1: SEF URLS: Search engine friendly URL's are important, because inclusion of keywords in page URL's are taken into account, and have a bearing on rankings - particularly on Yahoo. Being able to exercise total control over page URL's is important, and WordPress allows this with Permalink mod_rewrite functionality, coupled with manual URL control on every page or post!
2: Titles: Being able to control the off-page Title separately from the on-page heading is very important. The title's 70 character limitation needs to be exploited to maximum effect. It's the single most important on-site page SEO element! Page Headings are usually space-constrained, and in systems where the Heading automatically becomes the Title, you are deprived of a significant advantage.
3: Description: The off-page Description (meta-tag) is a vital element in accurately describing the page contents. If each page has accurate, custom-written Description content, it's used verbatim in the search engine results pages (SERP's). In contrast, if you are forced to use a generic Description, then Google will helpfully do its level best to generate an 'ad lib' Description of the page based on content. The result of that can either be not so bad, or truly awful. Regardless, its essential that YOU have control of the Description, and that you use it to maximum effect!
4: Keywords: Erroneously dismissed by some people as of no account these days, the Keyword (meta-tag) still has a part to play. Stuff it full of vaguely relevant garbage unrelated to page content and it will be ignored. Use it wisely, with specific / relevant long-tailed keyword search phrases and it can give you a little bit of SE traction - even on Google!
5: Image File Names: Accurately name your image files, and include keywords relevant to the page. WordPress allows you to upload media and retain the original files names even when auto-generating thumbnail images etc.
6: Image ALT Tags: Accurately describe your images using the Image ALT tag, and include keywords/phrases relevant to the page. WordPress Add Media tools allow you to add ALT text and captions, enabling inclusion of additional relevant text content. Used wisely, without spamming, it's another useful element.
7: Anchor Text: The words you use to link to other pages / sections of the site. WordPress Link Editor allows full control of anchor Text links, including the ability to specify "Hyperlink Title" which essentially works like Image ALT text - the title of the link pops up when the mouse pointer hovers over the link... Again, used wisely, its another useful SEO element.
8: CSS Dropdown Menus: Many of the new, highly professional WordPress CMS Themes utilise CSS dropdown menus, which is extremely important in aiding search engines to locate and index internal pages. This also facilitates Google's ability to pass Page Rank throughout the internal page structure!
9: Google SiteMaps: Another delightful WordPress plugin is the automatic Google Sitemap Generator! Once installed and configured, every new page, post or edit of a page or post automatically updates the sitemap.xml page!
10: RSS Feeds: WordPress RSS feeds are easily extended by installation of an onsite Feedburner email subscription service, where your posts and pages are automatically distributed to subscribers by email. Moreover, your Feedburner account and site feed gives your site a pipeline directly into the Google index! I regularly see WordPress posts that make it into Google Alerts distribution in less than 4 hours!
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