A Comprehensive SEO Checklist for Squarespace Websites in 2024

This is a detailed guide and checklist for websites built on the Squarespace platform, updated for 2024. As a top-ranked Squarespace SEO Specialist, I want to point out ALL the platform-specific ways you can optimize pages of your site for their target keywords.

You’ll learn:

Insight into keyword research
Exactly where to place keywords on-page and in backend settings
Best practices for writing meta descriptions
The power of URL’s and page titles and how to optimize both
How to optimize images before and after uploading to your site
And a whole lot more

Let’s begin!

Keyword Research

Keyword research is the very first step of any Search Engine Optimization work.

Keywords are how people find websites.

You probably landed on this article because you entered a search query into Google, right?

So our first step is to find out which search queries, or keywords, your target audience is entering into Google.

**How to find keywords for your Squarespace site**

If we look at the traffic sources in Squarespace Analytics, you can see the majority of traffic to this site is organic, meaning: coming straight from Google search. This is because I've targeted applicable keywords for my business and implemented those keywords throughout the site over time as part of an overall SEO strategy.

But how do you know the right keywords for your site?

Suggested Keywords

First, think about your core offering. What is the primary service or product you offer? What is the point of your website? Are you seeking to attract local clientele? National? Worldwide?

Then start testing keyword ideas in Google, based on your offering + the location (if applicable). You'll see that Google automatically shows a dropdown list of matching keywords, this is called Suggested Keywords. These are important because it tells us that these are keywords related to our website that people are already searching on Google.

FOR EXAMPLE:

If your Squarespace website is for dog training services offered in Bellingham, WA then type the main service into Google and pay attention to the related keyword suggestions that automatically show up:

Or if you own a dance studio in Sedona, AZ your keyword research might begin like this:

Choose and take note of all keywords that apply to your website (I use a Google Drive document to keep track of target keywords and other SEO details for any given site).

After this, you'll want to start thinking of more detailed search queries people might be searching, or different search queries they might enter that correspond to your website. Such as:

If your dance studio in Sedona offers bellydance classes, then you would also want to add those first two keywords to your list.

My Squarespace SEO Expert course goes into depth on keyword research.

Using Related Keywords

When investigating keywords for our site, another useful tool in our tool belt is Google's Related Keywords feature.

Once you've found a keyword using the aforementioned Suggested Keywords approach, you can scroll down the page of search results and eventually you'll see a section entitled Related Searches.

So for our dog trainer bellingham wa keyword, if I scroll down the search results page I will see these related searches:

This provides us with even more keywords and avenues to explore!

Using Google Keyword Planner

Google's Keyword Planner is a great way to find keywords.

While it was developed to assist in creating ad campaigns, you can actually use it as a free tool without creating an ad.

Below is access to a video tutorial from my Squarespace SEO Expert Course which will show you exactly how to use Keyword Planner to unearth more keywords for your website.

squarespace seo services, squarespace seo tools, squarespace seo expert.png

Part 2

Site Meta Title Description

One of the lesser known ways to REALLY optimize the search engine performance of a Squarespace website is by taking advantage of the SEO Title formats of the site.

For this reason, I always create a site meta title description. This site meta title description then gets pasted into specific places in the backend settings.

But before I show you where to put it, we first need to compile one. So let’s begin there.

Compiling a Site Meta Title Description

—>Note: Site meta title descriptions cannot be over 300 characters on Squarespace, but optimal length is aroud 160 characters.

Site meta title descriptions do show up in the browser tab and when links to your site are shared on various social media, though only the beginning of the description shows, not the entire thing.

Structuring Your Site Meta Title Description

When creating your site meta title description, you have to write for both human and robot.

Because we want to connect with our target audience using the explicit keywords they’re searching for, I usually create site meta titles simply using straightforward keywords that lack in sentence structure.

But remember that the very beginning of the site meta title description will be visible in browsers and when shared on social media, so the approach I take is to write the beginning of the site meta title description for human eyes, and the rest of the description for robot (search engine) reading.

📝 TIP: Be sure to include the keywords that you most want to rank for 📝

SO FOR OUR BELLINGHAM DOG TRAINER EXAMPLE, I MIGHT CREATE THE FOLLOWING SITE META TITLE DESCRIPTION:

Professional dog trainers in Bellingham, WA, providing group training classes and private sessions — Bellingham Dog Training | Bellingham Dog Trainers | Reactive Dog Training Bellingham | Dog Training Ferndale

➣ I go into more detail on how to compile your site meta title description in my Squarespace SEO Expert Course.

Where to place the site meta title description

Logged into your Squarespace site, you’ll go to SETTINGS > MARKETING > SEO APPEARANCE.

This is what you should see:

Paste your site meta title description into the SEO TITLE FORMAT field and the SEO SITE DESCRIPTION field.

Click on the other tabs up top —PAGES and ITEMS— and paste your site meta title description there too.

Part 3

Page URLs

Throughout the years as a Squarespace SEO Specialist, I've come to realize the importance of page URLs as a ranking factor.

Rather than using automatically generated URLs like /about or /services, optimize your page URL with a target keyword.

For general pages of your site, I recommend using a general keyword e.g "dog-trainers-bellingham" but for pages with more specific content, use the corresponding keyword e.g. "reactive dog training bellingham."

1. Click the gear icon beside the page in question

2. Add your optimized URL (Keyword) to the URL slug field

3. Click save!

Part 4

Page Descriptions & SEO Descriptions

Now we need to add keyword-rich page descriptions and SEO descriptions to each page of our Squarespace site.

This is similar to the site meta title description we created above, except we’ll compile it specifically for the page we’re working on, as opposed to the entire site in general.

Note: Squarespace version 7.1 no longer offers this page description field, but if your site was designed using version 7.0 you will still have access to this field for optimization.

Compiling page description + SEO description

Just like your site meta title description, the first line or two of your page/SEO description will show on Google and social media. For this reason, I write the first sentence as a page description for human eyes, and then structure the target keywords for the page behind that.

Let’s use our Bellingham dog trainer example, and let’s pretend we’re compiling a page/SEO description for the SERVICES page of the site. I might structure it to read something like this:

We work for the well-being of you and your dog. Browse a list of the dog training services we provide — Dog Training Bellingham | Bellingham Dog Trainers | Best Dog Training Classes Bellingham

…and so on.

See how the first line and a half are for human eyes and then our keywords for search engines are added in? This is the method I use to optimize pages, and it has yielded good results.

Placing the page / SEO descriptions

In your backend settings, locate the page you want to optimize and select the gear icon next to it.

From the Page Settings menu, select SEO.

Then paste your page description for this page into the SEO description field.

If you’re using Squarespace version 7.0, you can also add this description to your page description field, in general page settings.

Be sure to save your work.

Part 5

Using Keywords in Text Content

It's important to use the keyword(s) you're targeting throughout a specific page, both in the body text and -especially- heading texts.

It's also important to do this tastefully.

By that I mean: incorporate your keyword(s) into text organically so that it's natural feeling to the reader.

Let's look at some methods and ideas of doing this.

Continuing to use our Bellingham dog trainer example, let’s pretend we’re working on a page of our website specifically focusing on the keyword: reactive dog training bellingham.

At the top of the page, we could create an intro statement such as: “Is your dog reactive? Dog training can help bring balance.”

Or something along these lines. The point is to place the keyword into a statement in an organic way. It might be a little awkward if the top of the page read “Reactive Dog Training Bellingham” right?

This is also a good spot -above the fold- to use H1 and/or H2 text formatting and a nice image. (You’ll learn how to optimize images in just a bit!).

Here’s an example of how the top of the page might look:

Is your dog reactive?

DOG TRAINING CAN HELP BRING BALANCE

Search engines observe a hierarchy when it comes to the text formats they prioritize, which is intuitively H1 having most priority, on down to H3, H4, and normal body text.

As you develop text content for this page, keep in mind to incorporate your keyword whenever possible and in an organic natural way (I can’t stress this latter part enough- don’t overdo it and get spammy).

🗹

Part 6

Optimizing Image Files

Image files are great opportunities for incorporating keywords onto the page.

Files should be optimized before uploading to the site, and then within the Squarespace platform after uploading to the site.

How you’ll optimize the image after uploading depends on the type of block you’ve chosen to display it.

Let’s go through all the different ways to optimize an image on your Squarespace website.

Two main things to do before uploading images to your squarespace site:

♦️ RESIZE - images used for banners/full-width display should be no more than 2500px on the longest side, and images to be used throughout the site (not as full-width) should be resized to no more than 1500px on the longest side.

♦️ RENAME - change the filenames of all images to contain the keyword(s) for your page. For example: dog-training-bellingham-wa.jpg

Optimizing image files on-site after uploading:

GALLERIES + PORTFOLIOS:

We can place our keyword(s) in the title and/or description of each image within a gallery block, depending on the gallery block being used and the version of Squarespace we're using.

Here is a small gallery on my site homepage. Hover over an image and then click the gear icon, then add your keyword(s) to the title and/or description.

Just make sure your settings are such that the title and/or description are set to NOT show.

REGULAR IMAGE BLOCKS:

Within regular standalone image blocks, there are opportunities to embed your keyword(s) onto the page using the filename:

And in Squarespace version 7.0 you can also utilize the caption field:

Just be sure to set the caption to "off" after you've added it. This allows search engine robots to "see" it, but not humans.

If there are other image types you still have questions about that aren't mentioned here, please feel free to email me at tiffany@tiffany-davidson.com - I'm happy to provide instruction.

Part 7

Optimizing Blog Posts

Blogging for SEO is a big deal, which is why I emphasize and go into depth about structuring posts, comprehensive optimization strategies, and blog layout and design in my Squarespace SEO Expert course.

Most of the optimization methods we’ve already covered apply to blog posts too, but there are some key distinctions here and there that differentiate a blog post from any other page of your website.

Let me show you how to embed your target keyword throughout each post.

1. Optimize Blog Post Url

Just like we covered earlier in this article for pages, a blog post MUST have an optimized URL.

By optimized, we mean: the URL must contain the keyword.

For our example, let’s use a keyword from this website’s blog: wedding planner website design.

Since this is the keyword I’m targeting, I put it into the blog post URL field verbatim, using hyphens to separate words:

You access this area in the blog post’s backend settings, accessible by going to your blog list, then clicking EDIT to the right of the post, then choosing the OPTIONS tab:

2.Optimize Blog Post Thumbnail Image

The other thing you need to do while in the OPTIONS tab of your blog post settings is upload an optimized thumbnail.

To optimize the image, refer back to the earlier instructions in this post: resize and rename.

RESIZE: The thumbnail image needs to be no longer than 1500px on the longest side

RENAME: Rename your image filename to be the keyword for this blog post, e.g.: wedding-planner-website-design.jpg

After you’ve done these two things -then- upload as the Featured Image for this post.

3.Add SEO Description

Next, you’ll go to the SEO tab of the blog post settings and enter an SEO description, making sure to incorporate the keyword.

4.Optimize Blog Post Title

Page titles and URLs, remember? Muy importante!

Optimize your blog post title by incorporating the keyword into the title.

Now we move to the on-page blog post settings!

5. Optimize Image files

Just like on general pages of your Squarespace site, you need to add your keyword to all of the images within a blog post.

Do this by adding the keyword for this specific blog post in the filename and caption fields of each image, remembering to set the caption to OFF after you’ve added it.

6. Include keyword throughout post

Try to include your keyword as much as possible without being spammy or unnatural.

One way to do this is to restate your title after the introduction paragraph(s) of the post. Use slightly different language than the title, while still including some variation of the keyword.

7. Add Call-To-Actions

If it’s appropriate, you can feature call-to-actions within the blog post.

But I always make sure to add one at the bottom of the post.

Why? Because otherwise, what does a reader do once they reach the end of the post? If you don’t provide them with somewhere else to go [on your website, ideally], they’ll likely click away.

What kind of CTA you use will depend on the blog post topic. Maybe it’s a link to browse your portfolio, or to view your services (or a specific service), or maybe it’s a link to purchase a course or other digital product.

You can present your CTA as a simple text link, an image with a link embedded, a button, etc.

You have them on your website, now keep them.

Blog post design, layout, sidebar, and other elements also play an important role in overall SEO and performance.

A Squarespace blog can be a powerful tool for the success of your brand.

I delve deeper into blogging for SEO in my Squarespace SEO Expert course.

Part 8

Indexing Pages with Google Search Console

Using Google Search Console allows us to keep Google informed of the latest changes to our website, so they can reindex accordingly without any delay.

Anytime a significant update or optimization is made on a page, a new page created, or a new blog post published, it’s a good habit to hop over to Search Console and request indexing for that URL.

This is a simple process, so let’s run through the steps.

1. Create a Search Console Account

Sign up for Search Console here.

You'll need a Google email address to do this.

Here is an in-depth article covering how to setup and verify Search Console, including how to input your sitemap.

2. Connect Search Console to Squarespace

Login to your Squarespace site, go to Settings > Third Party Tools > Connected Accounts > Connect Account > Search Console, then follow the instructions and prompts.

3. Submit URLs for Inspection + Indexing

Now you want to check all URLs around your site to make sure they’re showing up in Google. For example, if you have a 5-page website with a Home page, About page, Services page, Portfolio page, and Contact page, then you would want to submit each unique URL separately for inspection and indexing.

To do this, click URL Inspection in the left dashboard menu on Search Console. Enter the URL you want to get indexed in the top search bar, hit enter.

Then click REQUEST INDEXING.

When you publish a new blog post, get into the habit of coming over to Search Console and submitting the URL.

Conclusion

I hope this comprehensive checklist has been helpful for you.

You can refer to it often until Squarespace SEO tasks become a habit for you.

If you still find that, despite doing all of the above, your site is still not ranking on Google page 1 for your target keywords, here are more in-depth Squarespace SEO solutions I recommend, in descending order of cost:

✨Click here to Download a .pdf of this article to keep on hand!✨

Featured

Squarespace SEO: Getting My Clients to Google Page 1 in 2023

Squarespace SEO, Part 6: Getting My Clients to Google Page 1 in 2022

Squarespace SEO, Part 5: Getting My Clients To Google Page 1 in 2021

A Comprehensive SEO Checklist for Squarespace Websites in 2024

Contents

Keyword Research

Site meta title description

Page URLs

Page + SEO Descriptions

Including Keywords in Text Content

Optimizing Image Files

Optimizing Blog Posts

Indexing Pages with Google Search COnsole

Part 1

Keyword Research

How to find keywords for your Squarespace site

But how do you know the right keywords for your site?

Suggested Keywords

My Squarespace SEO Expert course goes into depth on keyword research.

Using Related Keywords

Using Google Keyword Planner

Part 2

Site Meta Title Description

Compiling a Site Meta Title Description

Structuring Your Site Meta Title Description

➣ I go into more detail on how to compile your site meta title description in my Squarespace SEO Expert Course.

Where to place the site meta title description

Part 3 Page URLs

Page URLs

1. Click the gear icon beside the page in question

2. Add your optimized URL (Keyword) to the URL slug field

3. Click save!

Part 4 Page Descriptions & SEO Descriptions

Page Descriptions & SEO Descriptions

Compiling page description + SEO description

We work for the well-being of you and your dog. Browse a list of the dog training services we provide — Dog Training Bellingham | Bellingham Dog Trainers | Best Dog Training Classes Bellingham

Placing the page / SEO descriptions

Part 5 Using Keywords in Text Content

Using Keywords in Text Content

Is your dog reactive?

DOG TRAINING CAN HELP BRING BALANCE

🗹

Part 6

Optimizing Image Files

Two main things to do before uploading images to your squarespace site:

Optimizing image files on-site after uploading:

Part 7

Optimizing Blog Posts

1. Optimize Blog Post Url

2.Optimize Blog Post Thumbnail Image

3.Add SEO Description

4.Optimize Blog Post Title

5. Optimize Image files

6. Include keyword throughout post

7. Add Call-To-Actions

Part 8

Indexing Pages with Google Search Console

1. Create a Search Console Account

2. Connect Search Console to Squarespace

3. Submit URLs for Inspection + Indexing

Conclusion

✨Click here to Download a .pdf of this article to keep on hand!✨

**How to find keywords for your Squarespace site**

Part 3

Page URLs

Part 4

Page Descriptions & SEO Descriptions

Part 5

Using Keywords in Text Content