Every part of a website, from how it’s set up to the keywords chosen, the content, and more, will have an impact on search engine optimization (SEO) for that website. It is crucial to be aware of this, as well as what can positively or negatively impact the SEO, and of what changes can be made to help the page rank higher.
When a website is being designed, keeping thematic relevance in mind can help the website rank higher for broad and narrow keywords, enhancing the overall ranking of the website. This will ensure more traffic, views, and opportunities to convert visitors into customers.
What Is Thematic Relevance?
Thematic relevance is the establishment of an overall theme for the website through targeted keywords. The pages on the website should be tied together with these keywords, so every page on the website is connected and relevant.
In most cases, this is done automatically as the website is being created. A website that sells books, for instance, will have keywords relating to books throughout the website that lead to the main overall theme of books.
Books, in this example, would be the main theme of the website, and keywords associated with that would be used throughout the website. For instance, there might be one page about non-fiction books, another about fiction books, and another about kids’ books.
All relate back to the main theme of books, even though each page is based on a more narrow keyword. Pages linked from these can have the next level of keywords, such as autobiographies under non-fiction books, which still fits under the theme of books.
This naturally happens as the website is created since the website is designed to help sell books. Being aware of the thematic relevance of the website, however, can help the designer know where to focus and how to set up the pages, so each one helps the main theme rank as well as the narrower keywords.
For this example, the website would rank for the more specific subject of kids’ activity books as well as the broader subject of children’s books.
How Thematic Relevance Works With SEO
Google doesn’t just look for keywords on a website – the search engine now looks at a lot more. When it’s scanning a website, it looks at what all of the pages are and what each one includes.
Using the example of books, the search engine would notice that the website has a page for non-fiction books, one for kids’ books, and one for fiction books. It then determines that the overall website is about books and would be relevant for anyone who searching for books.
When websites are ranked, they’re ranked based on how helpful they appear to be for the internet user completing a specific search. If the website has specific types of books as well as an overall theme of books, it’ll likely rank higher for searches about non-fiction books or kids’ books, as well as books in general.
Using progressively more specific keywords helps the search engine determine exactly what the website is about and how it should rank for various keywords.
How to Use Thematic Relevance When Building A Website
When a website is being designed, it can be created with thematic relevance in mind to help organize the website and develop keywords. The main page will focus on the primary theme for the website, such as books. Then, that page can link to other pages that support the main page and discuss more specific topics.
As the pages are created and linked to, they can get progressively more specific, so they can go from non-fiction to a type of non-fiction book, then to various authors who write non-fiction books, then to specific books available for sale. Each page is more specific than the previous layer, but it still relates to the broader theme of books.
As the website continues to grow, the website designer should continue to focus on the main theme. Articles posted on the website to help with optimization should keep the main theme in mind and relate back to it in some way, even if they’re focused on a far more specific topic.
With the books example, a blog post might talk about a specific author. This still relates to books, so it can help boost the ranking of books in the search engine results.
SEO Can’t Be One Page
One thing to keep in mind is that one page of SEO-relevant content is not going to be enough. The main page should be optimized for the search engines, but everything else should be as well, including the overall design, the hierarchy of the website, and the content on each individual page.
SEO success depends on the website having multiple, well-organized pages that are properly connected. It also depends on the website having multiple specific keywords that all support the overall theme of the website.
It is important to make sure the website is easily navigable by connecting pages that relate to each other. Under the non-fiction books, for instance, there can be more specific pages for different types of non-fiction books.
These can all be connected back to the main non-fiction page, which connects back to the main page for the website. Links help add in keywords that contribute to thematic relevance in addition to connecting the pages, which makes it easier to navigate the website.
Using Page Hierarchy To Build A Website
All websites start with the main page that has other pages linked to it. This shouldn’t be just two levels, though. There should be multiple levels that are all interconnected and work together to promote the basic theme of the website.
With books, it’s possible to have a main page showcasing the different types of books, then progressively create narrower topics as the website is designed.
This will serve to connect all pages together, but it also helps boost the SEO for the website. The architecture of the website is something search engines like Google look at when they’re determining the ranking for websites.
They use the hierarchy to identify the overall theme of the website. That is reinforced by the manner in which everything fits together. When search engines crawl all of the pages, the arrangement of the pages should all point to the main theme of the website to help it rank higher.
Boost SEO Further With Offsite Content And Backlinks
Search engine optimization doesn’t just depend on what’s on the website. Offsite content and backlinks can help boost SEO, as well as the thematically relevant content on the website.
Offsite content and backlinks can include articles, blog posts, social posts, videos, and much more. When these are posted elsewhere and lead back to the website, they can encourage clicks.
Though the backlinks and offsite content do have to be high quality, having a variety of them can help show the search engines that the website is an authority on the subject and will therefore help the website rank higher.
When creating content for use offsite or generating backlinks to the website, keep thematic relevance in mind as well. Keywords used in offsite content or backlinks should relate to the website and its overall theme.
This helps the search engines know what keywords to boost and can help keep everything related back to the main theme of the website.
How to Get Help With Thematic Relevancy
Thematic relevancy can be difficult to fully understand and implement, especially if the website is already under construction or the website designer doesn’t have a background in SEO. However, there are options for creating a thematically relevant website with the assistance of professionals who specialize in thematic relevancy.
The SEO specialist or content development agency will be able to create a thematically relevant website and help boost the ranking potential of the website in other ways as well. This helps the website rank much higher, which can help draw in more customers for the business.
These professionals already know how thematic relevancy works and how to fine-tune everything to ensure all landing pages and categories are optimized. SEO specialists also know how to continue adding to the website as part of an ongoing strategy to gain higher search engine rankings and maintain them.
Thematic relevance is essential to this process and an SEO professional will know how to put it at the forefront of a strategy.
Ranking highly can be difficult to do with all of the competition coming from so many sources online. However, thematic relevance can help websites be far better organized while putting a more visitor-centric focus on the products and services a website provides.
This adds up to higher conversion and more profitable engagement from the traffic that’s gained through higher rankings.
If you’re ready to work on the optimization of your website, make sure that thematic relevance is a priority in your website’s architecture, content, and overall SEO strategy.
