SEO efforts are highly efficient when applied at the initial steps of website development. Search engine optimization is an ongoing process that requires regular adjustments. The sooner you start implementing the latest strategies, the fast you can reap the benefits.

Whether you already have some experience with search engine optimization or looking for the basics, these steps can give you a good start.

1.    Pick the right domain name

Your domain name represents your brand and becomes part of each SEO effort you make in the future. Invest time and money into coming up with a highly appealing and SEO-friendly domain name for your website.

Try not to opt for anything general. The name should refer to your brand and perhaps even contain one of your main keywords. With the right domain name, keyword building and content creation will be easier.

Your domain name should:

• Be memorable
• Contain keywords if possible
• Be separated by hyphens if two or more words are used
• Be a top-level domain (.com, .net, .org, or .edu)

2.    Choose the right hosting

One of the most important ranking factors for your website is the loading time. To make sure your pages load fast and you don’t experience downtime, it’s important to choose the right hosting.

While you are choosing the provider suitable for your needs, remember to check if it offers premium packages. As you expand your business, you could need additional functionality and speed.

3.    Start keyword search

Keywords are a vital part of all your SEO efforts. Without them, you can start filling your website with the content or even choose a domain name. Numerous SEO tools exist to help you find the right keywords for your optimization efforts.
When searching for keywords, make sure to check what your competitors are doing. If something works for them, don’t be hesitant to copy their efforts. Meanwhile, look for the keywords they’ve missed. It’s an excellent opportunity to fill a niche.

If you are a local business, focus on the local keyword search. It will be necessary for increasing your brand visibility on the local level.

4.    Organize your website

Efficient website architecture is a ranking factor for all search engines. Google likes websites with simple architecture since it improves user experience. While numerous subpages are excellent for internal linking efforts, they may confuse the user and increase the bounce rate.

The fewer pages you use, the faster the loading time, and the easier the navigation. However, you still need landing pages and main product description pages. When setting up your website, focus on efficiency and minimalism. Try to reduce the number of clicks done by users.

Plan the website hierarchy before you start creating your website. This way you can have an easier time adapting it to SEO efforts.

5.    Create a content plan

Content is an integral part of any digital marketing campaign. According to experts from Miromind, before launching the website, you should have a clear content plan. The more content you provide, the more keywords you can use, and the happier search engines will be with your website.

Focus on the quality and optimization of content you write. Once you are done, create a content plan for further posts. The more valuable content you add and the more often you do it, the easier your SEO efforts will be.

6.    Opt for a mobile-friendly design

With 3.5 billion people using smartphones worldwide, a mobile-friendly design is a must-have for any website. Wide designs, complicated media, and hard-to-read formats are out of the question.

Today, most website developers offer a mobile-friendly design. However, not all such designs are created equal.

You need to test your website extensively to make sure it looks just as good on a mobile device as it does on the desktop.

7.    Optimize all URLs

Each website URL you use must be optimized for SEO. Forget about long phrases, numbers, and characters. Long links can hurt your website’s rankings.

•  The URL should have a sustainable structure and contain a keyword.

• Try to make the links as short as possible.

• When you create a new page, keep the URL in mind.

• Look at the way your successful competitors have done.

• Avoid using stop words.

• Create a short summary of the page, using as few words as possible.

• Avoid keyword stuffing.

8.    Focus on metadata

Your entire website should contain well-crafted metadata. From image descriptions to titles, don’t hesitate to spend extra time make this information look just right.

• Create unique title tags (between 50 and 60 characters) for each page on your website
• Include keywords as close to the beginning of each piece of metadata as possible.
• Keep consistent title tag structure across the website
• Keep meta descriptions under 155 characters
• Always include keywords naturally
• Add alt text for images

Tweaking metadata is an ongoing SEO process. Google tends to change its requirements and algorithms related to this type of information.

9.    Work on internal linking

You should take full advantage of internal linking whenever you write a new piece of content for the website or create a new page. Keep your linking relevant.

The key goal of such links is to improve customer experience and keep them on the website longer. Google likes a proper linking structure as well so it can affect your rankings.

10.  Submit your sitemap to Google

To rank your website, Google needs to crawl it. By simply getting your website up and running, you are putting in on the search engine’s radar. With time, it’s going to come around to crawling and ranking it.

To speed up the process, you can submit your sitemap by using Google Search Console. Do it to tell Google about the existence of your website.

Launch your SEO campaign early

Start your SEO campaign as soon as you start developing your website. This can improve your optimization efforts substantially. Take advantage of the above tips to do it smoothly. In case you’ve already created a website, you can use this information to tweak its appearance and performance for further SEO efforts.