What is URL structure SEO?

The Uniform Resource Locator (URL) of a website is what people type into the address bar (or click on from search engine results pages). It's a unique address that typically ends in .com, .net, .org, and the such. Each document and subpage on a website has its own url. SEO that involves URL structure essentially means that the very words in the web address will include a helpful keyword.

What makes URL structure SEO such a crucial piece of the website of a business?

While website copy containing targeted phrases and keywords are great for search engine results pages (SERPs) rankings, another benefit it involves is the experience of users. It is that very same thought process which runs URL structure SEO. Search engines read quite a bit of code, but one of their main anchors is the URL of a website. The easier to read and the cleaner it gets, the more it is likely to be found by search engines crawlers. 

People will be far more encouraged to click on links when the URL has simple qualities. It means that whatever is present on the page the person is checking out comes across well. When the URL that is used for a business website is something that's been generated automatically and has vague qualities, that could pose a lot of problems. There will be a heavy need to rely on headlines as well as meta descriptions for an increase in clicks to come in.

What are some of the best practices to apply when it comes to URL structure SEO?

• Establish a structure that is uniform
  
  URL addresses need to be approached much in the same way overall branding. Each element of a business's brand must show consistency—and not just for awareness. It may seem unimportant, but consistency helps to cement the place of your brand in the minds of customers. A single uniform structure is the best route when it comes to every website page.
  
  Subcategories are helpful, but too many will end up becoming a hindrance. In most cases, you’ll find that two subcategories for every page are more than enough.
  
  
• Keep a particular eye on formatting matters
  
  Case sensitivity applies to URLs sometimes, depending on the website hosting platforms. When lowercase and capital letters are used in a URL, a user has to exactly match cases before finding a website or particular page. A good way to test things out is typing a URL that exists in the wrong manner in a web browser. Then, seeing if the incorrect way leads to the browser anyway.
  
  
• Leading with the domain is a non-negotiable
  
  Websites are constantly updated, as they should be. Any piece of new content that comes along needs to have the domain name still starting with the URL. In this way, users will know for sure that it's still the company or organization's content. It will also be much easier to connect the various aspects of a website.
  
  A blog post, for example, would be best done through:
  
  nameofbusiness.com/blog/the-title-of-the-post
  
  or
  
  companyororganizationname.com/blog/the-title-of-the-post
  
  The URL structure is what helps users learn that the blog they found with a search engine is on the website of a company or organization. This makes finding the homepage convenient, encouraging an exploration of the overall website. At the very least, they will likely peruse another article or two.
  
  
• Prioritize readability
  
  At this point, this may go without saying, but it's still worth noting. Custom URLs on the subpages and other content of a website need to be easy to read. The fewer words are in use, the better, so long as the main message being communicated isn’t lost.
  
  Many SEO experts recommend omitting words that aren't needed, particularly terms referred to as 'stop words'. This includes the lies of "and", "a", "the", and more. However, if the page's overall meaning will shift considerably should any of those words be excluded, then the URL must have them nonetheless.
  
  Take, for example, a blog post that is called "Running A Small Home Bakery Business". Even if "a" gets taken out of the title, the overall meaning doesn't change. The URL can thus be changed to omit that.
  
  The resulting URL then becomes nameofbusiness.com/blog/running-small-home-bakery-business.
  
  Some titles have stop words that need to be in the URL still, however. "What is a Home Bakery?" has stop words, and in this case, taking those will lead to nameofbusiness.com/blog/what-home-bakery.
  
  When that happens, taking the stop words out of the equation will harm instead of help. Search engines will end up wildly confused more than getting any results that are actually helpful in their system.
  
  
• Take parameters away if the situation allows
  
  The URL can occasionally include functional website parts in it. There are characters and codes alike involved.
  
  Some e-commerce websites have features which track the number of times certain products have been looked at by others. In those cases, the URL can turn into something reminiscent of:
  
  nameofbusiness.com?productid=5678.
  
  Search engine results won't move lower just because of certain parameters. However, they will certainly lead the URLs to become quite the jumble. In some cases, using a website builder platform will allow for URLs to be cleaned instantly without page function being interrupted. As much as possible, use a tag or three that are clean. 

Conclusion

Visibility and cutting through the noise of competitors on the internet is particularly necessary now that practically everyone is moving their business online. URL structure SEO is an incredibly helpful way for you to get more customers to visit your website and choose you over other competitors.

Take parameters away if the situation allows, establish a standard structure, and prioritize readability. Work with a reputable, affordable SEO company that can give you the best results without breaking the budget of your company or organization.

About The Stack Group

Unsure which SEO agency can help you best? Reach out to The Stack Group! We design industry-leading websites, manage social media, and rank sites strategically on search engines to help small business owners thrive in the ever-changing digital landscape.

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