SEO Page Analysis: What to Check and Why It Matters

On-page SEO is where rankings are won or lost. You can have the best content in the world, but if search engines can’t understand what your page is about, you’re invisible.

The good news: on-page SEO is entirely within your control. Unlike backlinks or domain authority, you can fix these issues today and see results.

What On-Page SEO Actually Means

On-page SEO refers to the elements on your webpage that help search engines understand your content:

• Title tags: The headline that appears in search results
• Meta descriptions: The snippet below the title in search results
• Heading structure: H1, H2, H3 tags that organize your content
• Structured data: Machine-readable markup (JSON-LD) that enables rich snippets
• Content relevance: Whether your page actually covers what it claims to

These elements work together. A great title tag means nothing if your content doesn’t deliver on the promise.

Title Tags: Your First Impression

The title tag is the single most important on-page SEO element. It appears in:

• Search engine results pages (SERPs)
• Browser tabs
• Social media shares (as a fallback)

What Makes a Good Title Tag

• Length: 50-60 characters (Google truncates longer titles)
• Primary keyword: Include it early, but naturally
• Brand: Add your brand name if there’s room
• Uniqueness: Every page needs a unique title

Common Title Tag Mistakes

<!-- Too long - will be truncated -->
<title>The Complete Ultimate Guide to Everything You Need to Know About SEO in 2026</title>

<!-- Keyword stuffing - looks spammy -->
<title>SEO Guide SEO Tips SEO Tricks SEO Hacks | Best SEO</title>

<!-- Missing entirely -->
<title>Untitled</title>

<!-- Good -->
<title>SEO Page Analysis Guide: What to Check | Corco Labs</title>

Meta Descriptions: Your Sales Pitch

Meta descriptions don’t directly affect rankings, but they affect click-through rates—which indirectly affects rankings.

What Makes a Good Meta Description

• Length: 150-160 characters
• Call to action: Give users a reason to click
• Accurate summary: Match what the page actually offers
• Unique per page: No duplicates

<!-- Too generic -->
<meta name="description" content="Learn about SEO on our website." />

<!-- Good -->
<meta
  name="description"
  content="A practical guide to on-page SEO. Learn what to check, why it matters, and how to fix issues. Free tools and actionable advice."
/>

If you don’t provide a meta description, Google will generate one from your page content—often with poor results.

Heading Structure: Organizing for Humans and Bots

HTML headings (H1-H6) create a content hierarchy. Search engines use them to understand your page structure.

The Rules

• One H1 per page: Your main topic
• Logical nesting: H2s under H1, H3s under H2
• Descriptive headings: Use them to summarize sections
• Don’t skip levels: Don’t jump from H1 to H4

Why It Matters

Proper heading structure:

• Helps screen readers navigate
• Enables featured snippets (Google often pulls from H2s and H3s)
• Improves content scanability
• Signals topic relevance to search engines

Structured Data: Speaking Google’s Language

Structured data (usually JSON-LD) provides explicit context about your content. It enables rich results like:

• Star ratings
• FAQ dropdowns
• Recipe cards
• Event listings
• How-to steps

Common Schema Types

Type	Use Case
Article	Blog posts, news articles
Product	E-commerce product pages
FAQPage	FAQ sections
LocalBusiness	Physical business locations
Organization	Company information
BreadcrumbList	Navigation breadcrumbs

Example: Article Schema

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Article",
  "headline": "SEO Page Analysis Guide",
  "description": "A practical guide to on-page SEO analysis.",
  "author": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Corco Labs"
  },
  "datePublished": "2026-01-30",
  "publisher": {
    "@type": "Organization",
    "name": "Corco Labs"
  }
}

Keyword Consistency

Search engines look for topical consistency. If your title promises “SEO page analysis,” your content should deliver that—not pivot to a different topic.

Check for:

• Primary keyword in title, H1, and first paragraph
• Related terms throughout the content (semantic SEO)
• No keyword stuffing (unnatural repetition)
• Topic depth (comprehensive coverage)

Common On-Page Issues

Missing or Duplicate Elements

• No title tag
• Duplicate titles across pages
• Missing meta descriptions
• Same H1 on every page

Technical Problems

• Multiple H1 tags on a single page
• Title tag doesn’t match H1 (confusing signals)
• Broken structured data (invalid JSON-LD)
• Missing canonical tags (duplicate content risk)

Content Mismatches

• Thin content (not enough substance)
• Keyword cannibalization (multiple pages targeting the same term)
• Outdated information (old dates, dead links)

How to Audit Your Pages

Checking all these elements manually is tedious. You need to:

1. View the page source
2. Find the title tag in the <head>
3. Check the meta description
4. Review heading structure
5. Validate structured data
6. Compare against best practices

This is exactly why we built our SEO Page Analyzer. Enter any URL and it automatically checks:

• Title tag length and content
• Meta description presence and length
• Heading hierarchy (H1, H2, H3)
• Structured data validation
• Keyword consistency
• Open Graph tags for social sharing

It’s free, gives you a score, and provides specific recommendations for each issue.

Prioritizing Fixes

Not all SEO issues are equal. Here’s how to prioritize:

High Priority

• Missing or duplicate title tags
• No H1 tag
• Broken structured data
• Missing canonical tags

Medium Priority

• Title too long/short
• Missing meta description
• Suboptimal heading structure

Lower Priority

• Meta description length optimization
• Adding more schema types
• Fine-tuning keyword placement

Beyond Single-Page Analysis

Single-page analysis is the starting point. For a complete picture, you also need:

• Site-wide crawls: Find issues across all pages
• Competitor analysis: See what’s working for others
• Rank tracking: Measure the impact of changes
• Backlink analysis: Understand your authority

But on-page SEO is where you start—it’s the foundation everything else builds on.

Take Action

Pick one of your important pages and run it through our SEO Page Analyzer. Fix the high-priority issues first, then work your way down.

If you need help with a comprehensive SEO audit or technical implementation, get in touch—we’re happy to help.