How to Optimize On-Page SEO with Semrush in 2024

One of the most effective ways to improve your website’s visibility and attract organic traffic is through search engine optimization (SEO).

While SEO encompasses many aspects, on-page optimization is a fundamental element that can significantly impact your search.

It’s the art and science of optimizing your web pages to rank higher in search results and attract more qualified visitors.

Why is it so crucial? Because even the best content won’t perform if search engines can’t find or understand it.

On-page SEO goes beyond just keywords. It encompasses everything from your site’s structure and content quality to its loading speed and mobile-friendliness.

By mastering on-page SEO, you’re creating a better user experience that converts visitors into customers and pleasing search engines

In this guide, we’ll explore how to leverage Semrush, a powerful SEO tool, to optimize your on-page elements effectively.

Read: How to Use Semrush to Analyze Keywords?

1. What is On-Page SEO?

On-page SEO refers to the practice of optimizing individual web pages to rank higher and earn more relevant traffic in search engines. This includes optimizing both the content and HTML source code of a page.

Elements of on-page SEO include:

1. Title tags: The HTML element that specifies the title of a web page. It’s displayed as a clickable headline in search engine results.
2. Meta descriptions: A brief summary of a page’s content that appears under the title tag in search results.
3. Header tags (H1, H2, H3, etc.): Used to structure content hierarchically, helping both users and search engines understand the organization of your content.
4. URL structure: A well-structured URL should be easy to read and include relevant keywords.
5. Content quality and relevance: High-quality, original content that satisfies user intent is crucial for SEO success.
6. Internal linking: Links between pages on your website help distribute page authority and guide users through your site.
7. Image optimization: Proper image formatting, sizing, and use of alt text can improve page load speed and provide additional ranking opportunities.
8. Page loading speed: Fast-loading pages provide a better user experience and are favored by search engines.
9. Mobile responsiveness: With mobile-first indexing, having a mobile-friendly website is more important than ever.
10. Schema markup: This structured data helps search engines understand your content better and can result in rich snippets in search results.

2. Getting Started with Semrush

Semrush is an all-in-one digital marketing toolkit that offers a wide range of features for SEO, content marketing, competitor research, PPC, and social media marketing.

For this guide, we’ll focus primarily on its on-page SEO capabilities.

To begin your journey with Semrush:

1. Sign up for a Semrush account. They offer a 7-day free trial if you’re new to the platform. Use our affiliate link to get a 14-day trial.
2. Once logged in, take some time to familiarize yourself with the dashboard. It may seem overwhelming at first, but you’ll soon appreciate the wealth of information at your fingertips.
3. Set up your first project by clicking on “Projects” in the top left-hand menu and then enter your domain name and select the tools you want to use.

3. Conduct Keyword Research

The foundation of effective on-page SEO is choosing the right keywords. Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool can help you find relevant keywords for your content.

Here’s how to use it:

1. Navigate to the Keyword Magic Tool in Semrush (under “Keyword Research” in the left-hand menu).
2. Enter a seed keyword related to your topic. For example, if you’re writing about coffee machines, you might start with “coffee maker.”
3. Analyze the results, paying attention to:
   • Search volume: How many people are searching for this term monthly.
   • Keyword difficulty: How hard it would be to rank for this keyword.
   • Intent: Whether the keyword suggests informational, navigational, or transactional intent.
4. Use the filters to narrow down your results. You might want to focus on keywords with a certain search volume range or difficulty level.
5. Look for long-tail keywords (more specific phrases) that are relevant to your content. These often have lower competition and can be easier to rank for.
6. Select keywords that align with your content and have a good balance of search volume and competition.

Don’t just focus on the keywords with the highest search volume. Sometimes, targeting several less competitive keywords can be more effective than going after one highly competitive term.

4. Analyze Your Current On-Page SEO

Before making changes, it’s important to understand your current on-page SEO status. Use Semrush’s On Page SEO Checker for this purpose.

First, go to the On Page SEO Checker tool under “On Page & Tech SEO” in the left-hand menu.

If you haven’t already, set up a project for your website. Select the project and click on “Set up.”

Set the target location and then click continue

Choose the pages you want to analyze and the keywords you want to track and click Collect Ideas.

Wait for Semrush to analyze your pages, this may take a few seconds or minutes.

Once the analysis is complete, review the dashboard to see an overview of your on-page SEO health and how to improve it.

Pay special attention to the “Top 10 Benchmarking” tab, which highlights the most critical areas for improvement.

The On-Page SEO Checker provides a wealth of information, including:

• Strategy ideas
• SERP features
• Content ideas
• Technical SEO issues
• Semantic ideas
• Backlink opportunities

Take your time to explore each of these areas. They will form the basis of your on-page optimization strategy.

5. Optimize Title Tags and Meta Descriptions

Title tags and meta descriptions are crucial for both search engines and users.

They’re the first interaction a potential visitor has with your site in the search results, so it’s essential to make them compelling.

Here’s how to optimize them using Semrush:

1. In the On-Page SEO Checker, go to the “Top 10 Benchmarking” section.
2. Look for issues related to title tags and meta descriptions such as:
   • The title or description is too long/short.
   • Missing keywords in the title or description.
   • Duplicate titles or descriptions across multiple pages.
3. Click on each issue to see more details and the affected pages.
4. Use Semrush’s suggestions to improve your titles and descriptions.

For example, if you have a page about “Best Coffee Makers for Home,” your optimized title and description might look like:

Title: “10 Best Coffee Makers for Home Brewing in 2024 | Expert Reviews”
Description: “Discover the top 10 coffee makers for home use. Our expert reviews cover features, price, and performance to help you find your perfect brew. Compare now!”

Remember, while it’s important to optimize for search engines, your primary goal should be to accurately represent your page content and entice users to click through to your site.

6. Improve Header Structure

Proper use of header tags (H1, H2, H3, etc.) helps both search engines and users understand your content structure. It’s like creating an outline for your page.

Here’s how to optimize your header structure using Semrush:

1. In the On Page SEO Checker, go to the “Content Idea” tab, then go to the “Content” section
2. Look for suggestions related to header tags such as:
   • Missing H1 tag
   • Multiple H1 tags on a single page
   • Use target keywords in <h1> tag.
   • Use target keywords in <title> tag.
   • Headers not in hierarchical order
3. Click on each issue to see more details and the affected pages.
4. Implement the suggested changes, keeping these best practices in mind:

• Use only one H1 tag per page “the title” containing your primary keyword
• Use H2 tags for main sections and H3 tags for subsections
• Include relevant keywords in your headers, but keep them natural-sounding
• Ensure your headers accurately describe the content that follows

For example, the structure of this blog post might look like this:

H1: How to Optimize On-Page SEO with Semrush: A Comprehensive Guide
H2: Understanding On-Page SEO
H2: Getting Started with Semrush
H2: Conducting Keyword Research
H3: Using the Keyword Magic Tool
H3: Analyzing Keyword Metrics
H2: Analyzing Your Current On-Page SEO
...

7. Enhance Content Quality and Relevance

High-quality, relevant content is the cornerstone of good SEO. Semrush offers several tools to help you improve your content:

SEO Content Template:

Go to SEO Content Template under “Content Marketing” in the left-hand menu and enter your target keywords

Next, click on the “View SEO Template” button. Semrush will then analyze top-ranking pages and provide recommendations for:

• Semantically related keywords to include
• Backlinks to acquire
• Readability score to aim for
• Text length

Use this information as a guide when creating your content

SEO Writing Assistant:

This tool can be used directly in Google Docs or WordPress. It provides real-time recommendations as you write, including:

• Overall optimization score
• Readability
• SEO keyword usage
• The tone of voice consistency

Topic Research Tool:

Find this under “Content Marketing” in the left-hand menu. Enter a topic and get content ideas, questions people are asking, and related subtopics.

Use this to ensure your content comprehensively covers your chosen topic

Tips When Creating Content:

When creating content, remember:

• Focus on providing value to your audience, not just including keywords
• Cover topics in-depth, aiming for “10x content” that’s substantially better than what’s already ranking
• Use your keywords naturally throughout the content, including in the first 100 words
• Break up text with subheadings, bullet points, and images to improve readability
• Include external links to authoritative sources and internal links to your own relevant content

8. Optimize Internal Linking

Internal linking helps distribute page authority and guides users through your site. It’s an often overlooked aspect of on-page SEO that can have a significant impact.

Under On Page and Tech SEO, click on the Site Audit. Next, choose your project or enter a domain name and start crawling your website pages.

Next, go to the Issues. Under Errors, you will see how many internal links are broken.

Click on it to open the report with all the broken links, pages, HTTP code, and the time it’s been discovered.

The report can also review suggestions for adding internal links.

Some practices for internal linking:

• Links should be natural and helpful to users
• Use descriptive anchor text that includes relevant keywords
• Link to deep pages on your site, not just your homepage or main category pages
• Ensure a good balance of internal links throughout your site

9. Improve Image Optimization

Optimizing images can improve page load speed and provide additional ranking opportunities through image search.

Use Semrush to identify image optimization opportunities. In the On Page SEO Checker, go to the “Content” tab.

Look for image-related suggestions, such as missing alt text or oversized images. Implement the suggestions and keep these best practices in mind:

• Use descriptive, keyword-rich file names for images (e.g., “best-drip-coffee-maker-2024.jpg” instead of “IMG001.jpg”)
• Always include alt text that describes the image, and when relevant, includes your target keyword
• Compress images to reduce file size without significantly impacting quality. You can use tools like TinyPNG or Squoosh for this.
• Consider using next-gen image formats like WebP for faster loading
• Implement lazy loading for images to improve initial page load time

Remember, while it’s good to include keywords in your image file names and alt text, they should always accurately describe the image. Keyword stuffing can hurt your SEO efforts.

10. Common On-Page SEO Mistakes to Avoid

As you optimize your on-page SEO, be aware of these common pitfalls:

1. Keyword Stuffing: Overusing keywords in an unnatural way can hurt your rankings. Focus on writing for humans first, then optimize for search engines.
2. Duplicate Content: Having identical or very similar content on multiple pages can confuse search engines. Use canonical tags when necessary.
3. Ignoring User Intent: Make sure your content matches what users are actually looking for when they search for your target keywords.
4. Neglecting Mobile Optimization: With mobile-first indexing, having a mobile-friendly website is crucial. Use Semrush’s Site Audit tool to check for mobile usability issues.
5. Slow Page Speed: Slow-loading pages can negatively impact both user experience and SEO. Use Semrush’s Site Audit to identify and fix speed issues.
6. Overlooking Meta Descriptions: While not a direct ranking factor, compelling meta descriptions can improve click-through rates, which indirectly affects SEO.
7. Using Generic Titles: Ensure each page has a unique, descriptive title that accurately represents the content and includes relevant keywords.
8. Ignoring Internal Linking: A good internal linking structure helps distribute page authority and guide users through your site. Don’t miss this opportunity.
9. Forgetting About Image Alt Text: Always include descriptive alt text for images. It helps with accessibility and provides context for search engines.
10. Not Updating Old Content: Regularly update your old content to keep it fresh and relevant. This can help maintain and even improve rankings over time.

Conclusion

Optimizing on-page SEO with Semrush can significantly improve your website’s search engine visibility and organic traffic.

SEO is a long-term strategy. Consistency and patience are key. Keep refining your approach, stay up-to-date with SEO best practices, and continue to provide value to your audience through high-quality content.

With persistence and the right tools like Semrush, you’ll see your SEO efforts pay off in improved rankings, increased organic traffic, and ultimately, better business results.

Finally, while tools like Semrush are incredibly powerful, they’re most effective when combined with human insight and creativity.

Use the data and recommendations provided by Semrush, but don’t forget to apply your own expertise and understanding of your audience.