# Our SEO guidelines for new projects As a development consultancy, we get the chance to work on very different products and projects. From all of them, we learn something new, but in all of them, we apply our previous knowledge. With dozens of different projects in well over five years, we've compiled our SEO 101 that we apply to all our projects. *** ## Tools ### Google Search Console **URL:** **Description:** Google Search Console is a powerful tool for managing your domains and monitoring their performance in Google search. From domain verification to keyword analysis and error tracking, this is an indispensable tool. * Use the **domain property** verification method to automatically include all variants of your domain (e.g., http/https, www/non-www). * Key features: * **Core Web Vitals** report to monitor performance metrics like Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) and Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS). * **Index Coverage** to track and resolve indexing issues. ### Google Analytics 4 (GA4) **URL:** **Description:** GA4 is the latest iteration of Google Analytics, offering event-based tracking, privacy-centric data collection, and predictive insights. It replaces Universal Analytics. * Obtain the GA4 tracking code from the Admin section and embed it in the `` of your HTML. * GA4 supports custom event tracking and enhanced measurement for scrolls, video engagement, and more. *** ## Sitemap The sitemap is typically an XML file that describes the structure of your site and is placed at the root of the project. * Use dynamic sitemaps generated by CMSs or frameworks to ensure they stay up-to-date with site changes. * Submit your sitemap URL via Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools. Example dynamic sitemap URL: . *** ## Robots.txt Robots.txt guides crawlers on how to interact with your site. It is located at ``. * Modern best practices: * Allow access to important resources like JavaScript and CSS for proper rendering and indexing. * Example configuration: ```plaintext User-agent: * Disallow: Sitemap: https://www.marsbased.com/sitemap.xml ``` Test and submit your robots.txt file using Google Search Console. *** ## HTTPS Ensure HTTPS is enforced site-wide, as non-HTTPS sites are flagged as insecure and perform poorly in rankings. * Use **HTTP/2** for improved speed and performance. * Implement **HSTS (HTTP Strict Transport Security)** for additional security. *** ## Tags, Metatags, and Schema.org ### Metatags Modern SEO no longer uses outdated tags like `author` or `copyright`. Instead, include: ```html ``` ### Schema.org Use **JSON-LD** for structured data, as it's preferred by search engines: ```json ``` Validate with [Google’s Rich Results Test](https://search.google.com/test/rich-results). *** ## Content Key guidelines for content creation: * Use **E-E-A-T** principles: demonstrate Experience, Expertise, Authority, and Trustworthiness. * Internal linking: ensure every page is linked to another for full crawlability. * Avoid duplicate content. For necessary duplicates (e.g., multi-language), use canonical tags: ```html ``` * Optimize headers: * Only one `

` per page. * Maintain hierarchical structure (e.g., `

` under `

`, `

` under `

`). *** ## Bonus Track #1: Migrations For URL structure or domain migrations: * Use 301 redirects to preserve SEO value. Example: ```plaintext Redirect 301 /old-page /new-page ``` * Audit the migration using tools like [Screaming Frog SEO Spider](https://www.screamingfrog.co.uk/seo-spider/). * ## Bonus Track #2: Multi-language Sites Use hreflang tags to signal equivalent content in different languages: ```html ``` Validate hreflang implementations using tools like [Ahrefs](https://ahrefs.com/) or [Semrush](https://www.semrush.com/). * By following these updated guidelines, you'll ensure your projects are SEO-optimized and aligned with modern best practices. --- # Agent Instructions: Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter: ``` GET https://handbook.marsbased.com/our-guides/seo-guidelines.md?ask= ``` The question should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.