The Ultimate SEO Checklist for 2024
Your website, no matter how visually stunning or filled with epic content, is nothing without search engine optimization (SEO). It’s what gets your website seen by the right people. But where do you begin?
At MOD | Marketing on Demand, we’ve simplified the SEO process into five essential categories to help you build a strong foundation for your website’s success.
1. The Basics
Start by getting set up on the key platforms:
Google Analytics
Google Search Console (GSC)
Bing Webmaster Tools (yes, people still use Bing!)
Each of these platforms offers additional insights and actions after setup, so be sure to explore them fully. If you’re using WordPress, install an SEO plugin (we recommend Yoast or Rank Math).
Next steps:
Generate and submit your sitemap to GSC and Bing Webmaster Tools.
Create a Robots.txt file so Google knows which pages to crawl.
Make sure your website is indexed. If it’s not, Google can’t crawl or display your website to your audience.
2. Keyword Research
Keyword research is at the core of your SEO strategy. Here’s what you need to do:
Determine your competitors: Understand who’s ranking for the keywords you want to target.
Analyze keyword gaps: Identify keywords your competitors rank for that you don’t.
Find your main "money" keywords, long-tail variations, and question-based keywords.
Create a keyword map to prioritize keywords based on search volume and difficulty.
We recommend tools like AHREFS, Semrush, and Google Ads Keyword Planner to help with this process.
3. Technical SEO
Without a solid technical foundation, even the best content won’t get noticed. Here’s what to do:
Run a site crawl to fix issues like broken links, images, and orphaned pages.
Ensure your site is secure (it should start with HTTPS).
Use an SEO-friendly URL structure: Keep URLs short, clean, and keyword-focused.
Verify that your website is mobile-friendly.
Use PageSpeed Insights to ensure your site’s pages load quickly. If they’re too slow, visitors will bounce.
Check for duplicate versions of your site and use canonical tags to avoid confusion for Google.
Consider adding structured data to help search engines understand your content better.
4. On-Page SEO
Effective on-page SEO ensures your content is easily found and understood by search engines. Focus on:
Running a content audit to optimize structure and identify pages with light content.
Optimizing image alt tags with relevant keywords.
Fixing title tags and meta descriptions that are duplicated, missing, or the wrong length.
Checking that each page only has one H1 tag.
Avoiding keyword cannibalization so each page focuses on its unique keyword.
Updating outdated content regularly.
Improving content readability for a better user experience.
5. Off-Page SEO
Build authority through off-page efforts:
Analyze your competitors’ link profiles to find gaps in your backlink strategy.
Target broken backlinks from your competitors for opportunities.
Use the Skyscraper technique to create valuable content and attract more backlinks.
Review blog posts for unlinked brand mentions and turn them into valuable links.
Collaborate with your social media and PPC teams to leverage digital PR.
Create and optimize your Google My Business profile to boost local SEO.
BOOST YOUR ONLINE VISIBILITY WITH SEO
Talk to the SEO Experts
At MOD, we specialize in crafting SEO strategies that drive results. Whether you need a full SEO overhaul or just guidance on where to start, we’re here to help.
Learn how we can help you optimize your website and get it in front of the audience it deserves.
