Module 3: Technical SEO Fundamentals

Essential Technical SEO Elements

SEO success starts with getting the technical basics right. When looking at any website, I use tools like the Ahrefs or SEO toolbar to quickly check key metrics:

• Domain rating - Shows how your site ranks among the top websites
• Backlinks - How many other sites link to yours
• Referring domains - The number of unique sites linking to you

Canonical URLs

Canonical URLs are essential for your SEO strategy. Without them, search engines might see variations of your page as separate content. For example:

• Your main page: yourdomain.com/page
• With a referral tag: yourdomain.com/page?ref=twitter

Google treats these as two different pages unless you set a canonical URL. This splits your SEO power instead of concentrating it on one page.

For VideoToPage.com, make sure every page has a proper canonical tag pointing to its main version.

Site Configuration Files

Always check these technical elements:

• Robots.txt - Tells search engines which pages to crawl
• Sitemap.xml - Lists all important pages on your site
• Last modification dates - Helps search engines know when content was updated

A common mistake is including pages in your sitemap that shouldn't be indexed. Review your sitemap to remove admin pages, login screens, or other utility pages.

Structured Data Implementation

Structured data helps search engines understand your content better. It's like giving Google a programmatic description of what's on your page.

Types of Structured Data to Use

• Person schema - Great for author pages or about sections
• Article schema - For blog posts and news content
• Review snippets - Shows star ratings in search results

Adding review schema can make your listing stand out with star ratings. I've seen this work well with my own content - my Tag Fully review ranks high partly because of the review snippet showing my rating.

For VideoToPage.com, implement the appropriate schema based on your content type. For courses, use Course schema; for product pages, use Product schema.

On-Page SEO Optimization

Image Optimization

All images should have proper alt text:

• Describe what's in the image
• Include relevant keywords naturally
• Keep it short but descriptive

For example, instead of "image1.jpg" use "instructor teaching SEO fundamentals class"

Open Graph Tags

While Open Graph tags don't directly affect rankings, they improve how your content appears when shared on:

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Telegram
• Slack
• WhatsApp

Always include:

• Title
• Type (website, article, etc.)
• Image
• Description

This makes your content more clickable when shared socially.

SEO Analysis Tools

Browser extensions like Ahrefs toolbar give you quick insights about any page you visit:

• See technical issues instantly
• Check heading structure
• Review meta tags
• Analyze link profiles

For VideoToPage.com, install these extensions to quickly check your pages as you build them.

Content Structure Considerations

Single-page websites (like landing pages) can work well for conversions but might limit your SEO potential. The best approach depends on your goals:

• Single-page sites - Great for focused conversion but fewer ranking opportunities
• Multi-page sites - More chances to rank for different keywords

Consider adding content-rich pages to support your main landing page if SEO is a priority for VideoToPage.com.

Remember, good SEO is about pattern recognition - seeing what works across successful sites and applying those patterns to your own projects.