In their SEO starter guide, Google highlights why it is important to use simple, user-friendly terms for your web page’s URL structure. However, this is something many people don’t get right when conducting search engine optimisation activities.
While it is a minor ranking factor compared to other on-page SEO elements like the quality of the content, H1 tags, and internal links, it’s fair to say that every little bit helps, right?
The good news is that creating a good URL slug isn’t all that difficult, and it is something we’ve highlighted how to do in this guide.
Hopefully, you will find it a helpful resource.
What Is a URL?
A URL is the unique web address of a page that allows users and search engines to locate specific resources on the internet.
Officially known as a “Uniform Resource Locator”, it serves two key functions. Firstly, it helps to identify web resources because every webpage, image, video, or document online has a unique URL that distinguishes it from other content.
It also allows users to quickly access content because when they enter a URL into a browser’s address bar or click a link on Google’s search results, it takes them to the web page.
<h2″>Anatomy of a URL
<p”>The web address of this page you are reading right now is https://www.paperstack.com.au/blog/seo-url, and as you can see, it has been designed to be an SEO-friendly URL structure.
All URLs comprise several parts that help define their exact location and function. They include the following:
- Protocol: This specifies how the browser communicates with the server. For example, “https://” indicates a secure connection.
- Domain Name: The website’s address (e.g., www.paperstack.com.au).
- Path: The specific destination page or resource within the website (e.g., /blog/seo-url).
Additionally, you can optionally configure them to incorporate
- URL Parameters: Extra data that is used to filter or track content (e.g., ?utm_source=google).
- Fragment: A specific section of the page often used for navigation (e.g., #section3).
URL paths are always in lowercase letters and human-readable text. Sometimes, they also incorporate hyphens to separate words.
Why Are URLs Important for SEO?
Well-structured URLs help users and search engines to understand the content of a webpage. However, they are also important for SEO as they can enhance your website’s overall performance in the following ways:
Improved User Experience
A clean, intuitive URL can enhance your user’s experience by clearly indicating what a page is about before they even click the link.
For instance, when users see a well-structured URL like “https://www.paperstack.com.au/blog/seo-url”, they will instantly get a better idea of the page’s topic than if they saw a URL structure such as “https://www.paperstack.com.au/index.php?id=12345″.
This should make them feel more confident about navigating to your website. In addition, readable URLs also make it easier for users to remember and return to specific pages, which, therefore, reduces bounce rates and increases their engagement.
Better Search Engine Rankings
Search engine bots analyse URLs to understand the context of a page and ascertain whether it should be included in specific listings.
Therefore, including relevant keywords in multiple URLs without keyword stuffing can improve your rankings by signalling to search engines what the content is about.
For example, the page URL of brisbane.com/best-coffee-shops is more SEO-friendly than brisbane.com/page1?=xyz123 because it clearly communicates its topic.
At the same time, as a logical URL structure helps search engines crawl and index pages efficiently, it will also improve your website’s online visibility.
Links and Sharing
It is also true that well-structured URLs are more likely to be shared and linked to on social media, forums, and other websites.
One reason for this is that a short and descriptive URL length, such as the one outlined above, is easier to copy, paste, and share, which increases the likelihood of earning valuable backlinks to your site from authoritative sources.
SEO Best Practices for URLs
Now you know what URLs are and their role in SEO, let’s explore some URL best practices.
1. Use Descriptive and Relevant Keywords
Including keywords in your URLs helps users and search engines understand what your page’s content is about. However, it is vital to use keywords naturally and avoid stuffing them.
A clear, concise URL with suitable keywords will improve your search rankings and click-through rates without looking spammy. So try to avoid URLs like – example.com/best-running-shoes-top-running-shoes-buy-running-shoes.
Instead, choose something like example.com/best-running-shoes.
Keep URLs Short and Simple
As a rule, shorter URLs are easier to read, remember, and share. Moreover, long or overly complex URLs can be confusing for users and may get cut off when shared on social media or search results.
Therefore, where possible, try to remove unnecessary words, numbers, and special characters to keep URLs clean and user-friendly.
While example.com/seo-tips-for-beginners-2024-complete-guide-to-ranking-better-on-google tells you what the web page is about, you would be better off using example.com/seo-tips instead.
Use HTTPS for Security
Google considers website security a ranking factor, which means that sites like ours with HTTPS in the full URL are essential both for SEO and for gaining a user’s trust.
Websites with HTTPS encrypt data, which makes them safer for readers. Furthermore, if you still have HTTP in your URL, search engines may display security warnings in web browsers, which can discourage visitors and harm rankings.
Separate Words with Hyphens
When creating URLs, it is always best to separate words with hyphens (-). Search engines recognise them as word separators but do not treat underscores (_) the same way.
While using hyphens improves readability and makes URLs more SEO-friendly, underscores can cause search engines to interpret words as a single string (seo_best_practices), making it harder to understand the page’s topic.
For this reason, aim to recreate the structure of example.com/seo-best-practices instead of example.com/seo_best_practices.
Avoid Dynamic Parameters
URL parameters are tags that can be added to the end of your URL structure, predominantly for the purposes of tracking or dynamic content insertion. Unfortunately, they can result in URLs such as example.com/product?id=123&ref=category-shoes.
Often, they are automatically generated by your content management system. So, if they are necessary, consider changing them to static URLs that describe the content clearly, i.e. example.com/running-shoes.
Canonicalise Duplicate URLs
If multiple URLs lead to the same or similar content, search engines may struggle to determine which version to rank.
In such circumstances, use a canonical tag (rel=”canonical”) similar to <link rel=”canonical” href=”https://example.com/seo-guide“> to tell search engines which URL to prioritise.
Doing this will ensure that search engines recognise it as the preferred version, even if similar variations exist, and you avoid duplicate content penalties.
Examples of SEO-Friendly URLs
There are, of course, several different types of web pages, but the principle remains the same. Creating SEO-friendly URLs involves structuring them in a way that is clear, concise, and descriptive.
Here are some examples of well-optimised URLs for different types of pages.
Homepage
Example: https://example.com/
The homepage URL should be clean, straightforward, and just the domain name.
Search engines treat the homepage as the main authority of a website.
Keep it short and direct to improve your page’s brand recognition and usability and avoid unnecessary words, parameters, or subdirectories.
Product Page
Example: https://example.com/wireless-headphones
For product pages, indicate the product being sold and try to include the most appropriate keyword. Do not put unnecessary parameters like long product codes or query strings, and make them user-friendly, easy to remember and easy to share.
Blog Post
Example: paperstack.com.au/blog/seo-url
Keep them as short and concise as possible, maintain a logical structure and separate each keyword with hyphens.
Product Category Page
Example: https://example.com/shoes/mens-running
Category pages, like blog posts, should be organised under a logical hierarchy that clearly describes the product subcategory of men’s running shoes.
Service Page
Example: https://example.com/web-design-services
Prominently outline the service your page promotes with apposite keywords and omit unnecessary words.
How to Optimise Existing URLs for SEO
If you need to improve the SEO of your existing URLs, it’s essential to do so carefully to avoid losing your rankings and traffic.
The best way to start this is by analysing your current URLs to identify areas for improvement. This could involve removing unnecessary parameters, adding high-value keywords, or making them more readable.
However, since changing URLs can impact search engine rankings, you should always set up 301 redirects from your old URL to the new one to preserve your link equity and prevent broken links.
Additionally, updating all internal links across your website to reflect the new URLs will ensure a smoother user experience, while if an old URL has been linked externally, consider reaching out to website owners to request they update their links, if possible.
Once you have done this, submit the updated URLs to Google Search Console to help search engines reindex them faster.
Common Mistakes to Avoid in URL SEO
Optimising URLs incorrectly can hurt your SEO and user experience, and as mentioned, there are some common mistakes people make when trying to do so.
Outlined below are some of the main ones to avoid. If you can do this, you will create cleaner, more SEO-friendly URLs that will enhance your search rankings.
- Using uppercase letters
- Keyword stuffing
- Overly generic URLs
- Using underscores instead of hyphens
- Using special characters or dynamic parameters
Final Thoughts: Build SEO-Friendly URLs That Work
Taking the time to adhere to URL best practices should be a vital part of your overall SEO strategy.
Hopefully, this guide has helped you to understand how you can do that most effectively on all your website pages.
However, if you need help crafting better URL slugs or with your search engine optimisation in general, please contact the expert team at Paperstack today.