/optimize-seo

SEO Reference (2025-2026)

Ranking Factor Weights (First Page Sage, Q1 2025)

Note: These are directional estimates, not published by Google.

On-Page SEO Checklist

Title and Meta

• Unique title tag, 50-60 characters, primary keyword near start
• Unique meta description, 150-160 chars, includes keyword and CTA
• Open Graph tags (og:title, og:description, og:image, og:url, og:type)
• Twitter Card tags (twitter:card, twitter:title, twitter:description, twitter:image)

Headings

• Single H1 containing primary keyword
• Logical H2/H3 hierarchy (no skipped levels)
• At least one H2 with keyword variation or related question
• No heading tags used purely for styling

URL

• Short, descriptive, hyphenated, lowercase
• Primary keyword in URL
• HTTPS
• Consistent trailing slash with canonical tag

Content

• Primary keyword in first 100 words
• Comprehensive topic coverage
• Original data, examples, or insights
• Author attribution with bio link
• Publication date and "last updated" date visible
• External links to authoritative sources
• Answers likely user questions (AI Overview eligibility)

Images

• Descriptive file names (not image001.jpg)
• Alt text on all images (descriptive, keyword where natural)
• Explicit width and height attributes
• WebP format, compressed
• loading="lazy" on below-fold images

Internal Linking

• Links to relevant internal pages with descriptive anchor text
• No orphan pages
• Pillar page linked to cluster content

Structured Data

• Appropriate schema type (Article, FAQ, Product, LocalBusiness, etc.)
• JSON-LD format
• Validated with Google Rich Results Test

Technical

• Page indexed (check via site:domain.com/page/)
• Canonical tag set correctly
• No accidental noindex tag
• Core Web Vitals passing (LCP <2.5s, INP <200ms, CLS <0.1)
• Mobile-friendly
• Page loads under 2.5s on mobile

Meta Tag Specifications

Title tag: 50-60 characters. Primary keyword near start. Brand at end.

<title>Primary Keyword - Secondary Context | Brand</title>

Meta description: 150-160 characters. Keyword + CTA.

<meta name="description" content="Compelling description with keyword. Actionable CTA." />

Canonical:

<link rel="canonical" href="https://example.com/preferred-url/" />

Open Graph:

<meta property="og:title" content="Page Title" />
<meta property="og:description" content="Description for social shares" />
<meta property="og:image" content="https://example.com/image.jpg" />
<meta property="og:url" content="https://example.com/page/" />
<meta property="og:type" content="article" />

Twitter Card:

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

Structured Data Templates (JSON-LD)

Article

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Article",
  "headline": "Article Title",
  "image": "https://example.com/image.jpg",
  "author": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Author Name", "url": "https://example.com/author/" },
  "publisher": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Publisher Name",
    "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://example.com/logo.png" }
  },
  "datePublished": "2025-01-15",
  "dateModified": "2025-12-01",
  "description": "Brief summary."
}

FAQPage

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "FAQPage",
  "mainEntity": [{
    "@type": "Question",
    "name": "Question text?",
    "acceptedAnswer": { "@type": "Answer", "text": "Answer text." }
  }]
}

LocalBusiness

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "LocalBusiness",
  "name": "Business Name",
  "image": "https://example.com/photo.jpg",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "streetAddress": "123 Main St",
    "addressLocality": "City",
    "addressRegion": "ST",
    "postalCode": "12345",
    "addressCountry": "US"
  },
  "telephone": "+1-555-000-0000",
  "url": "https://example.com",
  "openingHoursSpecification": [{
    "@type": "OpeningHoursSpecification",
    "dayOfWeek": ["Monday", "Tuesday", "Wednesday", "Thursday", "Friday"],
    "opens": "09:00", "closes": "17:00"
  }]
}

Organization

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Organization",
  "name": "Company Name",
  "url": "https://example.com",
  "logo": "https://example.com/logo.png",
  "sameAs": ["https://twitter.com/handle", "https://linkedin.com/company/name"]
}

Product

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Product",
  "name": "Product Name",
  "image": "https://example.com/product.jpg",
  "description": "Product description",
  "brand": { "@type": "Brand", "name": "Brand Name" },
  "offers": {
    "@type": "Offer",
    "price": "29.99",
    "priceCurrency": "USD",
    "availability": "https://schema.org/InStock",
    "url": "https://example.com/product/"
  }
}

BreadcrumbList

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
  "itemListElement": [
    { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://example.com/" },
    { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Category", "item": "https://example.com/category/" },
    { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Page Title" }
  ]
}

Core Web Vitals Thresholds

FID was replaced by INP in March 2024.

LCP fixes: Preload LCP element, use CDN, defer JS, inline critical CSS, WebP images, set width/height on images.

INP fixes: Minimize JS execution, break long tasks (>50ms), use web workers, debounce event handlers.

CLS fixes: Set width/height on images/videos, reserve space for ads/embeds, use transform animations, preload fonts with font-display: swap.

AI Overview Optimization

• AI Overviews appear in 50%+ of Google searches (2026)
• Question-based queries trigger AIO 99.2% of the time
• Structure: question-based H2 → 50-70 word direct answer → expand
• Use FAQ, HowTo, Article schemas to increase citation likelihood
• Strong E-E-A-T signals increase chance of being cited
• Sites cited in AIO see ~35% higher CTR

E-E-A-T Signals

Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness

Implement via:

• Author bylines with linked bio pages showing credentials
• Publication and "last updated" dates
• Links to authoritative external sources
• Third-party citations and reviews
• For YMYL (health, finance, legal): demonstrated professional expertise required

Common Mistakes

• Keyword stuffing (write for humans)
• Missing/duplicate title tags and meta descriptions
• No canonical tags on duplicate content
• Broken internal links (404s)
• Redirect chains (consolidate to single hop)
• Uncompressed images (biggest LCP killer)
• Missing image dimensions (causes CLS)
• Render-blocking JS without async/defer
• Accidental noindex tags from staging
• AI content without editorial review
• Targeting multiple competing keywords on one page
• Orphan pages with no internal links