10.2.2 Optimising your content

Once you’ve chosen a few search terms, think about which one is likely to be used the most. Use this in your course title and in the introductory paragraph, and mention it a couple of times on each page.

A good title:

• helps you rank in search engine results pages for particular search terms
• tells the user what the course is about
• makes the user want to click through to the course.

The words that you include in your title have the most effect on how highly a page ranks in search results. Take care to include your chosen search terms and include them at the beginning of the title if possible. Ensure that no other content on the site has the same title.

Figure 1 What’s the big idea?

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On the left hand side of this image is an illustration of a rocket with a face and its arms up in the air. To the right of the rocket is the caption ‘Hey! What’s the big idea?’

Figure 1 What’s the big idea?

Try to include your list of search terms (or parts of them) in your introductory paragraph, section headings and subheadings on the page. Breaking up your content in this way helps users scan and navigate, and using appropriately chosen words will contribute to overall search visibility. Try to do this in a way that feels natural and helps the user on the page, rather than what is referred to as ‘keyword stuffing’.