How to Create URLs That are SEO Friendly

How to Create URLs That are SEO Friendly

URL are human readable text designed to replace the IP addresses which computer uses to connect with servers. They are one of the key element of SEO. Some people consider search engines are perfectly capable of reading any URL.

Backlinko– SEO experts published some interesting facts and said URL path is listed as #47 in Google’s top-200 ranking factors, URL Keyword is #57 and ranked URL string as #42. Hence pulling all this together URL optimization is a serious business.

In this article, I am going to discuss the science behind how to create URL’s that are user friendly. A well crafted URL supply both search engine and human with an indication to the destination content. So lets get to it.

 

Elements of URL

First we need to look at the elements of URL. From the look of it, it may look very simple but it comprises several important information.

HTTP- The most popular protocol used in the world wide web. Other protocols are telnet , FTP etc.

Domain Name & Subdirectory of the file

Finally file name of the source.

So there are three parts in a URL that we can customize- the domain name, subdirectories and file names. We will talk in detail on these elements and see how they can best optimized.

 

DOMAIN NAME

1. Use a top level domain and the best bet is “.com” rather using “pro”, “biz”, “tel” etc.

2. Make it short and simple as that is most visible part of the URL and is communicated in business communication, business card flyers. Its easy for your viewer as its convenient to remember. When people find it easy and trust your domain, it will lead a positive impact on the overall SEO.

3. HTTP is also a deal- With increase in cyber its recommended that HTTPS are more secure than HTTP. It just does not keep your visitors at easy but can become a ranking-signal.

 

SUB-DIRECTORIES

We need to consider the depth as well as width of the directories of the folders. Depth is nothing but the number of subfolder in the domain. Using keywords like “e.g.. accessories” is much easier than numbers “e.g.. bat433”.

It just not help the navigation but also help correct indexing on the search engine. If you are still unsure of what folders mean, they are nothing but slashes between the text. In other words less folders- easy to crawl!!

Width meaning number of pages and it does not influence the ranking. So you can put as many as you want. If the pages are unique then there is no problem.

Should it be subfolders or subdomains?

Google sees subdomains as separate domain however if you are publishing non related products, subdomains is a good idea.

 

PAGE NAMES

This is perhaps the most easiest part of the URL to adjust. It takes a lot of time to change the domain name or changing the subfolder structure but changing page name is pretty simple and takes less time.

Choosing the good page name means keywords and usability. So what’s the ideal way to handle keywords while creating URL’s?Do you really need to incorporate them? If yes, how many maximum or minimum can you include?

First- you should include keywords in the URL. Although it will not skyrocket it to number one but should give a boost to your ranking. From a user standpoint, keywords are very vital, people can easily interpret what the content is about moment they look at the URL. Search engines also have similar problem. Simply keying URL , they don’t understand what the page is about

 

Here is the deal though, you don’t want to overuse the keywords. How many should you actually target? Is there a set or defined number?

Lets be practical and honest here. Stuffing keyword is never a good deal. Preferably one or two keywords is good enough and in terms of positioning, the target keyword should be placed somewhere at the start of the URL.

 

Short URL’s are ranked better than long ones.

It may seem creating SEO friendly URL’s is pretty simple on paper but in reality the process is tricky. There are many technical elements to work on including top level domain, obtaining SSL certificate so that users are aware that its safe to use your site. Its complicated but if you work systematically and break things down step by step, its manageable.


RESOURCES

Backlinko: Proven SEO and link building tips

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