The Complete Guide to On-Page SEO for Small Business Websites

The Complete Guide to On-Page SEO

On-page SEO is everything on your website that affects rankings. Unlike backlinks (which you can't fully control), on-page SEO is 100% in your hands.

Title Tags

• 50-60 characters
• Include your main keyword
• Include your city for local businesses
• Every page needs a unique title

Meta Descriptions

• 120-160 characters
• Include your keyword naturally
• Tell people why they should click
• Every page needs a unique description

Headings (H1, H2, H3)

• One H1 per page (your main topic)
• H2s for subsections
• Include keywords naturally
• Don't skip levels (H1 → H2 → H3)

Content

• 300+ words per important page
• Answer customer questions
• Include your city and service area
• Use short paragraphs and bullet points

Images

• Descriptive filenames (not IMG_4829.jpg)
• Alt text on every image
• Compress before uploading
• Add image dimensions

Internal Links

• Link between related pages
• Use descriptive anchor text
• Your most important pages should get the most internal links

URL Structure

• Short and descriptive
• Include keywords
• Use hyphens, not underscores
• Avoid dates in URLs

Run a free audit and see which on-page elements need fixing.