use CSS instead
  • Never leave headings empty

Correct hierarchy

H1: Primary Topic (one only)
  H2: Major Section 1
    H3: Subsection
    H3: Subsection
  H2: Major Section 2
    H3: Subsection
      H4: Detail
  H2: Major Section 3

Bad hierarchy (skipped levels)

H1: Topic
  H3: Section (skipped H2!)
    H5: Detail (skipped H4!)

MCP Tool: Use analyze_headings with targetKeyword parameter to validate structure and keyword presence.

Content Optimization

Keyword placement signals

| Location | Priority | Notes | |----------|----------|-------| | Title tag | Critical | First 60 chars | | H1 | Critical | Primary keyword | | First 100 words | High | Natural mention early | | H2/H3 headings | High | Secondary/related keywords | | URL slug | High | Hyphenated, concise | | Meta description | Medium | For CTR, not ranking | | Image alt text | Medium | Describe image with keyword if relevant | | Last paragraph | Low | Natural mention |

Content quality signals

  • Word count by type:
    • Blog post: 1,500-2,500+ words (topic-dependent)
    • Product page: 300-1,000 words
    • Category page: 500-1,000 words
    • Landing page: 500-1,500 words
    • Homepage: 400-800 words
  • Readability: Flesch-Kincaid grade 6-8 for general audience
  • Originality: 100% unique content, no thin/duplicate content
  • Multimedia: Include images, videos, tables, lists to enhance engagement
  • Freshness: Update content regularly, especially for time-sensitive topics

Keyword density

  • No exact target — write naturally
  • Primary keyword: 0.5-2% is typical for well-ranking pages
  • Avoid keyword stuffing (repeating the same phrase unnaturally)
  • Use semantic variations and related terms (LSI keywords)

MCP Tool: Use analyze_page with includeContent: true to get word count and content analysis.

Image SEO

Rules

| Element | Best Practice | |---------|--------------| | Alt text | Descriptive, 125 chars max, include keyword where relevant. Decorative images: alt="" | | File name | Descriptive with hyphens: blue-running-shoes.webp not IMG_4532.jpg | | Format | WebP or AVIF preferred, JPEG for photos, PNG for transparency, SVG for icons | | File size | Under 200KB per image, use compression tools | | Dimensions | Specify width and height attributes to prevent CLS | | Lazy loading | Add loading="lazy" to below-the-fold images | | Responsive | Use srcset and sizes for responsive images |

Alt text patterns

Good:  "Blue Nike running shoes on a trail"
Good:  "SEO audit dashboard showing Core Web Vitals scores"
Bad:   "image1"
Bad:   "shoes shoes running shoes blue shoes nike shoes"  (keyword stuffing)
Bad:   (empty alt on non-decorative image)

MCP Tool: Use analyze_images to audit all images on a page for alt text, size, format, and lazy loading.

Internal Linking

Internal links distribute link equity (PageRank) and help search engines discover and understand your site structure.

Strategy

  • Hub-and-spoke model: Pillar pages link to cluster pages and vice versa
  • Contextual links: Link within body content (not just navigation) — these carry more weight
  • Descriptive anchors: Use keyword-rich, descriptive anchor text (not "click here" or "read more")
  • Limit per page: Reasonable number (under 100-150 total links; focus on quality)
  • Fix orphan pages: Every indexable page should have at least one internal link pointing to it
  • Link to deep pages: Don't just link to the homepage — distribute equity to important pages
  • Prioritize above-the-fold: Links higher on the page may carry more weight

Anchor text rules

Good:  "Learn about technical SEO auditing"
Good:  "our guide to keyword research"
Bad:   "click here"
Bad:   "this article"
Bad:   "https://example.com/page"  (naked URL)

MCP Tool: Use analyze_internal_links to map all links, evaluate anchor text quality, and detect broken links.

URL Structure

Rules

  • Keep URLs short and descriptive: /seo-audit-checklist not /p?id=123&cat=seo
  • Use hyphens, not underscores: /technical-seo not /technical_seo
  • Lowercase only
  • Include primary keyword
  • Limit depth: 3-4 levels max (/category/subcategory/page)
  • Avoid parameters when possible (use canonical if unavoidable)
  • No stop words: /seo-audit not /the-complete-guide-to-seo-audit
  • Stable URLs — don't change URLs without 301 redirects

Open Graph & Twitter Cards

Essential for social sharing appearance and click-through from social platforms.

Required Open Graph tags

<meta property="og:title" content="Page Title">
<meta property="og:description" content="Page description">
<meta property="og:image" content="https://example.com/image.jpg">
<meta property="og:url" content="https://example.com/page">
<meta property="og:type" content="website">

Twitter Card tags

<meta name="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image">
<meta name="twitter:title" content="Page Title">
<meta name="twitter:description" content="Page description">
<meta name="twitter:image" content="https://example.com/image.jpg">

Image requirements

  • Minimum: 1200x630px for summary_large_image
  • Aspect ratio: 1.91:1
  • File size: Under 5MB
  • Format: JPG, PNG, WebP, GIF

Canonical Tags

Prevent duplicate content issues by specifying the preferred version of a page.

Rules

  • Every indexable page should have a self-referencing canonical: <link rel="canonical" href="https://example.com/page">
  • Use absolute URLs (not relative)
  • Point to the HTTPS version
  • Point to the non-www or www version (whichever is preferred)
  • Don't canonical to a different page unless content is truly duplicate/very similar
  • Don't canonical to a 404 or redirected URL

Quick Reference: On-Page Audit Checklist

| Element | Check | Pass Criteria | |---------|-------|---------------| | Title tag | Present, unique, correct length | 50-60 chars, contains keyword | | Meta description | Present, unique, correct length | 150-160 chars, includes CTA | | H1 | Present, single, contains keyword | Exactly one H1 with primary keyword | | Heading hierarchy | No skipped levels | H1 > H2 > H3 (no jumps) | | Images | Alt text present | All non-decorative images have descriptive alt | | Internal links | Descriptive anchors | No "click here", relevant anchors | | Canonical | Present, self-referencing | Absolute HTTPS URL | | OG tags | Present | og:title, og:description, og:image, og:url | | URL | Clean, keyword-rich | Hyphens, lowercase, concise | | Content | Sufficient, original | Meets word count for page type |

Related Skills

  • seo-technical-audit — for crawlability, speed, and indexing issues
  • seo-schema-structured-data — for adding JSON-LD markup
  • seo-content-strategy — for keyword research and content planning
  • seo-mcp-tools-expert — for using MCP tools effectively

Key MCP Tools for On-Page SEO

| Tool | Use For | |------|---------| | analyze_page | Comprehensive on-page analysis with scoring | | analyze_headings | Heading structure validation | | analyze_images | Image alt text and optimization audit | | analyze_internal_links | Link mapping and anchor text analysis | | generate_meta_suggestions | AI-powered meta tag improvement suggestions |

See COMMON_MISTAKES.md for the 15 most frequent on-page SEO mistakes. See CHECKLISTS.md for step-by-step audit checklists. See EXAMPLES.md for before/after optimization examples.