You don’t need to be a developer to understand SEO. These five on-page techniques are practical, free, and will immediately improve how search engines — and real humans — find and read your content.
Search Engine Optimisation sounds complicated — and the technical side of it genuinely is. But on-page SEO, the practice of optimising individual pages and posts to rank higher in search results, is something any marketing student can learn and apply today with zero budget and no coding skills.
I’ve been studying digital marketing for three years, and these five techniques have consistently made the biggest difference in how my content performs in Google. If you’re building a portfolio website or writing a blog, start here.
What is On-Page SEO?
On-page SEO refers to all optimisations you make directly within a webpage to improve its ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). Unlike off-page SEO (link building), on-page SEO is entirely within your control — which makes it the perfect starting point.
The 5 Techniques
1
Optimise Your Title Tag and Meta Description
The title tag is the clickable headline that appears in Google search results. The meta description is the short paragraph beneath it. Together, they are the first impression your page makes — and they directly affect whether someone clicks through to your site.
- Title tag should be 50–60 characters — longer gets cut off in Google
- Include your primary keyword as close to the beginning as possible
- Meta description should be 150–160 characters — write it like ad copy
- Use Yoast SEO plugin in WordPress to fill these in — it shows you a live preview
Example
Page About Our Marketing Services | Company
Digital Marketing Services Vancouver | [Your Name] Portfolio
2
Use Heading Tags Correctly (H1, H2, H3)
Heading tags create structure for both readers and search engines. A well-organised page with clear headings is easier to scan, signals content hierarchy to Google’s crawlers, and improves accessibility.
- Each page should have exactly one H1 — this is your page title in WordPress
- Use H2 tags for your main sections and include relevant keywords naturally
- Use H3 tags for sub-points within H2 sections
- Never skip heading levels (don’t jump from H1 to H4)
- In WordPress: use the Heading block and select the level from the toolbar
3
Write a Focus Keyphrase and Use It Naturally
A focus keyphrase is the main search term you want your page to rank for. It should appear in your title tag, first paragraph, at least one H2 heading, and throughout the body text — but only where it reads naturally.
- Choose a keyphrase with search intent in mind: informational (“how to”), navigational (brand names), or transactional (“buy”, “hire”)
- Aim for long-tail keyphrases (3–5 words) — they have lower competition and clearer intent. Example: “social media marketing tips for students” beats “marketing tips”
- Use Yoast SEO in WordPress — enter your focus keyphrase in the Yoast panel at the bottom of the post editor. It will flag where you need to add it.
- Never keyword-stuff — Google penalises unnatural repetition
Focus Keyphrase for This Post
“on-page SEO techniques for marketing students” — appears in the title, opening paragraph, and H2 headings throughout this post.
4
Optimise Every Image with Alt Text
Search engines cannot see images — they read alt text, the written description attached to every image on your site. Alt text also makes your site accessible to users with visual impairments who use screen readers, which is both an ethical consideration and a ranking factor.
- Every image on your site must have alt text — no exceptions
- Describe the image accurately and include your keyphrase where it genuinely fits
- Keep alt text under 125 characters
- In WordPress: click any image in the block editor → find the Alt Text field in the right sidebar → type your description
- For your featured image: Media → Library → click image → edit the Alt Text field
Alt Text Example
image1.jpg (no alt text)
“Marketing student reviewing on-page SEO analytics dashboard on laptop.”
5
Add Internal Links Between Your Pages and Posts
Internal linking is the practice of connecting your pages and posts to each other using hyperlinks. It helps Google discover all your content, understand the relationship between your pages, and distribute “link equity” (ranking power) across your site.
- Every blog post should link to at least 2–3 other pages on your site
- Use descriptive anchor text — the clickable words should describe where the link goes. “Click here” tells Google nothing; “my digital marketing portfolio” tells it everything.
- Link to your most important pages from multiple posts (e.g., always link to your Portfolio or Contact page)
- In WordPress: highlight text in the block editor → click the Link icon → search for and select any published page or post
| # | Technique | Where to Do It in WordPress | SEO Impact | Time Required |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Title Tag & Meta Description | Yoast SEO panel (below post editor) | High | 5 min per page |
| 2 | Heading Tags (H1–H3) | Block editor → Heading block | High | 10 min per post |
| 3 | Focus Keyphrase Placement | Yoast SEO panel → Focus Keyphrase field | High | 15 min per post |
| 4 | Image Alt Text | Block editor sidebar or Media Library | Medium | 2 min per image |
| 5 | Internal Linking | Block editor → Link icon on selected text | Medium | 5–10 min per post |
Putting It All Together
The good news is that once you’ve done these five steps for one page or post, the process becomes second nature. Most professional marketers complete on-page SEO in under 20 minutes per piece of content — it’s a small time investment with compounding returns as your content ages in search results.
For marketing students specifically, demonstrating that your portfolio website is SEO-optimized is itself a powerful portfolio item. An employer who sees that you understand keyphrase research, metadata, and content structure will take you more seriously than a candidate who can only talk about theory.
Next Steps: Once you’ve applied these five techniques, go to Google Search Console (connect it via Google Site Kit) and submit your XML sitemap (Yoast SEO generates this automatically at yoursite.com/sitemap.xml). This tells Google to index your new content faster.
SEO is a long game. You won’t rank on page one overnight. But every post you optimize correctly is an asset that compounds over time — and that patience and consistency are exactly what separates good marketers from great ones.
Tags: SEO, on-page SEO, WordPress, SEO, Yoast, SEO, content marketing, digital marketing tips
Mark Balisi
4th-year Business Administration (Marketing) student. Passionate about digital strategy, content marketing, and helping brands grow their online presence. Currently building my marketing portfolio — connect with me on LinkedIn.
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