Search engine optimisation has a reputation for being technical and mysterious, but a large part of it is simply making each page on your website clear about what it offers and who it’s for. That part is called on-page SEO, and it’s the part you control completely. You don’t need to buy anything or wait for anyone else to link to you. You need to write and structure your pages well. This guide explains what that means in plain English, page element by page element, with examples a plumber, accountant or café owner can apply this week.
What on-page SEO actually covers
Think of it as everything on the page itself that helps search engines and people understand it: the words, the headings, the title that shows in search results, the page address, the images and the links between your pages. It sits alongside two other areas. Technical SEO is about whether search engines can crawl and load your site properly. Off-page SEO is mostly about other websites and listings mentioning and linking to you. All three matter, but the on-page work is where most small-business sites have the easiest gains.
Start with one page, one purpose
The most common problem I see isn’t a missing keyword. It’s a single “Services” page that lists eight different services in a paragraph each. That page can’t rank well for any of them, because it isn’t really about any of them.
Give each main service its own page. If you’re an electrician who does rewiring, EV charger installation and emergency call-outs, those are three pages, each written for the person searching for that specific job. Then decide on one main phrase per page: the words a customer would actually type. “EV charger installation Leeds” is a better target than “electrical solutions”.
To find those phrases, start with what customers say when they phone you, then type them into Google and look at the suggestions and the “People also ask” box. You don’t need an expensive tool to get started.
The elements to get right on every page
Title tag
This is the clickable blue headline in search results, and it’s one of the strongest signals you control. Put the main phrase near the start, add your location if you serve a local area, and include your business name at the end if there’s room. Keep it roughly under 60 characters so it isn’t cut off. “Boiler Repair in Bristol | Same-Week Visits | Smith Heating” does far more work than “Home”.
Meta description
The short text under the title in results. It doesn’t directly change rankings, but it influences whether people click. Write it like a small advert: what you do, for whom, and one reason to choose you. Google sometimes rewrites it, but a good one is used more often than not.
URL
Short, readable and descriptive: /boiler-repair-bristol/ rather than /page-id-482/ or /services/heating/boiler/repair-and-servicing-for-homes/. Set these properly before launch, because changing them later needs redirects.
Headings
Each page should have one main heading (H1) that says what the page is about, usually close to your target phrase. Below that, use H2 and H3 subheadings to break the content into sections a reader can scan. Headings are structure, not decoration; don’t choose them just because you like the font size.
The content itself
Write for the customer first. Answer the questions they’d ask before hiring you: what’s included, how long it takes, roughly what it costs or what affects the price, which areas you cover, and what happens next. Use your main phrase naturally in the first paragraph and a few times after that, along with the related words people use. Repeating the same phrase over and over reads badly and doesn’t help.
There’s no magic word count. A service page that answers the real questions often lands somewhere between 500 and 1,000 words, but a thin page with 150 words of generic text will struggle almost regardless of what else you do.
Images
Use real photos of your work where you can, name the files descriptively before uploading (kitchen-extension-oak-floor.jpg rather than IMG_4471.jpg), add alt text that describes the image for people using screen readers, and compress them so they don’t slow the page down.
Internal links
Link between related pages using descriptive text. A blog post about choosing a boiler should link to your boiler installation page with words like “our boiler installation service”, not “click here”. These links help visitors find what they need and help search engines understand which pages matter most.
Things that support your pages
A few factors aren’t strictly on-page but affect how well your pages perform:
- Speed and mobile usability. A slow or awkward page on a phone undermines good content. My guide on how to speed up a WordPress website covers the practical fixes.
- Local signals. If you serve a local area, your Google Business Profile, reviews and consistent address details matter as much as your pages. The local SEO checklist for small businesses walks through these.
- Structured data. Code that labels your business details, reviews or FAQs for search engines. Most SEO plugins add the basics; Google’s own SEO Starter Guide is a reliable reference if you want to go further.
A simple order of work
- List your main services and locations, and make sure each has its own page.
- Choose one main phrase per page.
- Rewrite the title tag, meta description and H1 for each page.
- Expand thin pages so they answer the questions customers really ask.
- Rename and compress images, and add alt text.
- Add internal links between related pages and posts.
- Check results in Google Search Console after a few weeks, not a few days.
On WordPress, a plugin such as Yoast SEO or Rank Math gives you fields for titles and descriptions on every page, which makes steps 3 and 5 straightforward. If your theme makes headings or page structure hard to control, that’s worth fixing at the build level; I’ve written more about that in the art of WordPress development.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long does on-page SEO take to show results?
Changes are often picked up within a few weeks, but ranking improvements can take a few months, especially in competitive areas. Anyone promising first-page results in days should be treated with caution.
Do I need an SEO plugin on WordPress?
It isn’t strictly required, but it makes editing titles, descriptions and sitemaps much easier. Use one SEO plugin only; running two causes duplicate tags.
Should I write blog posts as well as service pages?
Service pages come first, because they’re what people land on when they’re ready to buy. Blog posts help when they answer genuine questions your customers ask and link back to the relevant service.
Need help?
If you’d rather have someone review and fix your pages, my search engine optimisation service covers this work, and I handle structural fixes through website development when the theme is the obstacle. Send me your site address and I’ll reply within 24–48 hours.