SEO trends are continuously changing and evolving but for years H1 tag has remained a significant factor for SEO. To find out the truth about this claim continue reading this article.

What Is The Header Tag?

There are six different heading elements (h1, h2, and so on). A header tag or <H1> tag is an HTML CSS tag used for the title of a post or page.

H1 is the first header tag visible on a page and is usually formatted differently than other tags (h2, h3, h4). An h1 tag is an element of on-page SEO and looks like this:

<h1>On-Page SEO< /h1>

mage Source: https://www.reliablesoft.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/h1-tag.png

The length of h1 tags depends upon the type of website. It is a common practice to add keywords in h1 tags because there are many SEO benefits of dropping h1 tags with keywords. For example, a webpage about kitchen supplies should have an h1 tag like “kitchen supplies”, “where to find kitchen supplies” or “everything you need to know about kitchen supplies”.

For any website trying to outrank its competition using the right keywords in h1 tags can prove to be a valuable resource.

Difference Between H1 Tag And Title Tag

A lot of people confuse the title tag with the header tag. Let’s see how these two you differ:

  • The title track is displayed on search engine result pages (SERPs) while the header tag is shown to the user while browsing a web page.
  • The title tag is present in the title of the browser but not usually shown on a page. 
  • The title tag signals search engine crawlers on what the webpage is about.

Image Source: https://www.reliablesoft.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/page-title.png

Why Are H1 Tags Important For SEO?

One of the major tasks of a search engine is to comprehend and understand the meaning behind the context of a web page. To do this the search engines use different signals to assess the structure of web pages. One such signal is the H1 tag and page title. 

The search engine crawlers read the HTML element to identify which keywords are enclosed in the H1 tag. Therefore, by using keywords in H1 tags search engines understand what a web content is about. This is the reason why H1 tags are a major ranking factor of SEO.

SEO Ranking Factors 

Image Source: https://neilpatel.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/image21-3.jpg

Another reason why header tags are so important is that they make navigation easier for users. H1 tags make accessibility simple by enhancing the website structure, because simply by looking at the H1 tag, users can not know what the page is about while the other important headings tell the users what to expect in every section.

How To Improve SEO With H1 Tags

 

  • Use Only One H1 Tag

Every page requires only one H1 tag. The presence of more than one H1 tag will dilute efforts of H1 tag and could confuse search engines. If your page has multiple header tags than Google will have a hard time choosing the right one and may completely ignore all the tags. Also, better SEO results are expected from one H1 rule.

 

  • Write The Optimal Length H1 Tag

The optimal character length of each H1 tag should be 20-70 characters. By writing a very short H1 tag you are wasting valuable space on your webpage. If the h1 tag is too lengthy it will dilute the strength of keywords – Medium length is perfect for H1 tags which allows you to create a simple normal sentence easier for search engines to comprehend.

 

  • Make The H1 Tag Prominent

Designing HTML tags is an important area of Web development. An H1 tag should be the most prominent visual element on a webpage. Remember that an H1 tag is a semantic element yet it is often treated as a style element because following design best practices will make your semantic tags more effective.

An H1 tag should be strong, noticeable, and visually appealing. You can use different formatting and style elements to make the text stand out. This is important because it enhances the user experience.

 

  • Use Long-Tail Keywords In H1 Tags

The average conversion rate for long-tail keywords is 36%. (Source: Neil Patel)

Long-tail keywords perform better than simple keywords when it comes to SEO because long-tail keywords are how people search the internet. By using long-tail keywords in the H1 tag you create a more relevant and clear H1 tag.

Every search query is based on the user intent. So, if the H1 tag does not match the user intent then the visitors will leave your website. This behavior of website visitors going back to search results after visiting a website is known as Pogo sticking and negatively affects rankings in the long run. The only way to make your visitors stay on your website is by offering them what they are looking for. The best way to do that is to write a compelling H1 tag which will directly satisfy their query. 

SEO efforts do not completely rely upon H1 tag optimization. However it is an important ranking factor, so by correctly optimizing H1 tags, you can improve technical SEO.